The Ogun State Head of Service, Kehinde Onasanya, has said vocational skills remain the backbone of Nigeria’s economy and a key solution to unemployment.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony of the Peter Akinola Foundation Youth Centre for Industrial Training in Abeokuta, Mr Onasanya said white-collar jobs were becoming scarce. He could no longer absorb the thousands of graduates produced annually.
“Vocational training continues to bridge the employment gap and offers youths the opportunity to create jobs, rather than waiting endlessly for jobs that are no longer available,” he said.
He praised the foundation for “standardising vocational and technical education”. He assured that the state government was “irrevocably committed to vocational education as a vital tool for empowering individuals, driving innovation, and stimulating sustainable economic growth.”
Former Primate of the Anglican Church, Dr Peter Akinola, said the centre was established “to nurture talent into excellence and transform young people into professionals and job creators.”
Education Commissioner Abayomi Arigbabu, represented by a senior official, added that functional education required vocational training, which “directly contributes to economic growth.”
Graduates Kehinde Grace and Yahaya Martins said the programme had set them on the path to independence.
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