By Emmanuel Oloniruha
Abuja – Kogi State University (KSU) Alumni Association, Abuja Chapter, has advised the Federal Ministry of Education and National Universities Commission (NUC) to emphasise on entrepreneurship and skills acquisition in the curriculum of tertiary institutions.
Mr James Ugbeda, Chairman of the Alumni Association, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.
Ugbede said that putting emphasises on entrepreneurship and skills acquisition would go a long way to address the persistent challenge of unemployment facing graduates in the country.
He said that tertiary institutions’ graduates in Nigeria were still lacking in entrepreneurship and skills acquisition.
“We need to lay more emphasis on building more entrepreneurs from universities so that graduates don’t have to wait or pursue white collar jobs.
“Graduate should hope to be self employed after the NYSC rather than joining the unemployment market.
“We need professionals, but essentially, we need entrepreneurs and we need to inculcate more entrepreneurship in our schools’ curriculum and activities during the NYSC orientation camp.
“I believe that with this, the rate of unemployment will reduce and more people will stop depending on government for employment,” Ugbeda said.
At the association’s 2016 get-together, Ugbeda urged government at all levels to give priority to the development of the education sector by appropriating more funds to the sector.
The alumni chairman said that development of the education sector would help to address the high level of illiteracy and promote national development.
“Education should be given special attention by the Federal Government when funds are being appropriated because a nation without solid education is heading toward a crash.
“We have high population of illiterates and I have noticed that the fund being appropriated to the education sector keeps on reducing.
“For us to get it right, government at all levels need to focus on education, especially education at the grassroots where a chunk of illiterates in the country reside,” he said.
Mr Felix Okolo, the Legal Adviser of the Abuja Chapter of the Association, urged youths to acquire necessary skills that would enable them to be self employed.
Okolo also urged government to create an environment conducive for youths to be self employed.
“I am an advocate of creativity; so, I will always advice our youths not to depend on the government, rather, they should be creative.
“Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies can not employ all graduates; but when the environment is conducive, the youths themselves will come out with good innovations,” Okolo said.
