Employment: Osinbajo Asks Youths to Go Beyond Paper Qualification

Posted by African Examiner Featured, Latest Headlines, News Friday, April 5th, 2019

By Muyiwa Bamidele

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – Vice President Prof Yemi Osinbajo has charged the Nigerian Youths to go beyond paper qualification in their quest for employment saying that paper qualification is gradually being overtaken by hand on skills.

The Vice President represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Boss Mustapha stated this at the official closing ceremony of the National Industrial Skills Development Programme in Abuja.

“I need not remind you that paper qualification although important, is gradually being overtaken by hand-on-skills because of their marketability, therefore, I will strongly encourage all Nigerian youth to acquire hand-on-skills. When combined with paper qualification, the sky is your limit”.

Vice President explained that the National Industrial Skills Development Programme was an outcome of the policy thrust of the Buhari administration, which is anchored on revamping the economy, fighting corruption, reduction of poverty and the creation of jobs for the teeming unemployed Nigerians.

In his welcome address the Director General of Industrial Training Funds, Joseph Ari said that the just concluded phase of the programme trained of over 11,000 Nigerians in various trade areas namely: welding and fabrication, plumbing and pipe-fitting, tailoring, aluminum, tiling, Plaster of Paris (POP) as well as photography.

The Director General of ITF explained that NISDP is one of the numerous skills acquisition intervention programmes introduced and implemented by the Fund to facilitate the achievement of President Muhammadu Buhari’s policy on job and wealth creation.

Also speaking at the event Chairman of the Senate Committee on Industry Sam Egwu asked the Federal Government to encourage Central Bank and Bank of Industry to support participants of the Skill acquisition programme with startup soft loan.

The Eleven Thousand graduates of the skill scheme were provided with startup kits.