The Nation Newspaper

Tag: ITF

  • ITF decries low funding of SIWES

    The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) has decried the low funding of the Students Industrial Works Experience Scheme (SIWES). It also cleared misconceptions about the programme.

    The ITF said it was wrong to think that the  scheme is funded 100 per cent by ITF, adding that it is the baby of the Federal Government.

    The Director-General ITF, Joseph Ari who spoke during the ITF  field service department SIWES division regulatory agency meeting in Abuja, stated that the availability of jobs is not commensurate with the rising population in the country.

  • SMEDAN, ITF partner on youth training

    Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) Director-General  Mr. Dikko Umaru has said it is collaborating with the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) and Bank of Industry to provide entrepreneurship and vocational skills for youths.

    Umaru made the disclosure in, Abuja at the graduation of trainees of the first batch of the 2016 National industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP).

    Umaru, represented by Mr David Ozigi, Director, Engineering, Technology and Infrastructure, said the programme was to build a bridge over the gap between employers and job seekers.

    “The various skills you have acquired are in consonance with the priority sectors needed to rejuvenate the economy and help us intensify the “Made in Nigeria’’ campaign.

    “These include agri-business, fabrication, Information Communication technology, wood-work, building technology, electrical and electronics, leather work, textile, garment, fashion designing, hospitality business, among others,’’ he said.

    Umaru advised the participants to practise what they learnt and build on it by seeking business advice at any of the agency’s offices.

    He said the knowledge required to kick-start and manage a successful business was provided for the participants.

    According to him, the agency will  link them up with credible partners and mentors that will impact positively on their proposed businesses.

  • ITF trains 500 in Ebonyi

    ITF trains 500 in Ebonyi

    The Director-General of Industrial Training Fund (ITF) Sir Joseph Ari has stressed the need for Nigerians to embrace the federal government’s policy aimed at revitalising the economy through rapid industrialisation and economic diversification.

    The DG made the call in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital,  during the graduation ceremony for 500 trainees of the 2016 industrial skills development programme run by the Fund.

    He said President Muhammadu Buhari has consistently emphasised the need to diversify the economy by taking advantage of the numerous opportunities that abound in all sectors.

    “If Nigerians must make progress therefore, we must support Mr President’s vision for rapid industrialisation and economic diversification,” he added.

    The Area Manager in charge of Enugu Area office, Nonyelum Nneka said the trainees were trained in carpentry and joinery, tailoring and weaving, welding and fabrication, shoe and bag making and masonry and block laying.

    She said in addition to the skills training given by ITF, the youths were also exposed to entrepreneurial training by small and medium enterprises development agency (SMEDAN).

    Governor David Umahi charged the youths to be hard working and dedicated in their chosen field of endeavor.

    Represented by the Commissioner for local Government and Chieftaincy Affiars, Okoronkwo Samuel, said the state government have also empowered over 3,000 youths by providing them with grants to start off businesses.

    “Unemployment is a terrible vice which breeds subsequent characteristics of criminality and by this training you would have gone a long way to reducing it.”

    “There is no other way to success except hard work, commitment and honesty. So I encourage you to make good and adequate use of the skills you have acquired because that is the only way to show that the efforts f the state and federal government in training you is not a waste,” he said.

    One of the trainees, James Eze said thanked the federal government for training them and promised that they will work hard to ensure that the aims of training them are realised.

  • Unemployment: ITF to fill youths’ skills gap

    Unemployment: ITF to fill youths’ skills gap

    About 18 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) will benefit from the National Industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP) of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), its Acting Director–General Dickson Chinedum, has said.

    He listed some of the beneficiaries as Sokoto, Kwara, Ogun, Katsina, Cross River, Lagos, Adamawa and Ebonyi. Others are Abia, Anambra, Borno, and Plateau.

    The ITF chief said NISDP was aimed at closing the skills’ gaps in youths which made them unemployable. This, according to him, has made it mandatory to equip the youth with skills for employment and entrepreneurship.

    Chinedum further said the NISDP, which began in 2012, would furnish the human capacity requirements of the National Enterprises Development Programme (NEDEP), a scheme put in place by the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment to fast-track the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP).

    The ITF chief explained: “In the light of the result of the interim report of ITF/United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) Skills Gap Survey, management has set in motion process to commence graduate up-skilling programme for the purpose of re-skilling 3,000 graduates of engineering and technology with vocational and entrepreneurial skills in the six geo-political zones.

    “This is aside from the ongoing review of the ITF/DVT (GERMAN chamber of Crafts and Commerce) collaboration, which seeks to train apprentices in line with the German dual system. The programme matches skills development with market needs and contributes in reducing unemployment by providing competences for job creation.”

    Chinedum said ITF entered into a deal with the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA) in 2009 to provide technical and vocational skills training to young Nigerians using ITF facilities and those of members of the organised private sector.

