An industrialist and former presidential aspirant on the platform of the defunct National Republican Convention (NRC), Alhaji Lema Jubril, has called for measures to tackle rising unemployment in the country.
According to him, the scourge is deadlier than Covid-19, Boko Haram and banditry combined.
Speaking at the opening ceremonies of the maiden Kaduna Polytechnic Out-of-School Youths Skills Acquisition programme on Friday, Jubril noted that the rate of unemployment in the country “is more than 60% of the population.”
He added it would make the recent #EndSARS protests “a child’s play.”
“Unemployment rate in Nigeria is unfortunately over 60 per cent. This is more dangerous and deadlier than Covid-19 pandemic, Boko Haram and banditry put together. Nigeria ought not to have any business with unemployment because we have the skills and natural resources.
“So, this skills acquisition for youths and out of school children is the way to go, if we fail to equip our youths with skills education, the recent #EndSARS protest will be a child’s play to restiveness that will be experienced in Nigeria,” he said.
He, however, commended the Kaduna Polytechnic for the initiative of training Out-of-School children, youth and asked the government at all levels, to take up the initiative.
The rector, Prof. Idris Bugaje, said the 70 out-of-school children drawn from the polytechnic’s neighbouring communities “will be trained in different skills including carpentry, welding and plumbing, among others.”
He, however, called for partnership from state government and other organisations with the polytechnic to replicate the skills training across Northern states, stressing that such “will address menace of street-begging.”
