By Stephen Adeleye.
The Kogi State Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Mrs Rosemary Osikoya, has charged youths in the state to embrace vocational skills to enable them to become self employed in future
Osikoya who made the charge in Lokoja while declaring open a two-week summer vocational camp for some youths said that they can learn a skill while waiting for admission or during long vacations.
She said that the camp was organised to keep the youths busy during this long vacation period.
According to the commissioner, the objective is to purposefully encourage the youths to marry vocational skills with academics so that they cope with the challenges of the 21st century.
“The days when people solely rely on academic certificates to get employment is gone. The dynamics of today favour those with practical skills to creating jobs for themselves and for others,” Osikoya said.
The Commissioner said that the two-week training was for secondary school students within the age bracket 10- 19, while those that had left secondary school will receive their training at Chateko Vocational Institute, Lokoja.
“They will be trained in tailoring, soap making, baking, beads making and pasteries among others. They will be equipped to use both their hands and brains to solve life problem,” she explained.
While in camp, the Commissioner said that participants will be encouraged to form vocational clubs to help them develop a deep sense for rational thinking.
“The training will equip them to be productive to themselves, families and the society.Research has shown that persons with practical skills helps to reduce the monotony of reading.
“God forbids, but bad things can happen to parents anytime which can truncate the education of their children. But when one has a skill , one can weather the storm when it happened.
“I advise you to learn a skill to earn a living and also assist your parents in paying your schools fees,” Osikoya advised.
She said the ministry had established eight home economics centres in Lokoja, stating that the centres will be used train vulnerable women in various vocations.
Osikoya said that the centres were located in strategic areas of the city to reduce cost of traveling long distances.
In their separate remarks, the State Coordinator of the National Business and Technical Education Board (NABTEB), Mrs Pauline Ajibili, and her counterpart in the Teacher Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), Mrs Zainab Lawal, enjoined parents to encourage their children to learn vocational skills.
They also appealed to corporate organisation and well-meaning individuals to support acquisition of vocational skills by youths.
(NAN)