Mass Employment: Why we could engage 10 persons from each electoral ward —NDE

Edmund Onwuliri is the Director, Planning Research and Statistics at the National Directorate of Employment (NDE). On NTA’s Weekend File, he gave insight into the Renewed Hope Employment Initiative (RHEI), a brainchild of his Director General, Mr. Silas Agara, and how the directorate under the new initiative could efficiently engage many persons in hands-on skills training from every electoral ward in the country. CHRISTIAN APPOLOS brings excerpts.

The NDE claims the Renewed Hope Employment Initiative (RHEI) reached unskilled and unemployed Nigerians at the grassroots. How truly widespread was this reach in practical terms?

When we started the Renewed Hope Employment Initiative towards the end of last year. It was designed in such a way that every part of Nigeria will be fairly and equitably taken care of. For the first time in the history of the National Directorate of Employment, we deployed cutting-edge technology to drive the process.

We didn’t want a situation where some people would come and take our services in a particular state, move to another location and try to access the same service. So through technology, we were able to cut out all of that. So what we did was to ensure that a minimum of 10 unskilled and unemployed persons were recruited into the scheme from all the electoral wards in Nigeria. Every Electoral ward in Nigeria had at least 10 beneficiaries. That’s how we structured the framework for the Renewed Hope Employment Initiative.

We also made sure that every category of the participant was catered for. We had about 30 different skill sets which made it quite open for everybody to have enough options to pick from. We don’t force any skill on anybody. It is what you think you can do. And demand driven skills, environment-specific skills. What works in a particular state may not be in demand in another state. So we designed it in such a way that you can find what works for you in the environment where you live. We removed every manner of discrepancies. We have a robust database now. Those who took part in the just concluded programme will not be able to come back to take the same service as was the case in the past. That is how equitable, transparent and fair we structured the Renewed Hope Employment Initiative.

Once beneficiaries complete their training, what’s next? How do you ensure they don’t just return to the labour market empty-handed?

What we do after they go through our skills training. The very successful ones. Let me define what being successful means. It simply means those who completed the training and we certify that they had received the skills well and behaved well while in training, will be considered for what we call resettlement. Resettlement simply means the provision of relevant starter packs, equipment or tools that will enable them to practise that particular skill as business. We provide them with those equipment and some financial support that will enable them to go into small-scale businesses immediately. The idea of our skills training, backed up with resettlement, is to ensure that the beneficiaries become self reliant. We don’t want to go through the training and then go out tomorrow looking for who would  employ you. After the last year training, a good number of them have received their starter packs and are now doing businesses. They are still in their moratorium period of the soft loan granted to them. After six months, they will start paying back to the Federal government to enable others to benefit in the next phase.

Rural unemployment remains a major challenge. How does the NDE’s Rural Employment Promotion Programme fit into the broader RHEI scheme?

The National Directorate of Employment has what is called the Rural Employment Promotion Programme. That programme targets specifically agricultural activities and the value chain that it commands. Now we have presence in every state in Nigeria as well as the FCT. Beyond that, we have six zonal offices that supervise our operations in all the six geo-political zones. And again, in every local government, that is, the 774 LGAs in Nigeria, we have our Liaison Officers. So the purpose is to ensure that our programmes are taken to the grassroots. And that is why we can come out and say we want to recruit 10 persons from every electoral ward in Nigeria, and we are able to achieve it.

So what we do under the Rural Employment Promotion Programme is to activate viable businesses and economic activities in the agriculture sector in the rural area. That is basically what the programme is designed to accomplish. And I want to tell you that there are various skills sets that provide agricultural skills for interested Nigerians. And we also have agricultural skills training centres scattered across many states in Nigeria where actually agricultural skills training and demonstration farmers exist, such that from the classroom, you go to your demonstration plot to practice what you have learnt. And it cuts cross crop farming and animal husbandry.

As the world shifts to a digital economy, how can sub-national governments (states and LGAs) create the right environment for youth to thrive with the digital skills being provided?

Skill in the 21st century is the authentic route to job creation or employment. The reason is simple. Today, no employer of labour whether government or private sector wants to engage anybody that will not add value to what they are doing. And you will agree with me that the 21st century economy is one that requires technical know-how (knowledge economy). Knowledge in the sense that what you can bring to the table is what employers are looking for.

Therefore, for state and local governments and even at the national level,l the way to go is to equip the citizens, especially the unemployed person with the requisite skills they need to become employable and competitive in the 21st century world of work.

Right now, emphasis has shifted from what your certificate reads to what you can do. What is it that you can do or can bring to the table when a job opportunity is given to you? There is a saying that it is better that you have a skill and discover that you won’t need it than for you to be given an opportunity to do a work and you discover you don’t have the required skills to do it. That is where the money is now which is why emphasis is on it.

State governments are critical stakeholders in employment creation. Are they partnering effectively with NDE on this mission or is it still largely a federal effort?

Like I earlier said. We are in every state. In the past, we have had a lot of fruitful collaborations with state governments, local governments, faith based organizations and community based organizations. And we are still open to such collaborations. It is important to state that no single government whether it is federal, state or local can tackle the challenge of mass unemployment alone. It requires collaboration, inter agency synergy, it requires everybody bringing their best game to the table because it is a global phenomenon that is dynamic in its forms and patterns. Therefore, all the energies must be harnessed towards dealing with the problem of mass employment. No single group can do it alone. The Federal government alone cannot solve the problem of mass employment. What is going on in Kano is commendable and other states should follow suit.

Looking ahead, what systemic changes do you think Nigeria needs, particularly in education and workforce policy to truly empower its youth for the jobs of the future?

I think we need to pay a lot of attention to our educational curriculum. We need to rejig it to the extent that it begins to address the realities of the labour market. There needs to be a conversation between the labour market and education sector which is like the factory or production line where you forge the labour force and move them into the market. There needs to be a conversation where our schools from primary even to tertiary are in sync with the needs and requirements of the labour market, so that the educational system can begin to produce a labour force that is fitting to the types of employment opportunities that 21st century economy requires. It is necessary that we do that.

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