By Uthman Baba-Naseer, Minna
A Professor of Industrial Technology Education at the Federal University of Technology, Minna, Prof. Emmanuel Raymond, has urged Nigerian graduates to abandon the pursuit of scarce white-collar jobs and embrace Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) as a sustainable pathway to employment and economic prosperity.
The professor gave the charge while delivering the 131st Inaugural Lecture of the university at the 1,000-seat auditorium of the institution’s Gidan Kwano Main Campus in Niger State.
Delivering a lecture titled “The Marriage Between TVET and Job Creation: Let No Man Put Asunder,” Prof. Raymond described TVET as the foundation for developing the practical knowledge and skills required for gainful employment, entrepreneurship and sustainable livelihoods.
He explained that while TVET equip individuals with competence and technical expertise, job creation provides the opportunities for those skills to be productively utilised.
According to him, job creation without a skilled workforce cannot be sustained, while TVET without employment opportunities only produces frustrated and underutilised graduates.
Using the analogy of marriage, the don described TVET as the “bride” that brings skills and competence, job creation as the “groom” that provides economic opportunities, government, industries and educational institutions as the “marriage witnesses,” while industrial partnerships represent the “marital covenant” needed to sustain economic growth.
Prof. Raymond challenged Nigerian graduates to pursue meaningful skills acquisition and become employers of labour instead of joining the growing queue of job seekers.
“The era of depending on white-collar jobs is over. The available opportunities today are in technical and vocational skills. If, as a graduate, you are still searching for a white-collar job, you are making a big mistake. The jobs of today are in technical and vocational skills, and they can put food on your table,” he said.
He stressed that graduates who embrace technical and vocational education would not only become self-reliant but also create employment opportunities for others, thereby contributing to national development and reducing unemployment.
The professor further urged governments, industries and educational institutions to strengthen collaboration in promoting TVET through policies, investments and industrial partnerships capable of driving innovation, productivity and economic growth.
Earlier, the Vice-Chancellor of Federal University of Technology, Minna, Prof. Farouk Adamu Kuta, commended the inaugural lecturer for what he described as a timely and insightful lecture.
He noted that the theme was apt, especially at a time when Nigeria faces rising unemployment and increasing demand for practical skills.
Prof. Kuta described Prof. Raymond as a seasoned academic who has made remarkable contributions to teaching, research and human capital development within the university community.
The Vice-Chancellor also urged Nigerian graduates to embrace skills acquisition and technical education as a pathway to self-reliance, stressing that TVET remains a critical driver of entrepreneurship, job creation and sustainable national development.
