NECA and ITF report 90% job placement for trainees

The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) and the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) announced that approximately 90% of graduates from their joint training program have either secured employment or established their own businesses. This statement was made by NECA's Director-General, Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, during the eighth edition of the ITF-NECA Technical Skills Development Project stakeholders’ dialogue forum and outstanding trainees’ awards ceremony held in Abuja.

The initiative, launched on March 31, 2009, has trained young Nigerians in over 35 technical and vocational trades, with participation from 84 organizations. Oyerinde emphasized the need for increased government and private sector investment in technical education to better align skills with industry needs.

He also mentioned that NECA, in collaboration with the International Organisation of Employers and Microsoft, has registered 101,000 young Nigerians for an artificial intelligence training program, with over 87,000 receiving certificates. The Chairman of the ITF Governing Council, Hamma-Adama Ali Kumo, represented by Mercy Oyewole, highlighted the importance of technical skills in enhancing productivity and reducing reliance on imported expertise.