GERMAN Development Cooperation (GIZ) said it has empowered over 11, 000 Nigerians with vocational skills in different areas, including agriculture, construction, fashion, ICT, and hospitality.
The organisation said female beneficiaries accounted for over 37 per cent of the total number of beneficiaries of its Skills Development for Youth Employment (SKYE) project.
The cooperation noted that over 43 per cent of the potential working population in Nigeria is either unemployed or underemployed.
According to the cooperation, 19 million young Nigerians entered the labour market over the past five years, adding that only 3.5 million new jobs were created in the same period.
SKYE is a €42.2 million project being implemented in Abuja, Adamawa, Edo, Enugu, Lagos, Osun and Plateau states from 2018 to 2023.
Head of Programme for SKYE, Hans Bruns, during a national conference on Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in Abuja, said this was the right time for all relevant stakeholders within the TVET sector to jointly work on the TVET reform process.
According Bruns, this is needed to provide better vocational education for the young people in Nigeria.
The conference with the theme: “Repositioning TVET through Policy and Legislative Options” was organised by GIZ in collaboration with the African Union (AU) and the Federal Ministry of Education for stakeholders to identify options and actions for an improved TVET system in Nigeria.
Bruns said: “From May 2018 to August 2021, SKYE and its implementing partners empowered over 11, 000 Nigerians with vocational skills in different areas including agriculture, construction, fashion, ICT, and hospitality.
“Female beneficiaries accounted for over 37 per cent of the total number of beneficiaries. Over 2, 100 of the total number have gained employment. In agriculture skills training alone, SKYE trained 6, 116 beneficiaries. Women accounted for 40 per cent (2, 457) of the total number.”
Bruns noted that the high number of unemployment and underemployment have become a major socio-economic challenges over the decades which is connected to the issue of skills development.
“SKYE project uses a multi-level integrated approach to employment promotion aimed at improving the prospects of gainful employment for Nigerian youth aged between 15 and 35 and for returnees in selected sectors of the economy,” Bruns added.
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