By Joy Odor
The National Commission for Nomadic Education (NCNE) has engaged Nomadic Youth on a 4 days intensive and participatory workshop for the development of training manuals on various sustainable livelihoods skills and trade through which they will be able to succeed in life and became role model that can influence their communities and earn living for socio-economic and sustainable livelihoods.
The skills acquisition training are animal production, information and communication technology, entrepreneur, fish farming, cosmetology, bee keeping and honey processing, fashion design and peace building and conflict management.
The Executive Secretary of the Commission, Professor Bashiru Usman who declared the workshop open on Monday in Abuja said the skill acquisition would go a long way in reducing poverty percentage of many rural societies, reduce restiveness and social vices.
The vices, he said, include cattle rustling, kidnaping, raping, rural banditry, piracy and incessant conflicts leading to wanton destruction of lives and properties.
According to him, when a youth learns skills, he can use the skills learn to feed, send their children to school, assist others with employment and even invest for the future.
“I consider this very important 4 days workshop for the development of training manuals for our youth and others critical stakeholders from the states very apt and timely. I am particularly delighted that the Commission has at this promising moment taken a leading role in addressing the frightening challenges of nomadism in present day Nigeria through the provision of standard reference material, document, tools and information needed to improve the skills of nomadic youth and make them excel on the job while using it in improving their chosen need-based and demand driven entrepreneurship and sustainable livelihoods skills.
“A youth who is empowered with improved animal husbandry skills can earn from it sustainable till he dies.
“The various skills provided in this all-important training manual on to be developed would provide the intended trainees with artistic, manipulative, life coping, lifelong communication empowerment skills, intellectual empowerment skills as well as problem solving skills. Overall, empowerment with skills and acquisition training are basically to ensure poverty eradication, good education standard, job creation, good governance, security/crime reduction, national growths, technological developments and employment, wealth creation and self reliance.
“Youth empowerment is of importance to both nations and there empowered. With youth empowerment, the future prosperity of nations is secured because these are my the people that are future entrepreneur of the nation. When they are empowered, through need-based skills, their societies become a good place for all to live.
“It is based on these identified skills that the Commission considered the need to gather academicians, consultants, experts, technicians and practitioners from various fields to assist us in developing a standard training manual that would be used in capacity development of the nomadic youth to be drawn from pastoralists, migrant farmers and fisherfolks communities.
” It has been established that in sub-Shaharan Africa, the youth population is estimated to increase from 195 million bin 2015 to 284 million by 2030 with approximately 11 million youth entering the labor market each year over the next decade. This shift create a demographics dividend that, if harnessed effectively, can stimulate economic development and reduce intergenerational poverty. However, youth especially those in hard to reach conflict affected environments often struggle to enter the labor market. To find and engage in productive employment, youth must acquire a range of skills.
Prof Usman called on all to ensure the attainment of the goals and objectives of the workshop on the development of training manual on skills acquisition and sustainable livelihoods for nomadic youth.
He also appreciated all for their massive response and active participation in the workshop that the Commission placed high premium on, saying it is a clear demonstrates of their unflinching commitment and support to the Commission towards the overall development of the nomadic youth.
In his welcome address, the Director Extension Education and Skills Development of NCNE, Dr Abdu Umar ardo opined that the training was organized to have a standard document designed by experts, professionals, academicians, consultants, technicians and practitioners in various fields for nomadic youth to provide basic information and knowledge on the following identified skills in-demand.
He explained that the objective of tye training are increase trainees skills in one or more areas of expertise, improve the trainees level of awareness on skills in-demand to be acquire in the training programme, serve as a document that the trainees can go through before, during and after their training, serve as a resource that can be used as a reference after each training programme and provide trainee and employee with all the neck tools and information needed to excel on the job.
