Nigerian leaders have been told to redirect the nation’s educational policy from emphasis on paper qualification to skill acquisition to tackle graduate unemployment.
The Rector of Osun State College of Technology, Esa-Oke, OSCOTECH, Dr.Samson Adegoke, gave the advice in Osogbo, Osun State Capital, while delivering a paper titled “Empowering Nigerians For Life In The Changing World Of Work; The Imperative Of TVET And Micro-Credentials,” at the second Quarterly Intellectual Discourse organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Osun State Council.
He said the current penchant for certificate acquisition is at variance with the nation’s economic development, and advocates for skills acquisition through Technical and Vocational Education And Training (TVET) as a way of preparing for life of work.
Adegoke noted that in the face of rapidly changing technological development, workers need to continuously update their knowledge and skills through Technical and Vocational Education And Training TVET,
He said that this will adequately prepare the youths for work through the flexibility embedded in the TVET training, which allows for the provision of broad-based technical knowledge on which different occupations can be developed, saying TVET should be the vanguard of development for the nation.
On the benefits derivable from Micro-Credentials which focused on cutting-edge abilities and technologies, that enable workers to keep up with the recent developments in their respective industries, he submitted that Micro-Credentials provide opportunities for workers to stay relevant through re-skilling and upskilling.
To him, Micro-Credentials provide a flexible and effective method of learning, enabling people to gain specific skills and thus increase their employability in a dynamic world of work.
In their separate remarks on the occasion, the Chairman of the occasion, Prince Diran Odeyemi, and the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Oluomo Kolapo Alimi stressed the need for the country to redesign its education policy towards laying emphasis on TVET to bridge the gap of unemployment, noting that the world is tending towards technological developments, and therefore canvassed for less reliance on paper qualifications.
In his remarks, the Apetumodu of Ipetumodu, Oba (Prof) Joseph Olugbenga Oloyede, who was the Royal Father of the Day, charged youths to strive to acquire necessary technical and vocational training in order to be relevant in the changing technological developments.
Oba Oloyede stressed the need for the government at all levels to focus more on skills acquisition to reduce the rate of unemployment in the country.
Earlier in his welcome address, the NUJ Chairman, Osun State Council, Mr. Wasiu Ajadosu reiterated the need to continually educate the public on the changing technological advancement so as to meet up with other nations of the world which have embraced technical and vocational knowledge as a way to technological developments.
Ajadosu noted that the Intellectual Discourse was programmed as a means of contributing to the development of the nation.
The programme, which was held at the NUJ Press Centre, Iwo/Osogbo Road was attended by members of the academia, media professionals, members of civil societies, and the public.
