One of the steps taken by the
Nigerian government to reduce the problem of unemployment in Nigeria was the
establishment of the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), which was
established in November 22,1986. The objective of NDE was to promptly and
effectively fight unemployment by designing and implementing innovative
programmes, which are directed towards the provision of training opportunities
through the guidance and management support services to graduate farmers and
small scale entrepreneurs.
The objectives of NDE spanned across the following
programmes: 100 European Journal of Economics, Finance and Administrative
Sciences- Issue 11 (2008)
·
Agricultural
development programme
·
Youth employment and vocational skills development programme
·
Special public
works
·
Small scale
industries and graduate employment programme
The aim of the agricultural programme is to generate
employment for graduates, non-graduates and school leavers in the Agricultural
sector, with emphasis on self employment in agricultural production and marketing.
The programme is monitored by a team of Agricuatural professionals in the
Agricultural department of the directorate. However, factors which includes
inadequate funding and late release of funds from the federation account among others
have impaired the effectiveness of the NDE agricultural programmes (Chinedum,
2006). I recommend the informal sector
as a medium of reducing unemployment in Nigeria, while outlining some of the
pointers needed in making the objectives achievable. The National Economic Employment and Development Strategy (NEEDS)
was introduced in March 2004, in order to confront the various macroeconomic
imbalances social challenges and structural problems in the Nigerian Economy.
One of the principal goals is to build a modern Nigerian that maximizes the
potential of every citizen so as to become the largest and strongest African
economy, and a force to be reckoned with in the world. To achieve this goal,
NEEDS, as a development strategies anchored on the private sector is to
engineer wealth creation, employment generation and poverty reeducation,
however, for NEEDS to achieve its
objectives there’s need to design many integrated programmes that can generate
employment for women and youths to enhance growth and development (Adebayo,
2006). As it is a medium- termed reform based development strategy, and action
plan for the period 2003-2007, the impact of NEEDS is yet to be felt, in
combating unemployment problems and this further point to the need to seek help
in the informal sector in order to drastically reduce unemployment.
OTHER POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
The responsibility of Universities in training
students is not limited to imparting academic skills. It should include
training the individuals to be disciplined by instilling in them those
society’s desirable human characteristics such as honesty, hard work and
loyalty. There have been, constantly, calls from different arms of the society
for a look at the problem of the increasing unemployment rate in Nigeria. Provision
of employment opportunities to all graduates is a means of ensuring
participation of all in the national development process. In order to eradicate
unemployment and poverty, the Nigerian Government under the former leadership
of President Olusegun Obasanjo, GCFR reiterated the need to approach the issues
of employment generation from a systemic point of view. Hence, this informed
the invitation of the Federal Government to the International Labour
Organization in 2001 to understudy the Nigerian labour market with a view to
recommending strategies for a holistic turnaround of the nation’s economy.
Furthermore, Mr. President approached UNESCO, for assistance in the reform of
Nigerian’s Science and Technology and Innovation System. A principal component
of this reform is the promotion of entrepreneurship in Nigerian Post Basic
Education Sector. The Higher Education Sector in complementing the effort of
government and in compliance with the directives of Mr. President introduced a
training module on entrepreneurship with a view to giving students basic
knowledge and skills in enterprise development and management. The massive
introduction of entrepreneurial education in our university curricula was also
a precursor to the establishment of Entrepreneurial Study, Innovation, and
Career Advisory Centers in Nigerian Higher Education Institutions (HELs).
CONCLUSION
From this study, employment generation has been seen
as a means of alleviating poverty, increasing the level of economic activities
which translate into economic growth. The Nigerian Government in previous times
had put in place policies and programmes which are meant to combat this menace,
few of which are considered in this study, but up till now these programmes
have not made much impact. We therefore examine how unemployment can be
reduced, by expanding the activities of the informal sector. Although the
informal sector has its challenges, which revolves round the inaccessibility of
credit to finance its activities, but there is a glimmer of hope, considering
the on-going policy of the Federal Government through the Central Bank of
Nigeria, on microfinance, which has 105 European Journal of Economics, Finance
and Administrative Sciences Issue II (2008) brought microfinance banking into
the limelight making it a more realistic programme. It is hoped that if the
microfinance programme continues to enjoy the support and regulatory framework
it presently enjoys from Government and stakeholders, it will no longer be
crippled by lack of fund, while the employment generation and job creation
goals of the millennium also become a reality.
Finally, the Nigeria business community and the
government are not innovative in creating jobs. There is no reason why
businesses and government should not establish call centers and websites where
people can phone in to seek information about vacancies available in private
and public establishments. This idea can generate thousands of jobs for
Nigerians. Elsewhere in the world, emerging institutional adaptations to the
problems of labour market mismatch include the formation of “knowledge
coalitions” with other knowledge producing centres in society. Hence, the
establishment of more effective labour market information systems and centre
that are linked to career counseling in universities and greater private sector
involvement in curriculum consultation, faculty attachments, student
placements, and research funding are very important to reduce the graduate
unemployment rate in Nigeria.
SUGGESTION
Clark (2001) suggests that university departments will
need to change their curricula every two or three years in order to ensure that
the content of their teaching reflects the rapidly advancing frontiers of
scientific knowledge and the global market. Furthermore, employers are
increasingly demanding new curricula that include skill standards and perhaps
even vendor-specific certifications that are not typically included in
traditional university curricula. These employers do not trust that the traditional,
faculty-developed curriculum will meet their needs especially in the area of
information technology as different companies now adopt new vendor products and
then search for individuals who have mastered the technology.
RECOMMENDATION
I hereby recommend the informal sector as a medium of
reducing unemployment in Nigeria and advice that government and all relevant
stakeholders continue in their quest towards reducing unemployment, as well as
give their support in ensuring that the informal sector is not downtrodden but
embraced in this task.
REFERENCES
Adebayo,
A(1999).”Youth unemployment and the National Directorate of
Employment, Self-employment programmmes”. The Nigerian
Journal of economic and social studies.
Adebayo,
A. and ogunrinola, I.O (2006)”contemporary dimensions of
Unemployment problem in Nigeria: a special challenge
under the National economic empowerment and development strategy”. NES 2006,
Ibadan, Nigeria.
Ademu,
W.A (2006) “the informal sector and employment generation in
Nigeria: the role of credit”.NES 2006 Annual
conference.
Akintoye,
I.R (2006) ‘enhancing the performance of the informal sector for
Economic development of Nigeria: a case study of Lagos
State” International Journal of Social Sciences, vol. 5 no 1, pp100-112
Dabalen,
Andrew., bankole oni and olatunde adekola. (2001). Labour
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Egwu,
F.C and Eje, B.E (2004), published in Nigeria by Cheston agency
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