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FG tasked on building sustainable models to bridge skills gap in Nigeria as SMW 2020 ends on high note

By Adeyemi Adepetun
29 February 2020   |   4:21 am
The Federal Government has been urged to build models that are sustainable targeted at building skills gap in Nigeria.

The Federal Government has been urged to build models that are sustainable targeted at building skills gap in Nigeria. This has become necessary if the country must compete favorably well among other nations.

The need to build skills gap in the country was a major issue of deliberation yesterday, at the Social Media Week (SMW) 2020 in Lagos. Already, the United Nations (UN) has canvassed the need for countries to invest in capacity buildings and ensure that citizens get new skills for development.

As such, the Federal Government has been urged to leverage on technology in building sustainable models to close the country’s skills gap and prepare the young generation for the future of work. The speakers gave the advice during a panel discussion on “Edtech and the Future of Work: Building Sustainable Models to Close the African Skill Gap. “

CEO, Future Software Resources Ltd., Nkemdilim Begho, said to achieve a sustainable model that could close the skill gap, the government needs to catch up on closing the digital divide by investing more in training the younger generation as research shows that 60 percent of children under 12 today, would grow up to work in jobs that don’t exist yet and it is no different on the continent.

Managing Director, Edo State Skills Development Agency, Ukinebo Dare, said government needs to dismantle the current process for approving courses in the universities to be able to meet up with where the world was going. Also speaking, Founder of Univelcity, Joseph Agunbiade, said that the technology sector was demanding new talents, noting that Nigeria was not bridging the skill gap yet.

Chief Information Officer, Stanbic IBTC, Okechukwu Iroegbu, Nigeria had to start churning out graduates, who are tech savvy, noting that the government should also create more jobs in the information technology space.

Meanwhile, at another session, “African Animation and Storytelling – The Final Frontier,” youths have been enjoined to key into African animation and storytelling. Content Producer, Simone’s Oasis, Tonye Faloughi-Ekezie, said that African animation was the next frontier for storytelling journey in Nigeria.

Managing Director of Animator Art, Awele Emili, said that in developed countries like U.S and China, animation was a sector that generated billions of dollars, noting that it was essential for more creatives in Nigeria to tap into it. She said that the animation industry would give creatives the opportunity to tell African stories to children here in Nigeria, Africa and around the world.

Yetunde Ogundipe, Creative Director, Beereel Pictures, said that the African Animation industry needed to find its foot in a sector that generates about $400 billion yearly globally.

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