New Horizons, NDE tackle unemployment with SEE, empower 10,000 graduates

By Bankole Orimisan

Determined to tackle the problems facing unemployed graduates in the country, over 10 thousands have been empowered at Skill For Employment and Enterprise (SEE) recently launched by the New Horizons and the National Directorate of Employment,

The programme, is the forth on the series of national job fair held so far in the country and was peopled by local and foreign speakers who spoke extensively on employment and other issues.

 According to the New Horizons, managing director, Mr. Tim Akano, the launching of SEE had become imperative in Nigeria owing to the wide skill gaps currently exist today between the industry in the country.

Feedback from various employers, according to investigations, showed that today’s university graduates do not posses readymade skills that will make them hit the ground running from their first day in the office. This is why the Graduate Trainee program. According to Akano, which used to take one year in most multinationals in the past, now takes three years or so. As a result, some Multinationals now prefer to hire Asians to do jobs which Nigerians could do even better with additional training.

SEE project, he stressed, will empower the Nigerian graduates not only in Information Technology skills like Microsoft, Cisco, Oracle, IT-Security etc, but also with skills in Personal Branding, Customer Service, Executive Etiquette, Selling Skills, Communication and Leadership including Entrepreneurship.

“This will take an average of three months and upon completion graduates will be assisted with job placement as Industrial attaché in banks, telecoms, manufacturing and other companies. It is our expectation,” Akano said, adding that those who excel as industrial attaché could be readily absorbed by the organisations.

He said, for those who would like to be wealth creators, the skills acquired during the three months of SEE program would have prepared them to start a small scale business in Information Technology as a Consultant to major organisations.

Addressing the audience at the seminar, President of EC-Council, Mr. Sanjay Bavisi laid emphasis on IT security training for Nigerians as a measure in understanding the technicalities in online fraud in order to control the menace.

According to him, IT-Security experts are some of the highest paid professionals globally today and that they were not affected by the last financial crisis that rocked the world.

High point of the seminar was a presentation made by the DG of NDE’s representative who spoke on the numerous programmes the directorate organizes for unemployed graduates and job seekers as part of Federal Governments drive to reduce the rate of unemployment in the country using ICT empowerment.

He urged the participants to take advantage of the opportunities placed at their doorsteps by the Federal Government through NDE to ensure that Nigerian Graduates and non-graduates with meaningful and beneficial economic ideas are optimally harnessed for growth and development.

The DG later expressed his delight to the co-organizers of the seminar – New Horizons for coming up with such a forum that offered the directorate an opportunity to interface with its target audience.