By Segun Bambo Ojomo.
President and Founder, Foundation for Skills Development, Mrs. Omowale Ogunrinde has called on government and other stakeholders to join forces to ensure the proliferation of skills’ development efforts in Nigeria.
She said this during an interview with our correspondent at the recently held Graduation Ceremony for skills’ trainees at the institution’s premises in Lagos.
According to Ogunrinde, government especially needs to be more conscientious in its choice and mode of participation in skills’ development efforts so as to achieve set standards and ensure that its efforts are directed to critical areas of need and monitored for effective and efficient utilisation.
“It is not enough to direct efforts to skills acquisition as a means of feathering political nests, as in many cases, such strives do not at the end justify the means and only lead to maladministration of investments”, she said.
Ogunrinde further noted that results of such efforts are often ephemeral as there are always no strict monitoring and followups embarked upon to ensure that beneficiaries of such opportunities make the best use of knowledge and equipment they have acquired.
“At FSD, we are willing to partner with government and other stakeholders in this effort aimed at alleviating poverty which has desperately demeaned a fair high proportion of Nigerians especially in recent times”, she added.
“For instance, the graduation ceremony of today is a product of concerted efforts with Nagode Industries Limited that deemed it good to assist us with sponsorship in training the graduands in different skills including hairdressing, fashion designing/ tailoring, baking and confectioneries’ production, and electrical/electronics maintenance and repairs”, she said.
She called on other well meaning Nigerians and bodies charged with social standardising roles to take a cue from Nagode Industries role and efforts in ensuring meaningful existence for Nigerian families.
