The Nigerian Federal Government, through the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), has initiated a groundbreaking nationwide upskilling programme aimed at enhancing the skills of 5 million youths. The Skill Up Artisan Programme (SUPA) is set to revolutionise the country’s vocational training landscape and address the growing demand for skilled artisans.
Dr. Afiz Oluwatoyin, Director-General of ITF, announced that the agency has received a presidential mandate to upskill artisans across all 774 local government areas in Nigeria. This announcement came during the inaugural meeting on SUPA’s implementation with executives from enlisted training centres in Abuja.
Key Highlights of the SUPA Initiative:
- Phased Implementation: The programme will begin with a pilot phase, training 100,000 artisans per batch.
- Diverse Skill Acquisition: SUPA offers training in 20 different vocational areas.
- Licensing and Certification: Successful participants will receive official licenses, promoting professionalism in the sector.
- Multilingual Training: Courses will be conducted in Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba, and Pidgin to ensure accessibility for all Nigerians.
- Long-term Goal: SUPA aims to retrain and certify 20 million artisans over the next five years.
Dr. Oluwatoyin emphasised the programme’s objectives: “Our cardinal aim is to elevate Nigerian artisans to international standards, enabling them to compete favourably with their global counterparts and receive fair compensation for their work.”
The ITF has designed SUPA to address Nigeria’s technical manpower crisis and combat quackery in vocational trades. By promoting professionalism, the programme seeks to improve prosperity within the artisanal sector and reduce reliance on foreign skilled labour.
Registration for the pilot phase, which opened in January and closed in March, attracted significant interest. The ITF plans to publish the names of successful candidates who have been screened for the initial training batch, set to commence by the end of the month.
This innovative programme represents a significant step towards transforming Nigeria’s skills acquisition landscape and boosting the blue-collar job sector. As the SUPA initiative unfolds, it is expected to play a crucial role in empowering Nigerian youth and strengthening the country’s workforce.
For more information on the Skill Up Artisan Programme and future registration opportunities, interested individuals are encouraged to visit the official ITF website.