Nigeria’s Minister of Labour and Productivity, Mr. Adetokunbo Kayode, has revealed that the Nigerian government is to create one million jobs through Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the next 12 months.
Addressing a joint news conference with the Minister of State for Information and Communications, Alhaji Aliyu Bilbis on Friday in Abuja, Kayode said youth unemployment called for concerted efforts by all stakeholders, especially all tiers of government, to arrest the situation.
He said the Ministry of Labour had come up with a National Action Plan on Employment Creation (NAPEC).
“The NAPEC provides a sectoral employment action in 12 key sectors of the economy with high employment potential. This includes ICT with an indication of the likely jobs that could be created in the short, medium and in the long run.
“ICT has very high employment potential ; it is seen as the fastest growing sector in Nigeria, providing employment for thousands of unemployed.
“In view of the high employment potential of this sector and the need for collaboration to strengthen and add new skills to the workforce, the Minister of State for Information and Communications and I have reached a Memorandum of Understanding.
“This understanding is on the need to collaborate and create one million jobs through ICT in partnership with New Horizon, a private enterprise with vast knowledge and experience in ICT system and operations,’’ he said.
Kayode called for other government ministries and extra ministerial departments to collaborate on issues such as employment to move the nation forward and avert unnecessary crises.
He said the Nigerian government planned to strengthen the capacity of relevant agencies to provide effective training to selected youths in ICT.
In his comments, Bilbis assured Nigerians of his ministry’s full support for the plan.
According to him, the 21st century is for ICT, so there is a need to produce more competent manpower to compete globally as the world is now one global village.
“Fifty-five percent of our population is youth, and a reasonable number of them are unemployed, but I believe with this arrangement, a number of Nigerians will get jobs within and outside the country.
“Also 90 percent of current jobs globally require ICT skills which we do not have and the current Nigerian university curriculum is not adequate to produce industrial ready manpower, but with this arrangement it will improve,’’ he said.
Source African Press Agency
