EDITORIAL! On Disappearing Skills in Nigeria

SKILLS are vanishing across Nigeria and with them, the building blocks of national development. The country is facing a quiet crisis, one that does not explode on the streets but erodes its future with every passing day. Fewer young Nigerians are acquiring the practical competencies needed to fill key roles in manufacturing, technology, energy, construction, and basic services. As a result, foreign professionals and artisans now dominate even the most rudimentary sectors, and the country, once bustling with youthful potential, now struggles to keep its economic wheels turning.

Bolaji Nagode, Director-General of the National Power Training Institute of Nigeria (NAPTIN), put the situation starkly during a recent event in Abuja. He pointed out the vast human capital deficit in the nation’s power sector, warning that Nigeria has barely scratched the surface when it comes to staffing the renewable energy space. “We have not even occupied 50 percent of the human capital required,” he said. That alone should set off alarms in a country struggling to stabilize its energy landscape.

But the issue extends far beyond power. It runs through the spine of nearly every critical industry. A manufacturing firm reportedly spent nearly half of 2023 in search of two qualified chemical ecologists. None could be found. Not in any university, polytechnic, or professional database. In the end, they had to bring in two Indian professionals to fill those roles. The same story echoes from Dangote’s $19 billion refinery, the largest in Africa where more than 11,000 skilled Indian workers were recruited because Nigeria simply did not have the requisite manpower.

That Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country, yet must constantly import workers to drive its industries, is a contradiction that speaks volumes about a deeper dysfunction. The digital economy tells a similar tale. Industry analysts estimate that Nigeria’s digital skills deficit is robbing the economy of $11 billion each year, money that could be lifting people out of poverty, modernizing infrastructure, and making the country more competitive. But opportunity slips through the cracks as skills fade from the nation’s grasp.

The data is damning. In the Coursera 2024 Global Skills Proficiency Report, Nigeria placed 105th in the world and an abysmal 12th out of 13 ranked countries in sub-Saharan Africa. In the Global Knowledge Index 2021, Nigeria ranked 124th out of 154 countries in knowledge infrastructure. These are not just statistics, they are a reflection of the broken bridges between Nigerian youth and meaningful work.

The country is also facing a unique and embarrassing form of economic leakage. Basic artisanal work, tiling, decorative Plaster of Paris installation, plumbing, carpentry is increasingly being outsourced to nationals from Togo, Benin Republic, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. These trades require little or no university education, yet local professionals struggle to compete on quality and delivery. The result is not only capital flight but also a loss of pride in work and a dependence on outsiders for what should be bread-and-butter services.

CSR REPORTERS note this erosion of skilled labour affects more than economic metrics, it shapes the society. As the skills gap widens, unemployment grows. Idle hands are drawn into crime. Young people, particularly in urban centers, increasingly see crime whether through internet fraud (popularly called Yahoo-Yahoo), drug peddling, kidnapping, or armed robbery as their best chance at survival. The social cost is incalculable.

There is no quick fix, but any serious nation would begin by confronting this crisis head-on. The Nigerian government must reject the empty symbolism of “empowerment programmes” that amount to giving young people tricycles, sewing machines, or cash grants, and instead invest in real vocational education. Technical colleges must be properly funded, instructors must be trained, and modern equipment must replace outdated tools. Policies must go beyond paper and be backed by budgets and timelines that are strictly monitored.

The educational system itself is in desperate need of rescue. At the base of the pyramid sits a tragedy: Over 20 million out-of-school children. According to UNESCO, this is the second-highest number globally. These are not just children missing classes, they are future mechanics, engineers, plumbers, and innovators who are instead selling sachet water in traffic, working as bus conductors, or living at the mercy of extremist recruiters in insurgency-prone regions. Until Nigeria solves its out-of-school problem, it cannot solve its skills problem.

To reverse this trend, public-private partnerships must be aggressively pursued to set up vocational centres in every local government area. Companies operating in Nigeria should be incentivized or even mandated to invest in training the local workforce. It is absurd that multinational firms continue to rely heavily on expatriates while doing little to nurture local skills. Corporate Social Responsibility in this context must evolve beyond building boreholes, it must mean building people.

Society also has its role to play. There must be a cultural shift in how Nigerians perceive vocational training. Trades like auto-mechanics, tiling, hairdressing, fashion design, carpentry, and baking must no longer be viewed as options for school dropouts or the poor. These are respectable, income-generating skills that, when properly mastered, can sustain families and communities. Parents, educators, religious leaders, and influencers must help reshape this mindset.

The contradiction is hard to ignore. On the one hand, government officials lament the shortage of skilled labour; on the other, they are busy converting technical colleges into conventional universities. In a society that desperately needs builders and doers, why must every school aspire to churn out degree holders who often graduate into frustration and joblessness? Technical colleges should be retained, revitalized, and made aspirational. Their graduates should be celebrated, not pitied.

Nigeria must reimagine what it means to be educated. Literacy in the 21st century goes beyond the ability to read and write, it includes digital fluency, practical problem-solving, and technical mastery. Without this, the country will continue to watch helplessly as the jobs of today and tomorrow go to foreign hands.

Skills are not luxury items. They are the nuts and bolts of national survival. Every developed country was built by a skilled population. Nigeria cannot be the exception. If the nation must rise, its people must build. And to build, they must first learn how.

The path forward is not glamorous, but it is necessary. Nigeria must go back to the basics. It must produce its own electricians, tilers, welders, coders, solar technicians, plumbers, and artisans not just because it is patriotic to do so, but because it is the only way the country can truly stand on its own feet. Until then, every high-rise built by a foreign artisan, every refinery powered by foreign engineers, and every road paved by foreign workers is a reminder of a country that forgot to invest in its most critical asset – its people.