    He said to provide opportunity for evaluation and validation of skills requirement at national and state levels, ITF was collaborating with UNIDO to establish Sector Skills Councils (SSCs).

    He said 9,500 youths, translating to 500 youths per state and the FCT, aged between 18 and 35, would be trained in 38 trade and craft areas.

    He explained that this would be based on their projected value addition to citizens of the states and their potential to provide a sustainable means of livelihood for youths in their states.

  • Why skill gaps are widening, by ITF chief

    Why skill gaps are widening, by ITF chief

    Industrial Training  Fund (ITF) has blamed existing skill gaps in the country  on the absence of synergy between industries and educational institutions.  This it said,  has also led to the absence of harmonised database.

    Its  Director-General, Joseph Ari who spoke at the 49th Human Resource Development Seminar in Abuja, lamented that economic recession has expectedly led to the closure of many businesses, therefore worsening the already bad unemployment situation in the country.

    He said: “The economy is also characterised by under-employment owing to the lack of requisite skills by Nigerians to take up available jobs.

    “The gap in skills is attributed to the absence of synergy between industries and educational institutions leading to the absence of a harmonised database on Labour Market Information (LMI).

    “Consequently vacancies required in skills by enterprises, available skills in the economy cannot be accessed by employers, job seekers and skills suppliers. This is why LMI is an imperative; it has also become a veritable tool for linking skills demand and supply.”

  • ITF redesigns curriculum

    ITF redesigns curriculum

    The Industrial Training Fund has hinted of plans to redesign the institutional curriculum to match the skills needs of the country.

    The Acting Director General of the ITF, Dickson Onuoha who disclosed this during a visit by the Internal Labour Organisation in Abuja, said the key challenge in Nigeria is unemployment.

    The ITF, he stressed, intends expanding training facilities by bringing in more equipment’s to ensure proper delivery of knowledge on skills acquisition. This is to also ensure the skills learnt will be corresponding with national demand.

    “The ITF has started a number of programs towards empowering the youths. It is expected that the private sector should champion job creation while the government build lasting policies to see this through.”

    Responding, the ILO Country Representative, Dennis Zulu said the government has been able to deliver on its mandate by the establishment of ITF, which is to ensure youths acquire skills.

     

  • ITF blames high unemployment on skills gap

    The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) has blamed the high unemployment rate in the country on the gap between available skills and demands of the labour market.

    Speaking with The Nation, ITF Acting Director-General Mr. Dickson Onuoha said there were many job openings but no skilled manpower to fill them.

    He said the ITF, in collaboration with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), launched a National Industrial Skills Gap Assessment Survey in 2015, and its result showed that there were vacancies which were not adequately filled.

    His words: “Preliminary information from the report of that exercise, which is about to be finalised and released, shows that there are a lot of vacancies in the industries.  This is not because of lack of youths or graduates, but because they lack the required skills to fill  these vacancies.’’

    In a related event, Onuoha said the Fund had begun training 9,500 youths in 18 states, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), in various trades.

    At the flag off of the 2016 National Industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP) in Alausa, Lagos,  Onuoha canvassed support for the government’s rapid industrialisation and economic diversification policy.

    He said the training was in line with the Federal Government’s commitment to bridging the unemployment gap through entrepreneurial development, adding that the programme was designed to equip young Nigerians with requisite skills for job creation.

    “The first phase of the programme commenced four years ago and has continued in subsequent phases in all states of the federation and FCT, producing thousands of well trained artisans. Trainees were exposed to intensive technical and vocational skills for three months in different trade areas.

    “Today, we are witnessing the flag off of the fifth phase of the programme, which shall be implemented simultaneously in 18 states and the FCT. A total of 9,500 youths will be trained in this phase,” Onouha said.

    He said ITF identified Lagos State Government as a strategic partner in the realisation of the Nigerian project, noting that the collaboration would deepen and sustain the achievements recorded so far by Lagos State.

    “It is therefore in this spirit of shared determination that we have identified and selected satellite centres in three senatorial districts of Lagos State to provide training in areas such as catering and hotel management; tailoring and fashion design, refrigerator and air-conditioning; domestic electric installation, among others,” Onuoha said.

    He said the trade areas were carefully selected based on their anticipated value addition to the citizens  and the potential to provide opportunities for growth of micro, small and medium enterprises, as well as being a sure means of sustainable livelihood.

    Lagos State Governor  Akinwunmi Ambode, who was represented by the Director, Ministry of Agriculture, Mr. Adesokan Gboyega, said Lagos State was pursuing a policy of job creation and sustainable development. He added that Lagos was ever ready to partner with the ITF.

