The management of Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Abeokuta has received top delegates from education regulatory body, finance and foreign agency for collaborative competence based training for both staff and students.

Mr. Christian Stehling, the team lead for German International Development Cooperation (Deutse Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit) (GIZ) disclosed that the agency came to inspect available facilities and recourses to carve a niche on areas of support needed in the polytechnic.

In his welcome remarks, the Rector, Dr. Adeoye Odedeji, stated that the approach of National Board for Technical Education, NBTE, to skills beyond degrees and diplomas campaign should be holistically inculcated through a uniform template, such that, those in formal and informal sectors would be incorporated for global development.

He added that the gesture extended by GIZ would strengthen competence and capacity among members of staff and students who are in the related fields and by extension beneficial to the system.

The inspecting team comprised representatives from the National Board for Technical Education, NBTE; Engr. Bashir Datti, Ogun State Ministry of Education Science & Technology; Mr. Akinleye Olubori, Alhaji Ibrahim Aliyu from GIZ and Mrs. Afolabi Mariam from the Chambers of Commerce.

According to Alhaji Ibrahim, the major agenda of the German agency was to train and provide facility support to qualified universities, polytechnics and Colleges of Education in conformity to global standard.

He said a preliminary forensic survey had been conducted on Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Abeokuta, and it was found worthy to be a beneficiary amongst other Institutions in Nigeria, which prompted their visit.

Going around the campus, the team was in company of the Director, Skill Development Center of the Polytechnic, Engr. Dr. Ahmad Apampa; Acting Director, School of Engineering, Engr. Dr. Jide Adenekan for the facility visit to Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Electronics and Civil engineering departments.

Other departments visited are Building Technology, Office Technology Management and Food Science Technology.

In their satisfactory remarks, members of the delegation commended the authorities of Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Abeokuta, and pledged to give necessary advice to GIZ to ratify the process for full inclusion of the polytechnic in its programme beginning from January, 2025.

As a tone of readiness, the agency immediately offered to provide a solar power facility to the School of Engineering, which will serve all their laboratories and workshops during the training of the students.

Earlier in April, 2023, GIZ was at the polytechnic to train about 300 students under the Skills Development for Youth Employment, SKYE, scheme in a bid to promoting Needs-Based Technical Vocational Education, Training and Youth Empowerment in Nigeria.

GIZ has branches in 54 countries.

Six states in Nigeria are beneficiaries.

They are Lagos, Ogun, Edo, Plateau, Adamawa and Abuja.

The post Foreign agency partners MAPOLY on competence based training appeared first on Frontpageng.

The Head, Public Relations and Protocol of MAPOLY, Mr. ‘Yemi Ajibola, made this known on Wednesday in a statement made available.

According to him, the training was designed to focus on Skills Development for Youth Employment, SKYE, in a bid to promoting Needs-Based Technical Vocational Education, Training and Youth Empowerment in Nigeria.

READ ALSO: MAPOLY: NBTE approves eight new programmes (+List)

According to the Director, Center for Skills Acquisition and Vocational Training of the Polytechnic, Engr. (Dr.) Ahmed Apampa, the initiative of employability skills training is an avenue for capacity building for the students and a boost for academic standard.

He revealed that part of the objectives was to improve the prospects of gainful employment for Nigerian Youth.

Earlier, while declaring the training open, the Rector, Dr. Adeoye Odedeji, encouraged students to take the advantage in soft skills acquisition while also obtaining degrees.

He disclosed that management was keen at empowering the institution’s products to become employers of labour.

About 300 students across all departments have been meritoriously selected to participate in the two-day training in three different cohorts with 100 participants per session.

The first cohort’s session was held at the Tetfund Hall, Centre for Skills Acquisition and Vocational Training of the polytechnic between Tuesday 18th and Wednesday, 19th April 2023, while the remaining two cohorts will be taken in the second semester.

Resource persons, Mr. Amile C. Terlumun, and Engr. Taiwo Abatan, justified the importance of effective communication skills to sustain human relations and management as well as effective problem solving and decision making for personal and collective development.

Students are expected, after the session, to be self-dependent, able to put up good Curriculum Vitae, transfer skills to others, live successfully without expecting salary and be alive with new ideas and expositions.

