The Federal Government will spend N351 billion in four years to lift 35 million Nigerians out of poverty.
This is contained in the National Development Plan released by the Federal Ministry of Finance.
In the document, the government said “an estimated public investment of N351billion will be allocated to achieve the goals outlined in employment and Job creation from 2021-2025”.
The Plan projects that “by 2025, about 35 million Nigerians would have been lifted out of poverty with 21 million full time jobs created to bridge the rising employment deficit”.
The government is collaborating with the private sector to develop a mechanism ‘’to engage, empower and employ the youth’’, adding that those below 35 should either be in school, employed or be the owner of their enterprises by 2025.
At present, the resource allocation to employment and job creation by all tiers of government are delivered through the Ministries, Departments and Agencies’ (MDA) budgets.
A tracking mechanism would be developed to determine the allocations to employment and job creation through federal, state and local government budgets.
There would be linkages to unlock the potential of high growth sectors critical to creating 21 million jobs “by mapping and identifying synergies and opportunities with the most potential for massive, secure and sustainable job creation”.
The government said it would establish public-private partnerships focused on priority sectors to secure investments in capital intensive sectors with the highest probability of spurring job creation such as mining, construction, manufacturing, agriculture, sports, entertainment, tourism, and hospitality.
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“The private sector will be encouraged to: develop a robust framework for educational and training curricular development and reviews; invest in young unemployed persons, and establish a functional multi-sectoral task team to facilitate implementation.
According to the document, “there will be support for “MSMEs business viability to spur job creation through standardization of operations and increasing access to finance.
“Support the growth, professionalization, and transition of MSMEs from the informal to the formal market through training and mentoring, which will ensure their sustainability and bolster their hiring capacity”.
There will also be “increased access to finance by MSMEs to be facilitated with support from the DBN”.
“Government will prioritize compliance with Occupational Health and Safety (OSH) legislation to all workplaces to improve the productivity and performance of workers over time”.
Emphasis will be youth participation in sustainable agribusiness and construction by creating job opportunities in these sectors through financing schemes and training initiatives.
Practices contrary to national and international laws that pose danger to revenue generation through decent work will be eliminated.
The document noted that “adopting strict adherence to the guiding rules and principles of unionization with appropriate sanctions will reduce incidence of disruptions to economic activities due to perennial trade disputes and strikes from violation of rights of workers on free unionism”.
Child and forced labour practices across sectors of the economy will be eliminated by fostering networks and collaboration among local, national and international organizations on child labour eradication and the development of effective Monitoring and Evaluation framework to enforce implementation.
The sports ministries across the country will be encouraged to build skills for employability (especially youth employment).
“Core’ skills include those that are directly associated with coaching and sport management. ‘Soft’ skills include the skills and values that are learned through sport, such as: cooperation, leadership, respect for others, knowing how to win and lose, knowing how to manage competition, etc”.
“Sports jobs have a high multiplier effect, meaning they create more jobs in other occupations and industries”.
Government will promote Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) towards creating sustainable jobs for the teeming unemployed and underemployed youth in Nigeria.67
“By unlocking the constraints in the economy and fully engaging the youths, the expected growth trajectory would generate employment and reduce to the barest minimum the incidence of poverty” the document said.