Nigeria’s education curriculum has come under scrutiny, with the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Abdullahi Ganduje, attributing the country’s high rate of joblessness to the outdated system.
Ganduje’s remarks came as Nigeria grapples with a worsening unemployment crisis, with millions of young people struggling to find decent work.
According to him, the current curriculum fails to equip students with the necessary skills to compete in the modern job market, leading to a surge in unemployment rates.Ganduje’s remarks come as Nigeria grapples with a worsening unemployment crisis, with millions of young people struggling to find decent work.
Ganduje, who spoke at the commencement of Enterprise Skills Development Training, EDET, programme for youths in Lagos, organized by the party’s National Youth Leader, Dayo Israel, in Lagos, believed that by adopting a skills-based approach, Nigeria would produce graduates who are not only theoretically sound but also practically equipped to drive innovation, entrepreneurship, and societal progress.
Represented at the event by the Deputy National Chairman (South), Chief Emma Eneukwu, the immediate past governor of Kano State called for a drastic overhaul of Nigeria’s education curriculum, citing its emphasis on theoretical learning as the root cause of the country’s high unemployment rates and societal vices.
He lamented that Nigerian graduates are well-versed in English but lack practical skills, unlike their counterparts in countries like China and India, where skills acquisition is integrated into the curriculum from primary school to secondary school.
He said: “In Nigeria today, our curriculum is on theories. We churn out graduates that are experts in theories but have no skills to take on entrepreneurship. Our graduates lack skills to develop anything that is going to help in the services of the society. So they end up indulging in different vices because there was no proper skill development in the tertiary institutions they attended.
“We produce graduates who are only good in speaking English but cannot embark on development of anything viable to society. They can’t boast of producing anything except speaking English.
“There’s nothing we can do to get it right except to change the curriculum. How do we change it? It is for us to include skills acquisition and practical learning in the curriculum.”
The APC chairman, however, charged the youths to rethink their approach and prioritize learning a skill while still in school, emphasizing that certification alone is not enough. He encouraged them to think outside the box, develop their skills, and become entrepreneurs, offering services to the society.
The former governor emphasized that the government cannot provide jobs for everyone, and it is up to individuals to create their own opportunities and contribute to Nigeria’s growth and development.
“If you go to the university to get the requisite education and certification but couldn’t get a white collar job, please drop it, remove the garb of arrogance and learn a skill so that you can be useful to yourself, your family and the society.
“Let us not wait on the government for jobs as there’s no job anywhere to give. Let us understand that we are the ones that will create jobs for ourselves and others. So, if you don’t have any service to offer, you will not get anywhere.
“All of us need to assist the president to change the face of this country and we will do it by learning a skill”, he stressed.
He lauded Israel for the initiative and urged participants to make good use of the opportunities to become job creators.
