Your Job May Be Taken Away Someday But Your Skills Will Always Remain With You- FG tells Youth

Maryam Aminu

Skills acquisition has emerged as one of the most effective development strategies that African countries need to embrace in order to train and modernise the technical workforce for rapid industrialisation and national development. The essential of skill acquisition is as the relevancy of water to human body.

In order to reduce the rate of unemployment and total reliance on government works, skill acquisition is key.

In recognition of these facts, delegation from Taraba state signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Federal Government of Nigeria through the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment on the operationalization of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment skills and vocational training centre in Ibi, Taraba State.

While commending the Taraba state government for taking a bold step to pursue the job creation initiative through skill acquisition, Lalong said that skill acquisition is a very vital aspect of job creation.

He urged other states to emulate what Taraba state has done. Lalong said: “There is nothing as important as skill acquisition because people will make use of it even when they have certificate to become employers of labour.”

He said that one of the first things that attracted his attention on assumption of is the signing of the MoU on the skill acquisition centre.

Lalong assured the people of Taraba state of the continued support of his ministry whenever the need arises.

He said that President Bola Tinubu has made it clear to his Ministerial team that he wants to take many of the unemployed youths off the street to a gainful employment.

Lalong urged the citizens to acquire relevant skills to become self-reliant.

Earlier speaking,the Taraba state Commissioner for Cooperative and Poverty Alleviation, Mr James Philips who signed the document on behalf of the Taraba state government said skill training is vital in crime and poverty reduction especially in Taraba state

Philips disclosed that the state targets to train at least 5000 youths including women in the next three years

On sustainability, Philips said proactive measures and effective monitoring and evaluation mechanisms to ensure the smooth running of the centre

Speaking also, the Minister of State, Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha also harped on the importance of skills acquisition,adding that the country would get to a point where mere certificates may not be able to sustain the people.
“Your job may be taken away from you, but your skills will never and can never be taken away from you. School certificates are never enough learn a skill and be self reliant”

Certificate may not work and when it doesn’t work it is your skills that will help you so I encourage our youths to key in to the different schemes the government is rolling out.

While explaining details of the MoU, the Director overseeing the Office of the Permanent Secretary at Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, Mrs Juliana Adebambo said the aim of the initiative is to “curb the unemployment menace and youth restiveness in the country through the establishment of Skills Centres in mostly rural areas nationwide and to encourage the acceptance of Blue-Collar Jobs as against the insistence on white-collar jobs that is highly favored by the youths.”

According to her, the signing of this MOU couldn’t have come at a better time than now as wanton restiveness among the youths especially in that part of the North Eastern: region of the Country has become worrisome.

“So far, the Borno State Government has completed the same process, as the Skills Centre in Konduga is fully operational and being by the State Government. Furthermore Kano. Kaduna and Edo State Governments have equally shown interest in going into this type of agreement with the Ministry,” she said.