An indigenous information technology company, SkillPaddy, has called on necessary stakeholders to work with technology experts on how to help build the future of Nigerian youths in areas of training because it is concerned about the rising unemployment rate and the lingering crisis in the country’s education sector, particularly the ongoing ASUU strikes.
The company emphasized how important it was for Nigeria to equip its kids to have the knowledge and abilities needed on the global stage.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SkillPaddy, Kunle Erinle, urged participants from the public and private sectors, particularly representatives of the Lagos State government and influential figures from Nigeria’s IT industry, to show more resolve and commitments on how Nigerian youth could be trained and developed in the area of technology while speaking at the launch of the youth skill acquisition program, which was held in Lagos.
Erinle said that if the nation doesn’t expose its kids to world norms in terms of technology, it will face difficulties in the future.
He claimed that following the 2020 global Covid-19 pandemic, which had a detrimental impact on the world economy, the company, SkillPaddy, started working with young Nigerians.
Erinle stated that the business launched courses on the SkillPaddy platform with the assistance of industry professionals with the intention of enlisting learners in a community for a three-month program, supported by a number of partner organizations.
“SkillPaddy will enable participants obtain on-the-job experience and increase their opportunities with their partners and sponsors rather than leaving the learners on their own after training.”
Erinle continued by saying that SkillPaddy intends to close the productivity gap, which is currently present in many businesses, as well as solve unemployment in Nigeria.
The world is changing quickly, he declared. Eight of the top ten most successful businesses in the world today are in the technology sector. In the field of digital technology, this amounts to 10 million jobs, with 1 million of them available in Africa. Do you realize that the majority of these positions remain unfilled year after year because there are either no applicants or no candidates with the necessary skills? Since it presents a significant challenge to us as a continent, SkillPaddy was created.
The platform will formally launch its first batch of courses for jobs like graphic design, mobile app development, business analysis, product management, software testing, and many more that are in high demand on the job market, the speaker added.
“To further assist students, our cooperation has expanded to include organizations like the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund, Honeywell Group, Chocolate City Group, and others. This will help students make the move into the majority of today’s tech-driven businesses. Naturally, we are looking for further collaborations and intend to increase the number of specialists and courses we provide.
Speaking at the event as well, Olatunbosun Alake, the governor of Lagos State’s special adviser for innovation and technology, agreed that the SkillPaddy initiative is a catalyst for sustainable economic growth and that “the rising talent eco-system is indeed the bedrock of development and economic excellence.”
He asserted that it is crucial that businesses like SkillPaddy assume the duty of leading the conversation and establishing a channel for partnership participation with various alternatives.
Alake said that in order to create an ecosystem of innovative capabilities, the public and commercial sectors should work together. The panelists from diverse businesses who highlighted the need for skills concurred that opportunities exist in many sectors but that men and women must have the necessary abilities to take advantage of these opportunities.
