The event held in Abuja, Wednesday witnessed the signing of a Momorandum Of Understanding between NSCC and HMI with the aim to facilitate funding and support for NSCC’s health and socio-economic empowerment and capacity enhancement initiative.
Speaking at the launch, Director General, National Senior Citizens Center (NSCC), Dr Emem Omokaro said care of older persons is a skill that requires training.
“For anyone to have this skill you need to be trained, and for you to be trained, you need training providers. So as you have seen here heads of Geriatrics, Consultant Geriatricians, Family Physicians and Nurses from our tertiary institutions, they may have all the knowledge, but they are not certified to assess skills. So these trainees here are nominees of these tertiary institutions who will earn the certification. As Quality Assurance Assessors, you must be able to assess competency, attitude and all other technical things.”
Omokaro revealed that this is the first time in the history of Nigeria to have a geriatric social care sub-sector. “This is also the first time we are having a Council in place for geriatric social care, and these training providers are the first set that will have members certified in Quality Assurance Assessment and also their training centres accredited. So all the building blocks are just being put in place, block by block,” she added.
Also, Engr SM Yusuf, Director, Vocational Technical and Skills Development, National Board For Technical Education in his address said skills is the global currency of labour, and to be a competent person, there must be competency based assessment and certification.
“That is what NBTE is facilitating for the senior citizens. If you’re aware, the Federal Government approved the Nigerian Skills Qualification Framework, and this is what NSCC is coming under, and is being supervised by NBTE. The framework covers all facets of training, and Nigeria has joined the league of qualification framework, looking after competencies, not academic qualification for engagement.
Engr Yusuf emphasized that the training is meant for those that will manage the aged people. “The benchmark is that they must be occupationally competent. There are professors, senior consultants and so on, so that they can be competent in their own occupation first, before they can come for this training to become assessors of that field.”
He further stated that the training is a global qualification required globally. “Now in Nigeria we are just starting, we have not more than 5,000 assessors covering more than 18 sectors and councils we are managing, so we are grossly inadequate to manage the number that is being expected of us.”
Executive Director, Healthcare Mission International (HMI), Mrs. Nike Osa during the MOU signing pledged her support programme, saying; “We will support this initiative through funding and research and any possibilities we can direct fund towards this laudable project. We will stand with NSCC all through.”
On his part, Professor of Family Medicine, College of Medical Sciences, University Of Calabar, Doctor Ita Bassey Okokon said he has been teaching care of the elderly since 2004. “I have been teaching undergraduate students of the University on Care of the Elderly. What is happening here is an attempt on the one hand to push in gerontology. So coming into genrotology, I believe having to have some tutelage on this platform will certainly grant me the opportunity, privilege and platform to push issues around even in my own area of practice. It will certainly enhance my practice.”
Okokon called for funding and support for NSCC to enable its establishment in all states of the federation to enable them to float their ideas of taking care of the elderly around the country.
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