GIZ has branches in other 54 countries, out of which 6 states in Nigeria are also beneficiaries.

They are Lagos, Ogun, Edo, Plateau, Adamawa and Abuja.

The post Agency trains MAPOLY students on soft-skills for sustainable dev appeared first on Frontpageng.

The MoU, signed by the Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Mr. Samuel Egube, and the Country Director, Nigeria & Ecowas, GIZ, Ina Hommers, aims to provide a viable skill development programme that would empower the young people for employment opportunities and thereby enhance the sustainable economic growth of the state and the nation at large.

Speaking during the signing in Alausa, Ikeja, at the weekend, Mr Egube, said: “Beyond focusing on just the infrastructure development, we are focusing on training and developing human capacity as well as systems that make those things sustainable and that is what the challenge is for Lagos and what we intend to pursue with all our hearts.

“There is a lot we are doing and focusing on human development because everything we do, we must revolve around that. What is the use in having great infrastructure, but your people are still poor. If you are doing infrastructure it must be sensible enough to support the development of your people and the development of their enterprise that is how we are broadly organised. In that frame, technical education is very crucial and that is because of the demography that we have; it is largely youth, young people.

“What we have decided to do in this administration is to pursue the THEMES agenda and the heart of that entire programme is what we call our partnerships. Lagos is not excluded at approached partnerships from the perspective of waiting to see what the donors have to give but what we are trying to do in Lagos is to change that paradigm and is to say if we are your partners, let’s co-create.”

The commissioner disclosed his elation at the new partnership, which he said would open up new ideas that would complement the quality and expand the capacity of government programmes to improve the livelihood of the people.

“I am happy that we are able to reach some kind of understanding to work together. As far as Lagos is concerned, we do not believe we have the knowledge in all to do it on our own. We believe that knowledge is complete depending on the quality of people sitting on the table so we see your coming to join us to sit on the table as something that expands the capacity of all of us together to make a difference,” Egube said.

Also speaking at the event, the Consul General, Federal Republic of Germany, Dr. Stefan Traumann, said that the partnership would support many youths and small businesses through the current phase and help build for them something sustainable.

“Lagos State is well known for its youth engagement initiatives, empowerment and social development and so this collaboration with GIZ makes perfect sense. It comes especially in good time based on happenings in the world and here in Nigeria.

“As we all know, the majority of the Nigerian population as well as Lagos population is young and so there are undoubtedly many talented youths sitting idle at home wishing they had training opportunities to learn new skills to be engaged positively and to earn some money for themselves. This initiative will support many youths and small businesses through this tough phase and help them build something sustainable. This MoU is an important milestone for German-Nigerian partnerships especially in youth development,” Traumann said.

In her remarks, the Country Director, Nigeria and Ecowas, GIZ, Ina Hommers, said the MoU was an excellent opportunity for strengthening the relationship, which has been built with the Lagos State Government on skills development as well as creation of employment opportunities for the youths.

“Our classic programme is Sustaining Economic Development in Nigeria programme that supports economic growth and which has been active here throughout, but since 2018 our Skills Development for Youth Employment Programme has also been present in Lagos jointly with the Migration for Development Programme and this is how we started to work across the board with our Lagos partners on this nexus of what is it that is needed in order to rebuild, reform and provide prospects for people returning to Nigeria and to have livelihood opportunities that are sustainable and long lasting.

“What would make a change from our perspective is a real public-private dialogue that is: what is needed from your side and also what is needed from the private sector and what is it that they are seeking for and what is it that they can offer. What we hope is that we have the means to support such an approach and that you also have the means to bring together everyone that is needed from the Lagos State side for such a public private initiative and; then spread from Lagos to other states as well and we hope that this MoU can be a stepping stone towards this partnership,” GIZ Country Director said.

Witnessing the MoU signing were Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Diaspora Affairs, Mr. Jermaine Sanwo-Olu; Director, Departmental Partnership, Lagos Ministry of Economic Planning, Mr. Pekin Sobodu; Executive Secretary, Lagos State Technical and Vocational Education Board (LASTVEB), Mrs. Ronke Azeez, other Officials of GIZ Nigeria and representatives of the state’s Ministry of Justice.

The post Lagos signs MoU with German agency on skills devt for youths appeared first on Frontpageng.