Embrace Skill Acquisition to Be Productive, Pharm. Sule Impels Youths

By Farouk Isa Musa 

Youths in the state, especially those who graduated from tertiary institutions, have been called upon to learn necessary skills for various occupations so as to be self-reliant.

Pharm. Gali Sule, the Director-General Kano State Drugs and Medical Consumables Supply Agency, made the call while speaking at a 10-Year Anniversary of Kano Science Schools Old Students Association (KASSOSA), Class 2014 Dawakin Kudu Chapter, which took place at Sani Bello Science College in Dawakin Kudu town.

Pharm. Sule said that due to the current economic downturn in the country, it will be beneficial for the graduates to possess the needed craft and dexterity and subsequently engage themselves in various occupations, including but not limited to trade, entrepreneurship, and artisanry.

He lamented that the paid jobs are hard to come by as factories are shutting down, and multinational companies and business entities are exiting the country on a daily basis, adding that the situation was not like this before, citing an example where graduates in some professions, such as doctors and teachers, are automatically employed immediately they graduate. But, due to certain factors, according to him, the situation has dramatically changed throughout the country. 

The DG  stressed that to pacify the grim situation, Kano state government, under the leadership of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, has introduced several programs and initiatives, such as empowerment programs for youths and women, and reopening and renovating moribond skill acquisition centers across the state. But the government alone can not employ all jobseekers, especially Kano being the most populous state in Nigeria, he said.

Pharm. Sule commended the KASSOSA national body, headed by Alh. Balarabe Nuhu Jallah, its National President, for organizing training for unemployed members on skill acquisition and empowerment. He then urged other class chapters to emulate the national body.

However, it was revealed at the event that only 30 percent of members of KASSOSA Class 2014 Dawakin Kudu Chapter were engaged by the governments as civil servants.

Abubakar Idris Yarima, the Chairman of KASSOSA Class 2014, thanked the invited guests who graced the occasion despite their tight schedules.