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A professor of Labour Economics, Prof Abdullateef Usman emphasised the importance of Nigeria harnessing its youthful population for economic growth through targeted improvements in education, skill development, and job creation.
He also underscored the need for labour market reforms, advocating for improved worker protection, social security measures, and updates to legislation that support fair practices across sectors.
Usman delivering the Fountain University, Osogbo’s 4th Inaugural Lecture titled ‘From Honeypot to Tinderbox: The Trajectory of Nigeria’s Most Valuable Asset,’ highlighted the country’s potential in the digital economy.
He argued that consistent policies, particularly around minimum wage, could prevent recurring industrial actions that disrupt economic stability and productivity.
He called for a reform of educational curricula to align with industry demands, particularly in STEM and technical fields, which he believes will boost youth employment and support the nation’s growing digital sector.
To meet the needs of Nigeria’s evolving economy, Prof. Usman advised educational and skill development agencies to identify and prioritize essential skills in their programs.
He recommended that regulatory authorities, including the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), lead these efforts by re-evaluating curricula to ensure they remain relevant.
Prof. Usman in his recommendation noted that “Issues on minimum wage, which has resulted into collosal and irreparable loss of human and material resources, occasioned by several forms of industrial actions and disharmony can be settled through wage indexation as suggested in one of our studies, Promoting Job Creation and Entrepreneurship through Agricultural infrastructure modernization, support agriculture-related SME and agricprenuership through access to finance, training, and business development services.
“This is in addition to encouraging public-private partnerships to create job opportunities, foster innovation and enhance productivity in both urban and rural areas. Inadequate infrastructure, especially power supply, transportation, and telecommunications, hampers business growth and job creation.”
The Vice-Chancellor of Fountain University, Prof. Ramota Karim in her remarks expressed that it is a great pleasure to see the university positioning itself for academic excellence, which is expected of a vibrant institution.
According to her, “This is our fourth inaugural lecture, the second this year, with another planned for December. It shows that this University is really moving forward and positioning academic excellent that is expected of a vibrance University.”
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