The recently announced creation of the Nigeria Jubilee Fellows Programme by the Federal Government is a noble idea. The programme, supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the European Union, is to celebrate Nigeria’s 60th Independence. It aims at employing annually, 20,000 graduates who have recently concluded the mandatory one-year National Youth Service Corps programme. President Muhammadu Buhari, who launched the scheme in Abuja, said “beyond the skills and work experience, we will be building a new culture of mentorship and guidance that can chart a new course for skills development and work experience in our country.”
The programme is in line with some other support schemes of the Federal Government. Some of them include the N75 billion youth fund meant to support young Nigerians in business or with business ideas; the National Poverty Reduction with Growth Strategy (NPRGS) aimed at fulfilling the President’s promise to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years; and the recruitment of about one million graduates into the N-power programme.
Others include the controversial 774,000 jobs to youths in 774 local government areas in Nigeria, the Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP), and the Food for Jobs programme. Participants in the 774,000 jobs were meant to receive N20, 000 per month for the three months it lasted. The Food for Jobs programme has reportedly led to the identification of five million farmers who now have Bank Verification Numbers (BVN) to enable them to access loans and farm inputs.
It is imperative to note that the problem of unemployment in Nigeria is quite huge. In the second quarter of 2020, the rate of unemployment was 27.1 per cent. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported that the rate rose in the fourth quarter of 2020 to 33.3 per cent. This translates into 23.2 million unemployed people. This is said to be the highest in over 13 years and second highest in the world. The acceptable level of unemployment is between four and six per cent. According to the NBS, the working age population (15 – 64 years of age) also rose from 117 million in the second quarter to 122 million in the fourth quarter of 2020.
This rise in unemployment could be attributed to the poor state of the economy which went into recession twice – 2016 and 2020 – since the present administration took over power in 2015. The recession last year was the worst in four decades.
Political uncertainty and high level of insecurity in the country contribute to this comatose economy. Bandits and kidnappers are on the rampage. In most parts of the country, especially in the North, herdsmen often clash with farmers on account of the destruction of economic crops by cows. Boko Haram terrorists added a new dimension to this problem when they invaded a farm in a village in Borno State last November and killed scores of farm workers. No doubt, investors are wary of investing in an economy where security is not guaranteed. Hence, fixed capital investment, portfolio investment and foreign direct investments have dwindled in Nigeria. Forex scarcity and weak Naira do not help matters. It has led to high cost of raw materials which has invariably affected the capacity of some companies to engage in manufacturing and job creation.
The ravaging effects of COVID-19 are another problematic factor. For much of last year, there were lockdowns and travel restrictions which affected many sectors, especially aviation, transport, hospitality and entertainment. This led to loss of jobs as many companies also stopped employing workers.
Job creation is a serious business. It is not an ad hoc thing. The mechanism requires much more than what the FG has done. Hence, giving 20,000 jobs yearly to graduates is paltry. It will not do any magic to reduce the number of the unemployed. Government can raise the number to at least 100,000 or even more.
We hope the selection of the beneficiaries is not politicised or hijacked by politicians as they did in the 774,000 jobs that ended in April this year. Government should set out the criteria for the job selection. It should sit down and design a more impactful job creation mechanism which should be transparent.
The first major step is to create the enabling environment for more jobs to be created. It does not make sense to create 20,000 jobs while the companies which should do more of the job creation are either shutting down or relocating to other countries due to harsh business environment in Nigeria. The roads have to be fixed. Power supply should be constant. Tax incentives should be given.
The FG should equip the youths with relevant skills to even create jobs themselves. Depending on white collar jobs should be de-emphasised henceforth. Our tertiary institutions should improve on their curriculum with a view to imparting the relevant skills on students which will transform them from job seekers to job creators.
Agriculture remains the best way to create more jobs for the youths. It used to be the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy. But the advent of crude oil relegated it to the background. Government should make the sector attractive again by giving incentives to farmers and youths.