The Nigerian government has inaugurated the National Council on Skills designed to further boost the employability of young Nigerians and reduce unemployment.
Nigeria’s Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said on Friday that the council was launched in addition to the efforts made by the Federal Government in the past four years to address unemployment.
He said the council’s inauguration was an indication of the commitment of the government to address problems associated with the skills gap and youth unemployment in the country.
Osinbajo, who also chairs the Council, said: “The present administration has really prioritized the skilling and employment of Nigerian youths and this is borne out of what we have in our Economic and Recovery and Growth Plan.
“We consider that vocational and digital technology skills are critical in the effort of this government not only to provide employment for our young people, but also as an important feature of diversifying our economy.
“There is no question at all that one of the critical questions that come up all the time is the employability of our young men and women. ‘’
He said it was becoming increasingly evident that it was not enough to have the certificate to compete favourably today.
“It is important that young men and women have requisite skills, technical and digital skills to enable them to find a place, especially in the job market of this challenging 21st century,” he said
The council, the Vice President, said should formulate skills development policies and also layout plans and strategies for skills development in Nigeria.
It would also direct the conduct of regular skills survey to identify the skills gap in the country so that training would be demand-based and to fast track the institutionalization of the National Skills Qualification Framework in Nigeria, and also to enforce legislation on the use of certified professionals in the country.
“The council will also bring coherence to skills development in the country by the facilitation of policy formulation,” Osinbajo added.
He expressed the hope that the national council, which is the highest decision-making body on skills development in Nigeria, “is a major step forward for us in our human resource development plan”.
The Council has Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, as first Deputy Chairman, while the Chairman of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, is second Deputy Chairman.
MM/GIK/APA