By Michael Oche
Director General of the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), Mr Silas Agara has said that the Directorate is redesigning its skills acquisition training programmes to align with the evolving job market demands.
Agara spoke in Abuja at the opening of a two-day review meeting of the Renewed Hope Employment Initiative (RHEI), for state coordinators of the Directorate.
The Director General emphasized the need to reposition the Directorate as the lead agency for job creation and vocational training in the country, urging staff to intensify efforts in making the NDE more responsive to the realities of the Nigerian labour market.
He explained that the review meeting is part of a broader strategy to reposition the NDE, for a more efficient and effective delivery of its mandate.
Agara noted that with a growing number of young Nigerians seeking viable opportunities, the NDE must position itself in line with the mandate of the President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda to provide them with the right skills.
He said, “Nigerians expect a lot from NDE, and now seeing that the NDE is bouncing back and times have changed. We should be looking at other skill sets that will attract the youth, because we have a lot of graduates who need these skills.
“That is why there is a need for us to rejig our programs and to rejig our training programs, to look at programs that the youth will embrace.”
He noted that for many of these youths It is not just about handing out starter packs, explaining that many youths are looking to gain digital skills and knowledge that they can immediately apply, even from their smartphones.
He said, “For trades that do require equipment such as welding, fabrication, and fashion design, we’re making provisions as well.”
On partnerships, he revealed that the NDE is in advanced talks with several agencies to expand its reach and relevance. These include collaborations with the Ministry of Petroleum under the Nigerian Gas Expansion Programme and the Presidential Committee on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG).
He said, “We are the point of signing the dotted lines we are discussing with the Presidential Committee on the CNG. That too, we should be coming out soon to let Nigerians know what we should be doing.”
He also disclosed that the NDE has signed agreements with international and local NGOs involved in IT training and digital entrepreneurship.
“Some of these partnerships are still at the preliminary stage, so we’ll reveal details in due time. But we want our state coordinators to be fully informed of our plans as we build new, impactful collaborations,” Agara concluded.
Agara also disclosed that the Directorate will begin training of some of its staff in the IT department from the state, in line with it shift to the digital skills
