FG to Save N180bn Through Brain Gain Skills Enhancement Initiative

  ITF targets creating four million jobs per year

The federal government agency responsible for capacity-building, Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Thursday announced the introduction of a new initiative to enhance the capacity of the Nigerian human capital, as well as improve their skills and ability to either become self-employed or attract gainful employment.

The Director General and Chief Executive of the agency, Dr. Juliet Chukkas Onaeko, gave an insight into the development while addressing stakeholders in Lagos on the need for partnership towards the successful implementation of the mandate of ITF.

She said the programme, called the Brain Gain initiative, expected to save the federal government around N180 billion in three years, would be powered by Nigerian experts in the Diaspora who are interested in coming to their country of birth to give back through knowledge impartation and technology transfer at no cost to the ITF.

Meanwhile, the ITF Chief Executive also hinted that the agency had resolved to work towards the creation of four million jobs every year, up 100 per cent from the two million jobs target they had earlier set.

She said this drive towards the creation of more jobs was designed to deal with the two major maladies of corruption and insecurity which the government of President Muhammadu Buhari, is determined to tackle.

“If you look at the three issues of insecurity, unemployment and corruption you will find that the problem of unemployment is the common denominator for the other two challenges of corruption and insecurity.

“When young people are gainfully employed, then there will be no idle hands to engage in senseless violence and on the other hand, people who are able to earn a descent and honest living for themselves through their skills, will not be easily lured into corrupt practices which might lead them to disgrace and incarceration,” she said.

Speaking in details about the Brain Gain initiative, the DG said the Nigerian experts in Diaspora who will drive the programme specialise in various high-tech sectors and will enrol with the ITF, so that together, they will work out a schedule that will bring the them to the country at their convenience to facilitate training sessions for youths.

“The Brain Gain programme in the first phase is expected to attract not less than 10,000 experts in renewable energy, robotics engineering, hospitality, oil and gas, petrochemicals among others.

“As a matter of fact, we have been able to identify over a million experts who have skills to contribute to this programme but in the first phase, we are considering a conservative number of just 10,000.

“Most of these experts are professionally and financially accomplished people who are willing to play this role at their own cost,” she noted.

Explaining how the new initiative would cut down the agency’s cost of operation to the tune of N180 billion, Onaeko said the ITF, having made this arrangement that will see global experts come over to Nigeria as volunteers to train and transfer valuable skills to numerous Nigerian trainees under the programme, will save not less than N600,000 for every expert that volunteers. 

According to her, when this amount that would have been spent hiring the volunteer trainers for the programme is computed for a three-year period which the programme will take, the total amount of money that would be saved by the government comes to around N180 billion.

Onaeko also called for partnership and support from all stakeholders and employers of labour in the country, stressing that for the programme to be very successful, much of the cost elements of the programme should be further handled by stakeholders.

“For example, we are looking at  a situation where airlines operating in Nigeria will voluntarily provide free flight tickets for these experts to further reduce the cost to them and increase the number of experts who will volunteer. Insurance companies can also come along to insure these experts to make them more comfortable to carry out their assignment,” she said.

She stressed that in view of the numerous developmental challenges confronting Nigeria as a nation and the unwavering resolve and commitment of the federal government to initiate transformational changes that would place the country on the trajectory of sustained economic growth and prosperity, it has become imperative for the ITF, as the foremost manpower development agency, to review strategies and modus operandi, being fully aware that the huge manpower deficit experienced presently in the country is a major albatross to the desired economic transformation.

“As part of the urgent measures to address this enormous capacity deficit in the human resource needed to drive the various sectors of the economy, the ITF has come up with a four-point agenda which encapsulates our current corporate strategy. The new four-point agenda reflects the four cardinal areas of our mandate and they include: The training of two million Nigerian youths annually for employability and job creation; full automation of the ITF business process; 100 per cent efficiency in SIWES administration and 100 per cent revenue generation.

“Pursuing the fund’s mandate within the framework of these four cardinal points has in the last one year yielded significant results. For instance, the fund has strengthened her partnership and collaboration through a series of memorandum of understanding (MOU) with relevant agencies (both locally and internationally), who have in no small measure contributed to the successes we have recorded.

“These agencies and organisations include among others, the United Nation’s Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), PSB Academy Singapore, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (SMEDAN), Bank of Industry (BOI), Nigerian Employer’s Consultative Association (NECA). These collaborations and MoUs have significantly catalysed the exchange of ideas and expertise required to effectively address the capacity deficits and challenges earlier highlighted,” Onaeko said.