Participants at The Bullion Lecture 2024 have called on the government at all levels in the country to increase investment in human capital development to achieve fast-paced prosperity for the country.
The over 250 participants from the academia, banking and finance, ICT, maritime, media, public sector, diplomatic circle and so on who converged on Lagos on April 18, 2024, for the yearly lecture organised by the Centre for Financial Journalism, believe that Nigeria is not doing well about human capital development because it is not making adequate investment in the education of its citizens, which is a major avenue for developing human capital.
They pointed to relevant data, which suggest that Nigeria is operating at the bottom of the ladder in many aspects of human capital development.The participants noted that while Nigeria is blessed with abundant human and natural resources, the gross inability of the various governments in the country over the years to develop and equip the human capital on a sustainable basis has increased poverty, diseases and squalor across the country.
They, however, expressed worry about the increasing phenomenon of migration of the country’s vibrant youths to overseas countries, including a large number of already accomplished professionals, in search of greener pastures because of the hostile environment of the country characterised by poverty, high unemployment rate, insecurity, as well as lack of infrastructure that inhibit the actualisation of their dreams.
The participants agree that human capital development and its sustainability are the key solutions to solving many economic problems confronting the country today. They therefore believe that for the country to move forward, human capital development must be made the top strategic priority by governments at all levels, since human capital is the most valuable asset the nation has, over and above natural resources.
They, therefore, recommended that the existing National Education Policy should be reviewed to align it with modern reality and requirements, noting that investment in education goes beyond the construction of physical buildings and other infrastructure.
