Nigeria needs technical skills to grow economy, says NECA

Segun Oshinowo, director-general, Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has stressed the need for the country to refocus on technical and technological education to strengthen the nation’s industrial base.

Oshinowo who spoke with BusinessDay against the background of the engagement of 60 technicians trained under the Technical Skills Development Project (TSDP) programme of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) and NECA said there is currently a gap in technical manpower in the manufacturing and other sectors of the economy, waiting to be filled.

“Education and training should be tailored to meet the needs of our industries,” Oshinowo said.

According to the DG, priority should also be given to acquisition of vocational skills as a way of tackling youth unemployment and growing the GDP, adding that this had informed the collaboration of NECA and ITF in the TSDP which, so far, has trained a huge number of youths to become self-employed and employers of labour.

Meanwhile, Nigeria Breweries Plc has absorbed 60 technicians who graduated from the sixth batch of the TSDP. The benefiting youths were trained differently as brewing operators, packaging operators, utility operators and mechatronics technicians, at the Ibadan plant of the brewing company.

Goke Adeyemi, the brewery manager of the plant, informed that 18 of the graduates had started work.