The Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, has advised higher education stakeholders to focus on training students in multiple fields and skills.
Gbajabiamila, who was the guest lecturer at the 35th Convocation Lecture of Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, spoke on, ‘Empowering Nigerian Youths in the Present-day Economy.’
Gbajamila said most skills that guaranteed employment and a healthy income for previous generations had been made redundant by technological advances.
He said, “Quality education in the 21st knowledge economy must empower the individual to operate effectively in multiple fields, to ask hard questions, and challenge the status quo.
“The purpose of 21st-century education is not merely skills acquisition and specialisation but disruption and reinvention. How do we achieve this? We do this by reviewing our curricula and teaching methods to situate our practices in the context of global labour needs. We require a programme of aggressive and sustained investment in education. Not only in the physical infrastructure of classrooms and lecture halls but in technology hardware and software to facilitate information exchange and innovation.”
He opined that this generation would not only be competing with one another for opportunities, “but they will also be competing in a global marketplace, against students from all over the world, and against technology that is increasingly replacing the human function in the workplace, hence, the need to prepare the would-be graduates.”
The Rector, Yaba College of Technology, Dr Ibraheem Abdul, in his welcome address, said the theme of the lecture held significant relevance to the nation.
He said, “As we face the various challenges and opportunities that come with a rapidly evolving global economy, it is imperative that we equip our youth with the knowledge, skills, and resources needed to navigate these dynamic economic landscapes and emerge as successful contributors to our society.”
