35. Empowering Nigerian Youths – The Productive Advantage of Controlled Community Development Centers. Part 1 of 2

The knowledge of any skill diligently acquired can never be forgotten in a person’s lifetime.

© 2019 Nigerian Patriot

Problem Overview

Through the decades, there has always been an outcry on the high rate of unemployment in Nigeria. Presently, this outcry seems to be at its loudest and rightly so. The youths of Nigeria whose age group constitutes the highest segment of the unemployed population are groaning under the pains of joblessness. Several attempts have been made by previous regimes at changing the unfortunate tide of unemployment in Nigeria with very little success. The story is no different with the present government. Massive funds have been committed into various empowerment schemes, and financial aid programs however, the prospect of any significant positive change in the employment opportunities of the country is not yet in sight. This summary blog episode is designed to highlight a different approach as the first step of a thought which may assist with providing improved results toward our collective quest at creating more employment opportunities in our nation.

First of all, we need to be mindful of the reality of certain foundation factors before delving into any discussion on possible solutions. 

1. There is no government system on earth that can solely bear the financial burden of providing jobs for all its citizens of employable age or even half of this population. The progressive nations of the world have not yet pulled off this impossible feat, so it would not be wise for us to expect anything different in Nigeria. The optimal availability of employment opportunities in any nation is a healthy balance of government and private driven effort. 
2. It is one thing to build establishments that can provide jobs for people, however if the workforce employed cannot effectively manage the business due to a deficiency of the required skill set and(or) diligent professional attitude, the outfit would definitely crumble sooner or later. Any sound mind would term the entire venture a massive waste of money and time. Perhaps, this factor may have contributed to the death of various business establishments that provided jobs in the past in our country. These establishments included government owned companies, as well as privately owned foreign and local business initiatives.
3. The educational system in any country must be robust enough to produce graduates who have the basic practical skill set and in-depth knowledge required to administer any position of employment which they may subscribe to after school. If the educational system is below acceptable industry standards, this will in turn translate into the poor productivity of any business project that employs such graduates as staff. We are all aware of the poor state of our educational system so it would be most unfair for us to feign ignorance on the negative impact of this important factor on the ability of our youths at engaging gainful employment.
4. The government of any nation bears the responsibility of providing the enabling environment for businesses to thrive. An enabling environment can be achieved by the provision of constant power, good roads, adequate security, etc. Unlike the progressive nations of the world, previous and present governments in Nigeria have mostly failed to deliver on this key area that would encourage the proliferation of viable businesses across the landscape of our nation and improve employment opportunities for the massive idle population of employment age. Sustaining an enabling environment also requires the cooperation of the citizens; however this factor is not the focus of this post.

With the valid points of the section above in view, and with the mind boggling peculiarities of our current national circumstance in this regard, there is an urgent need to redirect the potentially resourceful mind of the youthful majority away from the current consequences of vices arising from idleness. The recommendation of this document which could assist us with achieving a positive difference is the establishment of Controlled Community Development Centers (CCDC).

Controlled Community Development Centers

A CCDC is a free empowerment concept which is designed to practically impart a specific skill, and financially empower a beneficiary at the end of their program with the center. The CCDC will also earn income for itself at the end of each cycle of graduating enrolled beneficiaries. It is termed a controlled environment because an enabling environment is created within the center for the business to thrive. Some of these enabling factors have been highlighted previously as the provision of adequate power, security, running water and other specifics which will encourage the business concept to prosper and deliver intended results.

Each community development center would be dedicated to a single skill area to make it easier for the resources deployed in each center to focus on achieving the positive goals of the establishment. Beneficiaries are not required to pay any fees to enroll into the center, so funding is recommended from benevolent entities which should involve the government and other private organizations.

Continued in part 2

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