More than 25 per cent of Nigerian youths are unemployed. This is believed to be responsible for the various vices plaguing the country. From political instability to civil unrest, rising crime wave, and reduced wages for the employed, among others, Nigeria appears sitting on a keg of gun powder. But a private sector-led push to rein in the monster and unleash the youths’ potential to contribute to economic growth has taken the centre stage. At a “CEOs Summit on Youth Employment in Nigeria”, experts proffered far-reaching, practical solutions to the problem. CHIKODI OKEREOCHA reports.
They came from diverse professional backgrounds, but they were united in their resolve to stamp out youth unemployment in Nigeria. To the experts, which included Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of multinational firms and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs); personnel and recruitment consultants; civil society organisations in the employment space, donor and development partners, Nigeria’s current 25 per cent youth unemployment rate was unacceptable.
According to them, the rising spate of unemployment, particularly among the youths, partly being caused by the huge skills gap in the labour market, was responsible for the various vices plaguing the country. They include political instability, civil unrest, rising crime wave (kidnapping, robbery, cultism, prostitution, advanced fee fraud, otherwise called ‘419’) and reduced wages for the employed, among others.
The experts, who also expressed fears that the situation was capable of stalling the achievement of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth target of 2.4 per cent by 2018, were determined to nip it in the bud.
At a day CEOs Summit on Youth Employment in Nigeria, with the theme: “The Challenge of Skills-Mismatch & the Roles of CEOS in Tackling Youth Unemployment’’, the experts discussed the challenge of youth unemployment extensively and proffered practical solutions.
The Summit, which recently held in Lagos, was organised by Centre for Values in Leadership (CVL). It’s Founder/CEO Prof Pat. Utomi, explained that it was aimed at addressing the problem of skills mismatch on youth employment by bringing together high-profile CEOs and youth representatives to discuss the challenge and come out with solutions.
He also said it was aimed at assisting participants from diverse sectors in the private sector to deliberate, understand and appreciate the dynamics, implications and future impact of youth unemployment on their businesses and growth and development of the economy.
Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM) President, Mr. Udom Inoyo, set the ball rolling when he said to address the skills mismatch in the labour market and halt the unemployment scourge, the nation’s educational institutions must keep up with technological advancements.
In his paper titled: “The Challenge of Skills Mismatch in Nigeria Labour Market: Implications of Youth Unemployment for Sustainable Economic and Industrial Growth,” Inoyo, who was represented by CIPM’s Registrar/CEO, Ajibola Ponle, observed that: “We are not keeping up with technological advancements. Our institutions are still teaching the same subjects.”
Inoyo’s observation necessitated calls by participants for a re-jig of the curricula of the nation’s tertiary institutions. The Summit noted that tertiary education curricula in most cases were antiquated and behind technological developments and therefore, not properly aligned to the needs of the modern labour market particularly private sector enterprises.
Even before the summit, Director General, Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), Mr. Segun Oshinowo, had argued that time has come to completely overhaul the programmes and courses being run by Nigerian universities if the country must tackle the unemployment menace head on. This, according to him, will bring the universities up to speed with current realities in the labour market and the economy generally.
Oshinowo observed that courses being offered in Nigerian universities were designed over a century ago by the colonial masters to advance their own economic gains and set up trading businesses under royal charters within their territories.
The NECA DG, who spoke at recent forum in Lagos, also advocated for a change of mindset by youths from white collar jobs to vocational and skill-oriented jobs relevant to Nigeria of today.
He reminded youths that though they require academic certificates, such certificates are not meal tickets, but a preparation for how they would behave, interact, and reason well in the nearest future.
Oshinowo enjoined youths to stop waiting for automatic white collar jobs, but to think outside the box for new options to exit the unemployment market.
But experts at the CVL observed that absence of entrepreneurship studies at secondary and tertiary levels of the education system had blinded youths to potential opportunities available in self-employment in the economy.
They, therefore, recommended that all secondary and tertiary institutions be compelled to establish Career Development Units to provide guidance and counselling to youths.
The talk shop also harped on the need to shift emphasis to theoretical teachings to practical transfer of skills in order to prepare youths for the workplace environment.
It urged youths to embrace self-employment through entrepreneurship opportunities available in agriculture and services sectors.
The experts also canvassed the need to increase support to vocational schools and also implement the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) recommendation that Nigeria dedicates 26 per cent of her national budget to education.
According to them, implementing UNESCO’s recommended 26 per cent budgetary allocation to education sector will cater for the nation’s rising educational demands, and support entrepreneurial development.
