Nigerian Newspapers
How to sharpen graduates’ skills for jobs
The National Universities Commission (NUC) is contemplating tinkering with universities’ curriculum so as to match graduates’ skills with employers’ requirements. The move is informed by employers’ complaints that many graduates do not have the requisite job skills. KOFOWOROLA BELO-OSAGIE and GBENGA OMOKHUNU report.
IT is a problem that employers face. They employ graduates, with hope of getting the best out of them, only to be disappointed by their output. The graduates turn out to be lazy and incapable, despite having qualifications certifying them competent.
Worried by this development, the employers commissioned a study whose findings are revealing, according to the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof Julius Okojie.
The findings from the Labour Market Observatory Project (LMOP) study showed a mismatch of skills produced by the tertiary institutions with the requirements of the manufacturing industry.
At a meeting of the National Project Steering Committee of the Labour Market Information System in Abuja, on Monday, Prof Okojie said the quality and focus of training by universities were not in tune with the needs of the society. This, he said, brought about the prevailing high rate of unemployment since many graduates are perceived to lack skills needed by employers.
There is, he said, a glut of graduates in the labour market well above the demand for their skills, thereby reducing the value of their certificates.
Okojie said: “There is no doubt that the nation has a glut in the supply of graduate labour as the situation on ground shows that the demand for graduate labour is far below the supply.
“The excess supply of graduate labour in any economy has the tendency to force down the amount/ salaries that employers are willing to pay since they can recruit other idle but able, willing and ready hands that will take the job even with less pay. It could also lead to other social vices like robbery, kidnapping, terrorism, prostitution and other forms of youth restiveness.”
Okojie blamed the problem on gap between tertiary institutions and the employers of labour, saying the observations of manufacturers involved in the study would be used to review the curricula of tertiary institutions.
Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education ( NBTE) Dr Masa’ud Kazaure believes that emphasis on paper qualification has overdependence on paper qualifications and other causative factor may be exacerbated by the challenges of skills mis-match. NBTE is also working towards addressing the problem.
At a workshop in Lagos, Kazaure said the problem started in the 70s when demand for paper qualifications led to overcrowded schools where focus was more on theory than practical.
“The skills development challenges started immediately after the third National Development Plan, when emphasis was shifted from competency to paper qualifications – resulting to over-subscription of our institutions,” he said.
He said the deviation of institutions focused on Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) from providing technical competencies for their products did not help matters as those expected to have technical skills also lacked the required competencies.
There are many in the non-formal sector that have skills but no qualifications. Executive Secretary of Lagos State Technical and Vocational Education Board (LASTVEB) Mr Olawumi Gasper said these are artisans, craftsmen and others whose contribution to the economy outweighs those from the formal sector.
He said despite their contributions, they have gained no recognition because of their lack of qualifications.
“There is no system for those in the informal sector, which is very bad. I don’t want to use the word wicked but we have been unfair to those people because they have skills. Those skills must be given a quantity no matter how small those skills are,” he said.
With Nigerians appreciating the need for competency, Kazaure said the Federal Government, through the NBTE, was working to establish a National Qualifications Framework (NVQF) so that those with non-formal training could have their skills measured and awarded certificates that would be equivalent to various levels of higher education; enable them to attract jobs, and pursue formal education if they wished.
He said: “The development and institutionalisation of NVQF will: provide policy guidelines on organising skills training to improve product quality, productivity and competitiveness in the formal and informal sector; provide a coherent structure for vocational qualifications, which are based on employment-led standard of competence.”
To be able to measure the skills and competencies of people in various fields, Kazaure said the NBTE was collaborating with LASTVEB, United Nations Education and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and industry to create a National Occupational Standard (NOS) that would detail the expected competency for each occupation.
Kazaure said the board was developing standards for 15 occupations in the pilot stage after which assessors will be trained to verify the claims of skill owners. After being verified competent, they would be awarded certificates according to the level of their competencies.
On how it will work, Gasper said: “The first step is occupational standard which is the way, procedurally, of carrying out activities. From there to the curriculum, assessors and, finally, to examination. You now find the person fit to carry out an activity. For instance, the camera man, what does it take to be a cameraman? You now set questions and assessments and if the guy can answer all your questions and can operate your machine the way you want him to, you give him a level and that level opens him to other formal education system. So, it is a radical reform that is why the National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) technicians of those days are known for nothing but how to repair a transformer. They cannot get promoted because they cannot get certificates, so what this system is saying now is that if you can repair a transformer and you are known for a transformer, you can get your NVQ level 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 which is equivalent to a B.Sc holder and then you can now move to become a director of transformer. That is why you see all of us smiling, so we hope it works because these are the key stakeholders. So, I must say congratulations to all of us.”
