Adolescent Girls and Women in Skills Acquisition

The Skills Development for Youth in Nigeria programme hosts an interactive workshop

ABUJA (28 JUNE 2019) – The German Development Cooperation, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, on the platform of its Skills Development for Youth Employment in Nigeria (SKYE) programme organised today a workshop on “Promoting Girls and Women in Skills Acquisition” with the focus on trades in construction and agriculture.

With the participation of stakeholders in the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) sector, academia, civil society, and over 100 adolescent girls and women, the event, which took place at Green Legacy Hotel in Abeokuta, Ogun State, focused on increasing awareness and interest in technical skills and job opportunities in the construction and agriculture sectors, as means of addressing the challenges of youth unemployment and poverty in the state.

Speaking on the event, Hans-Ludwig Bruns, GIZ Cluster Coordinator for Sustainable Economic Development and Head of the Skills Development for Youth Employment in Nigeria (SKYE) Programme underlined that there is a gender skills gap in the sectors of construction and agriculture, which are key sectors of the SKYE programme. “Youths especially adolescent girls and women should take advantage of the labour market needs in the sectors of construction and agric. There are available trainings to enhance these technical skills that will boost employment and reduce poverty in Ogun State and across Nigeria. The SKYE programme is at the forefront to bridge the gender skills gap; we are currently offering several TVET trainings through our implementing partners.”

The event included presentations and an interactive dialogue with experts, including Mrs Olaitan Oduwaye, World Bank representative in Ogun State, Mrs Omotunde Rasheed-Yusuf, Former Senior Special Assistant to the governor of Ogun State, Prof Dipeolu Adewale, Dean Federal University Agriculture Abeokuta, and Dr Lasode Abolanle Senior Lecturer Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta. One of the highlights of the event was the showcasing of construction skills by women artisans as a way of increasing adolescent girls and women’s interest in the sector.

TVET is perceived in developing, emerging and even in some industrial countries as a ‘second-best option’ in comparison to general or academic education. However, TVET provides demand-based skills for the job market or self-employment. In Nigeria, the application of TVET tackles youth unemployment and underemployment and fights irregular migration and the country’s poverty crisis. The skills acquisition workshop to promote adolescent girls and women was an eye-opening event for participants that are now aware of the available opportunities in the construction and agriculture sectors.