The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has said his administration will continue to prioritise investment in youth development and implement policies that will enable youths in the state acquire new skill-set to enable them contribute in the post-coronavirus (COVID-19) global economic recovery.
Obaseki made the remarks in commemoration of the World Youth Skills Day, marked every July 15 by the United Nations and its sister agencies.
The governor said: “As part of our broad strategy for post-COVID-19 economic recovery, we will continue to equip our youths with new skills-set to boost their employability through the state government’s skills development agency, EdoJobs and in line with our vision for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).”
He noted that his administration has intensified training that prepares youth for top-of-the-range Information and Communication Technology (ICT) job as software engineers in the proposed Edo Tech Park, noting, “We are assisting our youth to acquire on-demand skill sets to drive economic growth.”
The governor urged for more support from multilateral corporations, stakeholders in the private sectors, all levels of government, and other development partners in assisting the state with the required resources to equip more youth with new skills that will enable them to compete with their peers globally.
Obaseki said in the education sector, “my administration through reforms in TVET is revamping more technical colleges to provide opportunities for students in secondary schools to acquire technical skills.”
According to the United Nations, the World Youth Skills Day was designated by the General Assembly in 2014, and provides the opportunity for young people, technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions, and public and private sector stakeholders to acknowledge and celebrate the importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship.
