NERDC Tackles Poverty, Unemployment, Unveils Entrepreneurship Curriculum

Kuni Tyessi

In a bid to tackle the issue of the 88 per cent of secondary school graduates that are unable to gain admission into tertiary institutions and are in search of gainful employment which are either not available or difficult to get, the Nigerian Educational Research Development Council (NERDC) has launched the long-awaited Entrepreneurial Curriculum Project (ECP), aimed at beating poverty, unemployment and other societal ills.

The Executive Secretary, Prof. Ismail Junaid announced that the project originated in part from an official request from Ebonyi and Enugu State governments for the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) to mainstream it’s learning initiative for entrepreneurs to ensure that every senior secondary school graduate is well prepared for higher education and has acquired relevant functional trade/ entrepreneurial skills needed for poverty eradication, job creation and wealth generation.

He said UNIDO entered into partnership with NERDC for the review of 34 trades/ entrepreneurship curricula so as to scale them up in line with best practices and for the purpose of exploring and enriching already existing curricula and instructional materials with skills, qualities and attitude learners would require for combating poverty and contributing to the economic growth of Nigeria.

He said the project will seek to institutionalise capacity strengthening at federal and state levels and also to conduct teacher training for the implementation of trades and entrepreneurial curriculum in senior secondary schools at state and local government levels. Others are: provide technical assistance and support in strengthening the capacity; support monitoring and evaluation of trades and entrepreneurship subjects; conduct customised trainings for 144 teachers in collaboration with state ministries of education; and support sensitisation and advocacy workshops for teachers and other stakeholders.

“Survey revealed that each year, an average of two million young persons aged 16-18 years graduate from secondary schools and that about 12 per cent (250,000) of these graduates are able to proceed to higher education the remaining 88 per cent are looking for gainful employment that are either not available or difficult to get.

“Fundamental intention for the development of the senior secondary school graduate is well prepared for higher education and has acquired relevant functional trade/entrepreneurship skills needed for poverty eradication, job creation, and wealth generation; and in the process, strengthen further the foundations for ethical, moral and civic values acquired for the basic education level. The curriculum emphasises choice, interest, ability and inclusiveness. “The lack of proper understanding of the concept, philosophy, underlying principles of entrepreneurial education, as well as the strategies behind the contents, organisation and specification of the trade curricular , on the other hand, the feedback indicates the absence of core entrepreneurial contents in the 34 trade curricula that will enhance students’ utilisation of the skills inherent in these trades.”