To Co-Founder/CEO, West Africa Vocational Education (WAVE), Ms. Misan Rewane, CEOs must change the paradigm from the emphasis on credentials and certificates to competence. According to her, there are many youths who, despite not having university degrees, are competent in their various vocations.
She also called for collaboration amongst Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the area of training. Besides, CEOs, she said, must be clear on what they want from prospective employees rather than insisting on degree certificates and 5-10 years experience from job applicants.
Researcher & Training Consultant, Prof. Franca Ovadje, said CEOs must scale up their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in education and health in order to drive economic growth. She said youth unemployment was not all about skills, but values.
Ovadje, who was one of the lead presenters, also called on the CEOs to help influence the educational curriculum from primary to tertiary level. According to her, it will help them get the right skills set and values from the youths.
A representative of Ford Foundation, Mr. Dabesaki Mac Ikemenjima, warned that Nigeria’s bulging youth population, which leaves 25 per cent unemployed, could spell doom for the country, if nothing was done. He, however, said addressing the challenge requires input by international and local partners.
Ikemenjima said Ford Foundation was working with a number of partners and stakeholders to solve the unemployment problem. While pointing out that there are two sides to Nigeria’s unemployment problem, the demand and supply side, he regretted that the two sides are not talking to each other.
This, he said, was why the Summit mandated the CVL to organise a fresh Summit that would provide a platform for interface between businesses and the academia, adding that a partnership with National University Commission (NUC) should be explored in this regard.
The experts also unanimously submitted that government should institute a ‘Ranking System’ to rate Nigerian tertiary institutions in terms of quality of teaching staff and associated resources. They noted that this will engender competition and self-improvement similar to the practice in the United States.
They, however, described the industrial training scheme of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) as novel and should be sustained and improved. The experts, however, advised government to improve its financial administration in order to ensure release of funds as at when due to ITF, noting that this will enable it meet its obligations to students on industrial attachment.
Participants at the summit also advised the CEOs to form closer alliance and establish advocacy group to contribute to policy articulation, with the Nigerian Employers Consultative Association (NECA) providing immediate platform to implement the recommendation.
The CEOs and other employers of labour were also advised to design human capital development programmes for current and future employees as part of their strategic growth plan and drop the thinking that trained staff have the tendency to quit employment after training.
NACCIMA, LCCI wade in
As part of efforts to rein in the unemployment monster, the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) said it has concluded arrangements to inaugurate its Youth Forum.
NACCIMA President, Iyalode Alaba Lawson, who made this known at the inaugural meeting of the Youth Forum in Lagos, said through the Youth Forum, NACCIMA will advocate for necessary reforms that will revolutionise the socio-economic environment and encourage the Chamber’s job creation efforts.
The Youth Forum, she said, will focus on training and developing young entrepreneurs to meet the demand in identified gaps in the existing value chains, while equipping and supporting them to overcome the challenges faced by entrepreneurs such as access to finance, lack of business knowledge, and lack of market access, among others.
While noting that youths’ critical role in supporting entrepreneurship and development cannot be ignored, the NACCIMA president emphasised that the initiative was in line with the Chamber’s mission to ensure an enabling business environment through policy advocacy.
She also said NACCIMA aimed at promoting the growth and competitiveness of businesses through proper and prompt information dissemination, using modern technology comparable to the best universal standard of Chambers of Commerce and Industry anywhere in the world.
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) is no less worried by the rising unemployment situation in the country, which it said was one of the highest in the world. Its Director-General, Mr. Muda Yusuf, advocated, among others, increased support for SMEs and business start-ups through capacity building and funding.
He listed some of the challenges holding SMEs down to include lack of finance, inadequate infrastructural facilities, shortage of skilled manpower, poor entrepreneurial skills and lack of enabling operating environment, among others
While pointing out that there was need to address the challenges in order to unleash SMEs’ potentials, Yusuf noted that all over the world, SMEs are key to real sector growth. He said SMEs boasts huge potentials for employment generation and wealth creation, if adequately encouraged.
Yusuf said by helping to create more jobs, SMEs reduce unemployment and its associated high crime rate in the country. He also stressed the need for the establishment of small-scale enterprises as a way of developing and providing a training ground for indigenous entrepreneurs.
This, he said, would help reduce rural urban migration, particularly when they are cited in the rural areas. He argued that rural-urban migration is caused by lack of job opportunities in the rural areas.
Although, the Federal and state governments have initiated various programmes on job creation, which are yet to cage the unemployment monster, the belief is that current push by the private sector would do the tricks if experts’ far-reaching recommendations are implemented.
