Skill acquisition initiatives to empower Nigeria’s 18m out-of-school children

BY JUDE TERNA AYUA

There is an urgent need to address the issue of out-of-school children in Nigeria. Apart from the lack of access to formal education, out-of-school children face financial and social exclusion in society. These exclusions expose the children to life-threatening conditions such as begging, hawking, and recruitment by criminal groups. A 2024 data by the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) disclosed Nigeria currently has around 18 million out-of-school children.

Speaking at a conference in October 2024, Nigeria’s Vice President Kashim Shettima described the high rate of out-of-school children as a threat to the country’s future. The Nigerian government should implement skill acquisition initiatives to provide alternative education for out-of-school children.  The government can establish training centres to equip the children with vocational, technical, and digital skills. Community-based apprenticeships are also a sustainable means to empower the children with skills and include them financially and socially. 

The Nigerian ministry of humanitarian affairs, disaster management, and social development, together with the ministry of education, can establish vocational training centres for out-of-school children to learn skills like tailoring, farming, and creative arts. These skills would help the children to become resourceful in society. With the right skills, the children will have a means of livelihood and grow into financially independent adults. 

Digital and innovative skills, including coding, web design, graphics, and robotics, can also equip out-of-school children and align them with global skill demands. The Ministry of Education’s e-learning resources, such as Schoolgate, can help train out-of-school children with digital skills. International digital learning platforms like Google and tech-based organizations in Nigeria, such as Hutzpa Innovations, Teens Can Code, and Innov8 Hub, can also support the government’s digital learning programmes. With low incentives, these organisations and learning platforms can train children with digital skills online and onsite. They could also offer the training as part of corporate social responsibility.

The majority of out-of-school children in Nigeria are from violence-stricken regions like the country’s middle belt, North East, and North West regions. Terrorists and herder attacks in these regions push the children to the streets and internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps. Children in these circumstances lack adequate healthcare, food, and security. While the government and occasionally NGOs provide relief items for children in the camps, reliefs alone are not sustainable; there is a need to empower these vulnerable groups of people to earn for themselves.

The government can build skill acquisition centres in the IDP camps. Leveraging the IDP camps would bring the skills closer to the target population. To complement the centres, the government can also use mobile trucks for training. The use of mobile trucks would also help to accommodate out-of-school children who are outside the camps. Since mobile trucks are movable, children can attend training sessions without needing accommodation in the camps.

Strategic partnerships can facilitate the government’s skill acquisition initiatives for out-of-school children in Nigeria. The private sector and NGOs such as the Dangote Foundation, Tony Elumelu Foundation, and UNICEF can provide funding to implement the skill acquisition initiatives. To ensure accountability and transparency, the organizations can directly fund the building of training centres or donate training materials to the centres.

These partner private organizations could also fund the remuneration of trainers and facilitators of the skill acquisition initiatives. Direct interventions by the private sector and NGOs will avoid government bureaucracy and the likelihood of misappropriation of funds.

Additionally, community-based apprenticeship arrangements with local artisans can provide practical learning opportunities for out-of-school children. The children can enrol in artisan shops to learn skills like carpentry, plumbing, weaving, mechanics, and other technical skills.

Historically, the apprenticeship system in Nigeria has proven successful and sustainable. Apprentices graduate to establish profitable enterprises and eventually become trainers. The government can offer stipends to incentivize the trainers and grants to help the children set up their enterprises when they graduate. The government can leverage rural and religious leaders to sensitize community members to ensure participation in apprenticeship initiatives.

Skill acquisition initiatives will provide a sustainable solution to Nigeria’s out-of-school children crisis. Empowering the children with skills will also ensure their contribution to national productivity.

Jude Terna Ayua is a writing fellow at African Liberty, an associate at Infusion Lawyers, and a policy analyst at Crypto Asset Buyer. He holds a master of theological studies from Harvard University and advocates for cryptocurrency adoption, interreligious dialogue, and social inclusion.