Another champion of skills competencies, is Bishop Mike Okonkwo of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM), Anthony, Lagos, said unlike other Christian missions, TREM was not going to establish a university but a Technical and Vocational Education (TVE) institution in Aba, Abia State. He said the school would train technicians to deliver quality services comparable with those in other parts of the world.
Underscoring the importance of TVE institutions, he said Nigeria needed places where youths would learn skills and entrepreneurship, which universities have not been able to provide.
He said: “I don’t have a dream to build a university. I noticed that with the number of universities that we have, and there is still more coming, our people are stranded; after leaving school, there is no job. Can you imagine a doctor finishing from the university after how many years and is struggling to get a job of N10,000? It is frustrating. What informed vocational institution? Nigeria is a developing country. We have not even scratched the resources that are in this country. We will train people who can use the gift they have and become entrepreneurs, become employers of labour; you employ yourself and start to develop certain things that are lacking. Every problem in this country is an opportunity. But somebody has to make you see it so that is one of the things that my mind is going to.
“It is understanding that our people need. The first thing God gave to us is our individual gift and when that is brought out, it can be useful to better the society. So, this is happening because of lack of understanding.
Bishop Okonkwo said another was that institutions do not train people to give their best, adding that this, is robbing local professionals of jobs with multinational companies.
He said: “I was discussing with somebody of recent and he said I would be shocked to know that some of the multinationals like Julius Berger and other construction companies do not employ our labourers because we don’t shoot for excellence. Look at this tiling now, we had to look for people from Cotonou because the ones that Nigerians did, after finishing it we broke it. I want to be able to tell our people that: look, you don’t lose by doing a nice job. If you notice, our people are in a hurry because everyone wants to make millions overnight and so they do shoddy jobs. A tailor would sew a dress for you and before you know it the zip is off. Can’t we do things right?
“We will teach you how to be a good plumber and you will do it thoroughly that when you finish people will want to come to you. These are areas I am looking at. The whole vision is not to start just another school. The whole essence is to improve the quality of services we render. We render any thing to people and expect them to pay for it. It doesn’t work that way. We can also do things in an excellent way. We travel abroad, we see what others do, so why will we come into this country and just stuff things down the throat of people and expect them to pay for it?”
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Posted in Nigerian Newspapers. A DisNaija.Com network.
Source: The Nation Newspaper
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•Deploy more personnel as army chief vows to wipe out terror group
•Security beefed up at N’Assembly
Deji Elumoye and Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja
Abuja, Nigeria’s seat of power, is under a massive security cordon following threats of attacks by insurgents and the increasing wave of banditry in the contiguous states of Kaduna, Kogi, Nasarawa and Niger States, THISDAY’s investigation has revealed.
There has been a wave of kidnappings in the outskirts of the federal capital, notably Pegi, Tuganmaje and Kuje among others, which the police have battled in recent times.
The security situation in and around the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was heightened by the pronouncement of the Niger State Governor, Mr. Sani Bello, that Boko Haram fighters who he said sacked 50 villages in the state and hoisted the terror group’s flag, were about two hours drive away from the FCT.
Security has also been beefed up at the National Assembly as operatives, yesterday, thoroughly screened every vehicle approaching the National Assembly complex in Abuja.
The deteriorating security situation nationwide prompted the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus, to warn that the 2023 general election may not hold, demanding the declaration of a state of emergency as well as the convocation of a national conference.
However, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, yesterday restated the Nigerian Army’s determination to annihilate Boko Haram.
But the Governor of Katsina State, Hon. Bello Masari, cautioned against declaring a state of emergency, saying doing so isn’t the solution to combat the security challenges facing the country.
The security of the nation’s airports was also in focus yesterday as the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) said there was no threat to them.
THISDAY’s investigations showed increased presence of troops, police, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) personnel and intelligence operatives at the three strategic entrances to the city notably, Keffi, Zuba and Gwagwalada.
More checkpoints were also mounted around Gwagwalada and Keffi.
THISDAY also observed increased intelligence deployment at the entrance and the borders of FCT with contiguous states.
Beyond the borders, there were more deployments and police patrols inside the city and increased intelligence deployments as well.
Security sources told THISDAY: “There are deployments here and there but they are routine. Alertness is key to a secure environment.”
