Skills acquisition, gateway to economic growth, says FOC

he Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Naval Doctrine Command, Rear Adm. Akinga Ayafa, on Friday said skills acquisition was one of the guaranteed ways to economic growth and prosperity of the nation.

Ayafa said this during the Graduation Ceremony for participants of the Nigerian Armed Forces Resettlement Centre Officers Wives Association (NAFRCOWA) skills acquisition and empowerment programme, held at Buhari Hall, NAFRC, Oshodi, Lagos.

Reports that the programme started on Aug. 23 with 48 participants comprising widows and wives of NAFRC personnel as well as youths residing within the Centre.

The programme was conducted over a period of 12 weeks and focused on four areas of specialisation – leather works (shoe and bag making); hairstyling and makeup; soap and cosmetics as well as baking (catering services).

The FOC said that nation was faced with several challenges ranging from insecurity, unemployment and low economic growth amongst others, therefore, the importance of skills acquisition in Nigeria could not be overemphasised.

“The phenomenon of skills acquisition has gained unique significance because of its role in socio-economic development of the nation as the driving force in economic growth and job creation.

“One of the major causes of our low economic growth can be attributed to lack of relevant skills among the citizens, leading to over dependency on foreign-made products.

“One good thing about skills acquisition either vocational or technical is that, it has no age limit and everyone has equal opportunity to strive in the open market,” he said.

Ayafa, also the Special Guest Of Honour, observed that even when people with some of these skills were available, they were grossly inadequate in number to meet the national market demand.

“Therefore, the skills anyone acquires differentiate them from any other person irrespective of their higher academic qualifications or attainment.

“You have been empowered to take up the challenge of alleviating the problems of unemployment in our nation.

“You must take up this challenge by putting into good use the knowledge gained through the establishment of small and medium scale enterprises that will create employment opportunities,” he said.

The FOC said that the skills acquired by the graduating participants could have come with huge financial implication if they had undertaken the training in a private skills acquisition institution.

According to him, the financial implication was taken care of by the Centre through NAFRCOWA as part of the association’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

“I, therefore urge you to be passionate, dedicated and innovative in your chosen vocations and ensure that this investment by NAFRCOWA does not go in vain,” he said.

Ayafa encouraged the graduands to bring positive feedback to the Centre through NAFRCOWA that would encourage the continuity of similar skills acquisition programme.

“I implore you to exercise patience in your dealings with potential clients, maintain positive attitude and good marketing skills at all times to grow your business.

“There is a high rate of criminal activities in the open market and as such, you must remain vigilant and prudent in the management of your hard earned resources,” he said.

Also speaking, the coordinator of NAFRCOWA, Mrs Naomi Lubo, said that the skills acquisition programme was aimed at assisting the less privileged such as widows to be self-empowered.

“The participants were exposed to the modern trends to give them a competitive edge hereafter.

“I strongly believe these noble virtues coupled with hard work will assure our graduands of success as entrepreneurs in a challenging business environment,” Lubo said.

Mr Godwin Ekanem, a beneficiary of the leather works skills acquisition, said that he was delighted to have been equiped with the knowledge of making shoes and bags.

“This will go a long way in helping me realise my dream of becoming an entrepreneur in future,” Ekanem said.

Also, Omotolani Amusan, who learnt baking, said that she looks forward to starting her baking career and thanked NAFRCOWA for the opportunity presented to her to achieve her dreams.

Also reports, the 48 graduands were each presented with certificates and a starter pack in their various choice of skills acquisition.

The starter packs included: oven, mixer and electric kitchen for the baking section, hair dryer, hand dryer, full make-up box for the hairstyling and make-up section, as well as industrial machine for the lather section.

Others are cutting table and chemicals for the soap and cosmetics section.