About 90 per cent of graduates of the Technical Skills Development Project (TSDP), a partnership between the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) and the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), have secured employment or started their own businesses.

This highlights the potential of industry-driven vocational training to address unemployment and strengthen Nigeria’s industrial capacity.

The partnership, established in March 2009, has aided the training of thousands of young Nigerians across the country’s six geopolitical zones in more than 35 technical and vocational trades, with 84 public and private sector organisations participating in the programme.

The Director-General of NECA, Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, disclosed the figures at the eighth edition of the ITF-NECA Technical Skills Development Project Stakeholders’ Dialogue Forum and 2025 Outstanding Trainees’ Awards Ceremony held in Abuja recently.

He said the initiative was established to address the mismatch between the technical competencies industries require and the skills available in the Nigerian labour market, a problem identified in a joint workforce survey ITF and NECA conducted in 2008.

According to him, the survey identified critical shortages in mechanical maintenance, welding, electrical and electronic maintenance, automation, instrumentation, and other industrial trades, prompting both organisations to develop a practical training model to prepare young Nigerians for the workplace.

Oyerinde said the partnership had continued to provide a pipeline of skilled workers for industry at a time when Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) had yet to receive the policy attention and investment it deserved.

The programme, he added, demonstrated the importance of sustained collaboration between government institutions and employers in equipping young people with competencies that translate into employment, entrepreneurship and improved industrial productivity.

Beyond employment outcomes, the initiative seeks to address the shortage of workers with the practical expertise to operate, maintain and repair equipment, improve production processes and support local manufacturing.

For an economy seeking to expand domestic production, reduce dependence on imported goods, and create jobs for its growing youth population, skilled technicians and artisans remain essential to business competitiveness and the sustainability of industrial investments.

The ITF-NECA partnership has therefore placed industry participation at the centre of skills development, allowing employers to contribute to the training process and help ensure that acquired competencies reflect actual workplace requirements.

Speaking at the ceremony, the Chairman of the ITF Governing Council, Hamma-Adama Ali Kumo, represented by Mrs Mercy Oyewole, said Nigeria’s industrial ambitions depend on its ability to turn its population’s talents into productive capacity.

He said factories, construction projects, energy systems, transport networks, agricultural enterprises and digital infrastructure all require workers with specialised technical skills.

According to him, industrial development becomes meaningful when trained personnel can operate equipment, interpret technical drawings, meet production specifications, solve problems and deliver quality products and services.

He maintained that the country could not achieve industrial greatness by relying on imported expertise while neglecting the development of its domestic technical workforce.

Kumo said the effectiveness of skills development programmes should not be measured solely by the number of people trained but also by the extent to which graduates secure relevant employment, establish viable businesses and earn sustainable incomes.

He challenged stakeholders to strengthen the transition from training to employment through apprenticeship opportunities, workplace placements, mentoring and enterprise support.

For graduates seeking self-employment, he said, technical competence should be complemented by knowledge of bookkeeping, customer service, contract management and other business skills necessary to sustain an enterprise.

He also called for improved access to tools, shared facilities, mentoring, and appropriate financing to help young people turn their skills into productive economic activities.

For his part, the Bank of Industry’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Dr Olasupo Olusi, represented by the bank’s Chief Financial Officer, Tayo Kolawole, argued that support for vocational graduates must be part of a broader enterprise-development strategy rather than a one-off intervention.

He added that the BoI could complement skills-development initiatives through appropriate financing and enterprise support, adding that Nigeria’s industrial ambitions depend not only on access to finance but also on a skilled, innovative and productive workforce.

He said the bank’s focus on sustainable and inclusive industrial development included young people, digital transformation, technology, micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, and infrastructure.

Olusi also highlighted the importance of connecting skills development with innovation and enterprise growth, including through initiatives such as the Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (iDICE) programme.

Dr Vanessa Phala, Director of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Office for Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone, stressed the link between skills acquisition, employability and sustainable enterprise development.

Phala said training should prepare young people for emerging occupations, boost productivity, and align workers’ competencies with employers’ needs.