Quality education, empowerment will inspire Nigerian youths – Gbajabiamila

Gbajabiamila spoke while delivering a lecture at the 35th Convocation of Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH) with the theme "Empowering Nigerian Youths in the Present Day Economy,’’ held on Tuesday in Yusuf Grillo Auditorium, YABATECH.

He noted that there was a need to review the curricula and teaching methods to situate practices in the context of global labour needs.

According to him, the higher aspiration is to ensure that the massive and growing population of Nigerian youths are engaged in productive endeavours, earning a good living, and competing favourably with their peers across the world.

“Achieving this goal requires us to rethink all our assumptions and recognise that our current realities demand that we ask hard questions and provide answers that are as honest as they are considered.

“Our world has changed, the old certainties from which we derived assurance and built our expectations no longer exist; the value of the extractive industries that have powered our economic growth has deteriorated.

 “It continues to do so rapidly as technological advances lead us toward a future where crude oil and coal are replaced by renewable solar, wind, and water alternatives.

“The illusion of national wealth, under which we have laboured for too long, has been exposed by a rapidly growing population for whom there are too few jobs and limited opportunities for social and economic advancement.

“We must ensure that our higher education institutions are citadels that produce graduates who have the desire and drive to change the world and who have the ability to do so,” he added.

Gbajabiamila, who is the immediate past Speaker of the House of Representatives, said that education in the 21st century was not merely about skills acquisition and specialisation but disruption and reinvention.

He added that 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.

According to him, this generation will 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.

 “Essentially, the purpose of 21st-century education is not merely skills acquisition and specialisation but disruption and reinvention.

“We can achieve 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.

“Today, many skills that guarantee employment and a healthy income for previous generations have been made redundant by technological advances.

 “And against technology, including Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, blockchain and financial technology tools that are increasingly replacing the human function in the workplace, we must prepare them with these realities in mind.

“To do this effectively, we need to develop a new understanding of the changing nature of work and the future of employment,” he said.

Gbajabiamila called for collaboration between higher institutions and the organised private sector as it is vital to carry out the essential work of engagement, research and review required to bridge the gaps in our knowledge.

Speaking on the Students Loan Bill, Gbajabiamila disclosed that the application system for the student loan programme was being designed to avoid an interface between the loan administrators and the beneficiaries.

“Nobody will need to know anybody to qualify for these loans, so that access to this financing will be genuinely egalitarian”.

“This programme is a dedicated government effort to ensure we empower our young people to benefit from emerging technologies and become part of the technical talent that will power the growth of our national economy in this modern age.

“ These are part of a strategic, national effort that will create jobs for millions of young people, establish opportunities for commerce and open opportunities for economic growth and advancement across our country,” he said.

Gbajabiamila charged the graduating students to wake up daily determined to devote their learnings, ambitions and energy to understand the new world and take advantage of the many opportunities that abound.

“ Please do not imagine that the qualification you have acquired here is the end of your education.

“Instead, you should consider it the beginning because it is the hallmark of the educated mind to recognise that there is no such thing as too much learning.

“Open your mind to the possibilities in your world and devote yourself to lifelong learning and self-development,’’ he advised.

Similarly, the Senate President and Chairman of the occasion, Godswill Akpabio, called on the relevant authorities to seek ways of ensuring that the college transits to a university and acknowledges its status.

Senator Akpabio, who was represented by a Human Rights Activist, Monday Ubani, congratulated the graduating students.

He said: “Life is a journey, the mindset of our youths must be re-engineered.

“You must put on your thinking caps and brace up for the challenges ahead. You need Strength, Stamina Speed and above all the Spirit to succeed,” he added.

Earlier, according to Dr Ibraheem Abdul, Rector, YABATECH, the theme of the 35th convocation lecture holds significant relevance to the nation in the face of various challenges and opportunities that come with the rapidly evolving global economy.

According to him, it is imperative that we equip our youths with the knowledge, skills and resources needed to navigate these dynamic economic landscapes and emerge as successful contributors to our society.

Abdul noted that the choice of Gbajabiamila as the guest speaker was because of his position in the engine room that drives and coordinates national activities and development.

“We believe that this topic can be better handled by our Hon. Gbajabiamila who has been actively and practically involved in youth empowerment for several years and perfectly understands the working and direction of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu’’.

The YABATECH rector highlighted some of the institute’s initiatives targeted at youth empowerment.

He said they included the Wuadruple Helix Collaboration Scheme, Establishment of a Centre for Technology Marketing and Product Development and the YCT Industry Alliance Group (YIAG) Programme.

He also said that the College needed support for infrastructural development.

“Our infrastructures are seriously old and inadequate to meet the teaming population of youths’’.

NAN reports that Gbajabiamila and Akpabio also received awards at the 35th Convocation lecture.