Industrial Training Fund (ITF) Set to Include Skills Acquisition Programmes In Nigerian O-Level Education System

The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) is seeking the inclusion of skills acquisition programmes in the Nigerian primary and secondary education system as a means of grooming the skilled workforce in the country.

Speaking in Abuja, on Thursday, the Director General of ITF, Sir Joseph Ari, stated that unemployment is on the rise in Nigeria, adding that, “white collar jobs are in short supply or not even available.

“Every year, universities and other high Institutions turn in graduates thousands and there are no jobs for them, it is a time bomb.

“Is like ITF has been the lone voice in the desert. But we shall continue to shout, we will not stop. There is a need for us to change the educational system of Nigeria in order to imbibe skills in our youths right from the kindergarten level.

“We have said this over and over again, when you want the young population to embrace skills as a profitable endeavour, you catch them young by introducing skills training to them right from a tender age.”

He regretted that most youths in the country find skilled work dirty because they didn’t come in contact with it early enough in life. “When these young people grow through primary and secondary with skills into the University, it will become difficult for them to depart from it.”

Ari called on the media to help in sensitisation of the need to include skills acquisition programmes in the Nigerian O-level education system. “We need to change the narrative in our educational school curriculum for our young people to embrace skills acquisition” stating that having a skilled workforce is paramount in the task of reducing unemployment in the country.

Also speaking, the Director General of the National Employment Consultative Association (NECA), Mr Wale-Smatt Oyerinde, acknowledged that a skilled workforce drives the economy of developed nations.

He said it was important that ITF and NECA work collaboratively to expand industrial training programmes for the benefit of Nigerians.

“Our country is faced with huge challenges and we need to join hands together to tackle them.

“We have an unemployment rate of about 33 per cent and when you add the under-employment rate which is about 20 per cent, then we know that it has become imperative to deepen our collaboration, particularly in the area of the TSDP programme,” he stated.

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