  • ITF plans 2m jobs yearly

    ITF plans 2m jobs yearly

    The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) has concluded plans to create two million jobs yearly through the provision of technical and vocational skills to young Nigerians, itsActing Director-General, Mr. Dickson Chinedum Onuoha, has said.

    He said ITF had reached an understanding with the Nigeria Employers’Consultative Association (NECA) and some members of the Organised Private Sector (OPS) to undertake the training using ITF’s facilities.

    The ITF boss told The Nation that the plan was in line with its mandate to assist the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration’s job creation efforts. He said ITF had  met over 60 per cent of its mandate with regard to job creation.

    According to him, the technical and vocational skills training project, which would run in 15 centres, had trained over 4,600 youths, who were given one year free technical/vocational training, transport allowance, lunch and instructional materials.

    Onuoha said over 90 per cent of graduates of the programme were either entrepreneurs or in well-paying jobs. “Similarly, we have commenced the implementation of the fifth phase of the National Industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP) in 18 states, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) had been earmarked to benefit from this phase of the programme,” he added.

    The ITF boss listed states that were benefiting from the current phase of the programme to include Sokoto, Kwara,Ogun, Katsina, Cross River, Lagos, Adamawa, Ebonyi and Zamfara. Others are Abia, Anambra, Bornu, Plateau, Delta, Nasarawa, Bauchi, Kaduna, Niger and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

    Onuoha said a new report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) indicating a rise in unemployment rate in Nigeria was a blow to the administration’s job creation efforts, but that with what ITF was doing in job creation through training, Nigerians should not have any cause for concern.

    Apart from NBS, the World Bank said Nigeria needed to create between 40 million to 50 million new jobs to be able to absorb new labour market entrants by 2030, adding that the informal sector of the economy appeared to have a greater potential for growth and employment generation.

  • ITF to take training to IDPs, rural areas

    ITF to take training to IDPs, rural areas

    Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) accross the country will benefit from the vocational and technical training development programmes organised by the Industrial Training Fund (ITF).

    The Acting Director-General of the Fund, Dicson Onuoha, said the vocational and technical skills trainings for IDPs, which is in line with the Federal Government’s desire for the rehabilitation, reintegration and empowerment of internally displaced persons, is being done in order to properly reintegrate those affected by insurgency and militancy into the society, thereby creating opportunities for economic growth, empowerment, industrialisation and self reliance.

    Onuoha told The Nation that the Fund will also utilise it’s recently acquired mobile training units/ trucks to advance training and empowerment programmes for IDPS in parts of the country where they are located, saying the training which is in various skills development and trade areas, will be provided in order for a greater number of the people to be empowered.

    He said skills will be provided in various trade areas that can stimulate and drive economic growth, including welding, fabrication and information and communication technology, amongst others, pointing out that women and youths will specifically be targeted for the skills acquisition programme so as to achieve maximum impact.

    The ITF helmsman said skills acquisition and development forms an integral part of economic growth, job creation and industrialisation, adding that it is the belief of the Fund that the training opportunity will spur the needed development and economic empowerment yearned for by the people.

    He described this move by ITF, as being part of the Federal Government’s gesture towards achieving its job creation objectives and youth empowerment initiatives, stating that the agency will partner with relevant stakeholders to ensure that the government’s objectives of job creation and youth empowerment are achieved.

    Onuoha  recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari has already directed that all internally displaced persons be returned to their states,  saying  ITF will work towards ensuring that the President’s directive succeeds, by providing the needed survival skills for the returnees through technical and vocational trainings.

  • ITF trains 14m youths

    ITF trains 14m youths

    The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) has trained over 14 million Nigerians whose contributions to the overall growth of the country are immeasurable, its Acting Director- General, Mr. Dickson Onuoha, has said. Speaking with The Nation in Lagos, Onuoha said ITF, in the last few years, embarked on initiatives and strategies to equip Nigerians with skills for employability and entrepreneurship.

    He said: “Our renewed emphasis is premised on the fact that any credible effort at poverty eradication, job creation and an effective diversification of the economy as envisioned by the Federal Government will not meet with the required success if Nigerians are not trained.”

    ‘’In the last few months, especially with the coming of the incumbent management such efforts have been heightened.”

    Onuoha noted that as a foremost skills acquisition institution vested with the mandate of equipping Nigerians with skills, the management has commenced series of initiatives and strategies and expanded existing ones including setting in motion processes for the establishment of sector skills.

    He said the fund has established councils to provide opportunity for evaluation/ validation of skills requirements at national and state levels  periodically and expanded the technical skills development project.

    The project is a joint programme with the Nigerian Employers Consultative Association (NECA) to train 50 youths per centre through the Brown Field Model, using training centres of the organised private sector.

    Onuoha said the students Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) that is managed by the ITF but funded by the Federal Government, has been instrumental to the development of human capital.