ACCI urges FG on skills development policy for job creation
The President of the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industries (ACCI), Prince Adetokunbo Kayode, has advised the Federal Government to develop a skills development policy for the country as part of ongoing efforts to improve the technical skills of Nigerian youths from secondary level.
Kayode, who gave the advice when he led a team of the organized proviate sector group on a courtesy visit to Media Trust Limited in Abuja, pointed out that if developed and implemented efficiently, the proposed policy would go a long way in addressing the lingering problem of youth employment in the country.
Describing skills as one of the key assets a nation requires to achieve sustainable socio-economic development, the former minister maintained that there was a growing need to train Nigerian youths on various aspects of artisanal and creative skills such that even when they graduate and there are no white collar jobs they can become productive through self employment
“After Secondary School, nobody should go back home, they should learn a skill because you earn more money when you have a skill. We can create a lot of jobs if we have a skills. There are a lot of jobs there, but many people have no skills to take them.” he said.
The ACCI President explained that in order to encourage skills acquisition, the OPS group had established a Skills Acquisition Centre for the purpose of training people on different skills, particularly in areas of entrepreneurship capacity building,
He said the skills development centre had been operating since 2018 and that the Chamber signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) to help train Small and Medium Enterprises owners (SMEs).
“We have been able to sign MoU with SMEDAN because there is funding to support SMEs. Conditions are put in place and we are now working with SMEDAN to see how we can tone down the conditions and build the capacities of these SMEs”, the OPS group’s leader added.
The industrialist expressed optimism that the skills acquisition trainings would help make some of the unemployed now idling in some cities to acquire productive skills, adding that government cannot create all the jobs but can create the right environment.