Organisers of the Open Day, which will hold at Oriental Hotel, Lagos on Saturday, said on Thursday that the panellists would discuss critical job skills needed in workplaces and for entrepreneurs.
According to the organisers, Saturday’s Open Day is tailored towards addressing the needs of small businesses/startups.
A statement from the organising committee read, “The Open Day will give participants high-quality, affordable, dynamic enlightenment that prepares them for the global workplace.”
The Nigeria Country Director of Nexford University, Majekodunmi, signed the statement, which also stated that one of the reasons for hosting the Open Day was to curb youth unemployment through entrepreneurship.
It read, “NXU launches Lagos Open Day to curb youth unemployment. The goal is to empower and support the region’s entrepreneurs. In the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, more than one in eight of all 15- to 24-year-olds are not in employment, education, or training – Nexford Insights. The International Labour Organisation estimates that 75 million young people are unemployed.
“Estimates of underemployed youth could triple this number. This represents a huge pool of untapped talent and a source of social unrest if left unchecked. Local economies can’t meet rising job demands. To help with this, NXU equips learners with the skills they need to be globally competitive and tap into international economic opportunities.”
The statement also quoted Nexford’s Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Fadl Al Tarzi, as saying, “With the rapid advancement of tech, skills are the only barrier between ambitious youths across the world and attractive economic opportunities. Our next-generation university focuses on this, precisely.”
Justifying its investment in curbing unemployment and aiding entrepreneurship, the university said, “The university surveyed Fortune 500 companies and analysed millions of job vacancies to create a curriculum focused on job skills. Nexford’s online learning model bridges the skills gap between graduates and employers.