It was also learnt that security agencies were involved in frenzied meetings throughout yesterday.
The meetings, coordinated by the office of the Chief of Defence Staff under the new joint operational strategy of the armed forces, were aimed at coordinating a joint response to possible threats of attack to the FCT.
“I understand the security teams have been meeting for some days now and if you look around you, you will notice that there are increasing patrols and numbers of security personnel. The threats are not been taken lightly,” a source said.
National Assembly workers, lawmakers and visitors also had a harrowing experience accessing the legislative complex due to heightened security in the area.
Security operatives thoroughly screened every vehicle approaching the National Assembly complex in Abuja, impeding both human and vehicular traffic.
The Sergeant-at-arm of the National Assembly and other security agencies supervised the operations, leading to huge traffic build-up inside the complex.
Legislative staff, visitors and lawmakers were seen patiently waiting for their cars to be searched so that they could go ahead with the business of the day.
Some staff and visitors at some point got tired of waiting and were seen alighting from their cars to trek from the gate to the complex.
Meanwhile, the ONSA has said there is no threat to the nation’s airports.
A statement by the Head of Strategic Communication, Mr. Zachari Usman, said the reports of threats to the airports were an internal correspondence of security threat assessment misconstrued as security threat to the airports.
PDP Demands State of Emergency
In a related development, the PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, yesterday demanded the declaration of a state of emergency, warning that the 2023 general election might not hold if the federal government failed to tackle insecurity.
He called on the federal government to summon a national conference to address the spike in insecurity.
Secondus added that the national caucus of the party will meet today to discuss the state of the nation.
Addressing members of the National Executive Committee (NEC) in Abuja, Secondus said: “We are worried Abuja is not even safe. It is no longer politics. We got alert of plots to bomb and burn down our airports.
“We urge the federal government to declare a national state of emergency in security. There is the need to call a national conference to discuss the insecurity in the country.
“There may not be any election in 2023 in Nigeria due to insecurity. This government must listen to the people. The Buhari government should call a national confab to discuss security and state of the nation. It is no longer politics. This time we are not playing politics. Let’s keep politics aside and move the nation forward.”
He said the country had been grounded, regretting that there had been no matching response from the federal government.
Secondus said in the past, terrorism in the North was confined to the North-east, but with the report of Boko Haram occupying villages in Niger State, terrorism had spread to the North-central
“Herdsmen are also menacing in the West; gunmen causing havoc in the East; and the militants in the South; all killing, looting, raping, maiming and burning down homes. The situation is bad; Nigerians all over are living in fear,” he said.
The Senate Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, said the problem of Nigeria was outside of the PDP headquarters, while pledging the support of the Senate to the declaration of state of emergency in security.
Abaribe said he deliberately decided not to speak on the floor of the Senate but to allow the APC senators to speak so as to avoid being accused of giving a partisan colouration to the issue of insecurity.
He stated that only electoral reforms would give victory to the opposition party in the 2023 general election and ensure a democratic defeat of the APC-led federal government.
Also, the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu, commended the NEC and the PDP leadership for their collective efforts at resolving the House leadership crisis.
The NEC meeting adopted the position of Secondus, calling on the federal government to convoke a national conference to discuss the state of insecurity in the country, according to a communiqué read by the National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan.
Army Chief Vows to Wipe Out Boko Haram
The army yesterday reiterated its commitment to wipe out Boko Haram.
Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, told reporters in Maiduguri, Borno State that Boko Haram had been defeated in many encounters and would continue to be defeated until it’s annihilated from Nigeria.
“We will take on Boko Haram decisively, and we are committed to the focus of the operations, which is the total annihilation of Boko Haram from Nigeria,” he said.
The COAS, who was visiting the headquarters of Operation Lafiya Dole in Maiduguri for the fifth time since his appointment four months ago, said the visit was to boost the morale of the troops, reassure them and listen to any issues affecting them.
Earlier, the Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj. Gen. Farouq Yahaya, lauded the visit, which he said had continued to boost the morale of the troops.
“We are honoured, we are grateful, we are encouraged by those visits. You provided us guidance, logistics and other things we required. We are most grateful for those visits,” Yahaya said.
State of Emergency Won’t Solve Security Challenges, Says Masari
Katsina State Governor, Hon. Aminu Masari, has, however, said declaration of a state of emergency won’t solve the security challenges facing the nation.
