22nd November, 2010
The employability of Nigerian graduates reared its head again at the 62nd Foundation Day and Convocation of the University of Ibadan, Oyo State, when President Goodluck Jonathan urged Nigerian vice-chancellors to evolve a curriculum which will equip the graduates with employable skills.
The President stated that the evolution of a pragmatic curriculum was necessary to reduce youth unemployment in the country.
This is not the first time that a highly placed Nigerian will make this observation or call for the evolution of a curriculum that will make the graduates self employed. Over the years, as more youths graduated, so did the number of jobs reduce. As youths passed out of higher institutions of learning, factories were closing down, yet the population grew at an alarming rate. But then, even the few jobs that were available suffered because it was difficult to fill the positions as the available graduates were said to be unemployable.
Early last year, the vice-president, Nigerian Graduate Advancement Programme, Mrs. Oyidiya Alfred, during an empowerment programme organised to help undergraduates overcome unemployment, identified unemployability of Nigerian graduates as the cause of unemployment in the country. She added that the major problem was not non-availability of jobs but the alarming rate of unemployable Nigerian graduates in the labour market. She added that a major challenge that employers of labour faced was human resources.
This is one problem that we have to start battling if we are serious about our Vision 20:20:20. Everyone knows that the world’s fastest growing economies are being powered by science and technology, which are also vital to the stimulation of human capital and skills to transform Nigeria’s economy.
Mrs. Alfred described unemployability as a situation where an individual lacks the basic mental, even though he has had formal education, social practical and developmental skills that will enable him to function effectively at assigned jobs and handle everyday work challenges.
Nigerian youths must begin to add value to themselves. They must not be lethargic about development. Youths should expand their information base and go for extra developmental activities.
We believe tertiary institutions can reverse the trend if they evolve a curriculum that will make entrepreneurs out of the graduates. Independent graduates can easily become employers of labour instead of job seekers. But it does not end there. A successful and fair election in 2011 will ensure stability. This will in turn assure investors of the safety of their investment. With constant electricity, more jobs will be created and return on investment higher. Dead industries will be resuscitated and then we can begin to look towards the Vision 20:20:20.
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