To curb graduate unemployment, the executive vice chairman and chief executive of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Prof Mohammad Haruna, has charged the National Universities Commission (NUC), the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) and the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE) to review the curriculum for entrepreneurship courses.
He said Nigerian graduates were jobless because of misalignment between products of tertiary institutions and the limited job market.
Haruna said the ongoing building of skill acquisition centres nationwide was aimed at tackling youth unemployment and industrial development.
He spoke at the groundbreaking of the permanent site of NASENI Skill Acquisition Centre in Gwantu Kurmi in Sanga local government area of Kaduna State by the state’s deputy governor, Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe.
He said: “May I use this opportunity to reiterate and call on the National Universities Commission (NUC), the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) and the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE) to overhaul the curriculum used in teaching Entrepreneurship courses.
“Most tertiary institutions in Nigeria have no qualified lecturers and enabling environment to teach entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship is a practical course taught only by practicing entrepreneurs.
“Experts in management sciences and marketing with no training in entrepreneurship are not qualified to teach entrepreneurship courses.
“NASENI Skill development centres across the nations will collaborate with willing tertiary institutions in their catchment areas to bridge this gap.”
He explained the reasons behind unemployment, including limited job market and lack of requisite skills by youths,
He added: “There is clear misalignment between graduates of our tertiary institutions and the limited job market. In addition, a lot of youth have no formal education constituting a threat to the future of our dear nation.”
He said the skill centre in Gwantu Kurmi in Kaduna State was designed to reduce rural-urban migration, youth restiveness and to promote agro-allied businesses.
Haruna added: “This skill development centre will train and develop middle level manpower with focus on employability in selected occupational areas, provide and improve training standards and ensure that the right technical and vocational skills needed by the local industries are available.
“It will also focus on empowering the youths with two multiple technical and entrepreneurial skills for job mobility and wealth creation, and certify the skills and competences of the trainees for fair share of the labour market.
“The NASENI skills acquisition centre in Gwantu also demonstrates government commitment to the development of the technology base of the nation. The impact of the centre will lead to reduction in rural-urban migration; it would reduce youth restiveness; promote agro-allied businesses and generally enhance security in the southern Kaduna Area of this state.”
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