Masari, who spoke yesterday with journalists after meeting with the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari at the State House, Abuja stated that he was against the recent call by the House of Representatives for the declaration of a state of emergency in the security sector as it would not solve the problem.
According to him, declaring a state of emergency will not achieve the desired effect as the security structure and personnel to be used to execute the emergency are already overstretched in a bid to safeguard lives and property.
Sourced From: THISDAYLIVE
Tribune Online
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has recorded 62 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 165,110. The NCDC disclosed this on its official Twitter handle on Friday. “55 new cases of #COVID19Nigeria; Lagos-21, Yobe-19, Ogun-6, Akwa Ibom-3, Kaduna-2, Plateau-2, FCT-1, Rivers-1.” YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE COVID-19: Nigeria Recorded […]
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
Tribune Online
Sourced From: Tribune Online
By Olasunkanmi Akoni
The people of the South East region have been urged to explore the power of negotiation and mutual settlement in the face of ongoing killings and security challenges in the zone because the east can not afford another war at present.
Stakeholders from the South-East geo-political zone made the remark on Thursday, at the unveiling of the book, “Igbo, 50 years after Biafra,” written by Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Drainage Services, Joe Igbokwe, held at Ikeja G.R.A.
Speaking at the unveiling of the book, the chairman of the occasion, Mr. Cutis Adigba,
urged the people of the South-East to learn to build bridges across the country, so that they can realise their ambition of producing the next president of Nigeria.
Adigba urged leaders from the zone to discourage the move and agitation by some youths in the South East to go to war and secede out of Nigeria.
Also read: Banditry: Disregard viral video, Niger State gov’t urges residents
He said that Igbo have always found it difficult to rule Nigeria because they refused to build bridges across the six geo-political zones that made up Nigeria.
While describing the agitation as uncalled for, Adigba noted that after two decades that Nigeria returned to civil rule, the Igbo has predominantly identified with only one political party.
He maintained that remaining in one party can not advance the cause of the people of South East and cannot make them realise their objective of producing an Igbo man as president.
He maintained that the publisher of the book, Igbokwe played politics outside his state, so that the Igbo race can be integrated with one another race.
Adigba said the failure of the Igbo to reintegrate with other ethnic nationalities politically was responsible for the retrogression of the race in Nigerian politics.
Igbokwe, also addressing guests on the occasion, maintained that the Igbo are not advancing politically because they refused to be integrated into National politics, lamenting that, despite their success in business, they are not successful in playing politics at the national level.
Corroborating Dimgba, Igbokwe noted that there was the need for the Igbo people to stand up and build bridges so that their objective of producing the next president of Nigeria could be realised.
According to him: “I have decided to raise my voice, I hope my people will hear me while trying to quell the effect of the war, our people are spoiling for another war, mayhem is being unleashed in Igbo land, and there is palpable fear.
“Those who could speak have lost their voice, mindful of the consequences of their actions, I am calling on all Igbo leaders to speak up because all actions carry consequences, consequences of the silence will be too dastardly to sustain.
“Those silently supporting the wild wind should be careful or else they hand over to their children,” he said.
Igbokwe urged those spoiling for war to jettison their plan and embrace dialogue, urging them to learn from the South West region that despite the challenges faced after the annulment of the June 12, 1993, election, they did not go to war, and the region had the opportunity of producing two of her sons for presidential position in 1999.
“You have to build bridges to become president of Nigeria, but it is unfortunate the Igbo are burning bridges.”
Speaking at the event, Chief Uche Dimgba who is the coordinator of Igbo in All Progressives Congress, APC in Lagos, described Igbokwe as “a Frank, fearless and reliable leader, who based his views on issues and stand by his opinions, and we the Igbo have confidence in him and believe he can lead us aright.”
“He is a leader we Igbo believe in and we will follow him. If he can serve all the governors produced in Lagos State since 1999, he is a better man to follow because he possesses all the experience that can be of benefit to Igbo both at home and in the diaspora.”
The post Attacks on S’East: We must explore all options of negotiation — Stakeholders urge Igbo appeared first on Vanguard News.
Sourced From: Vanguard News
The government said that no worker should stay back beyond 6:00 p.m. within premises of buildings undergoing construction.
The post Insecurity: Lagos bans occupation of abandoned buildings appeared first on Premium Times Nigeria.
Sourced From: Premium Times Nigeria
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Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
Military, Police Ring Abuja to Forestall Boko Haram Attack
UFC: Usman gets N584m after beating Masvidal
Insecurity: Lagos bans occupation of abandoned buildings
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