Because the arm of the oil and gas sector is dominated by expatriates
The federal government has said that the country needs about 50, 000 seafarers, and that even if the 26, 538 Niger Delta youths benefiting from the amnesty programme were trained in that aspect, it would still not enough.
Speaking in Lagos at the signing of agreement for job placement with Century Group, the special adviser to the president on Niger Delta, Mr. Kingsley Kuku, said the youths at the demobilisation camp in Obubra were encouraged to take up maritime-related courses to fill the manpower need of the oil and gas industry.
“We need about 50, 000 seafarers in Nigeria, because that arm of the oil and gas sector is dominated by expatriates. Those who choose maritime programme, we will take them to reputable international institutions for training. When they come back, the openings are there for them to exploit
“Having known the areas that are easier for government to train the Niger Delta beneficiaries of the amnesty programme, we will be mapping out strategies of how to get them engaged in employment in line with the Local Content Act and Cabotage Act of this country. These are the areas we are looking at because it borders on employment opportunities for Nigerian youths,” he stated.
Kuku was elated that after the completion of their vocational training in South Arica and the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) respectively, Century Group had employed 40 Niger Delta youths and signed an agreement to engage 1,000 seafarers from August this year.
The presidential aide explained that the 1,000 would be trained in three stages and added that, in the first month, they would be engaged in profiling and a mandatory course on tanker familiarisation before they going for a six-month offshore training in Singapore, India, South Africa, and Malaysia.
“This opportunity for job placement today has allayed my fears about how to get jobs for the youths. We are also calling on other groups, like the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), to set up financially those that have completed their training in the amnesty programme.
“Job placement is one of the best things to happen to the amnesty programme because it is not enough to send the youths for training, but they must be engaged with jobs that will add value to the economic well being of the Niger Delta and Nigeria in general,” he stated.
Source: All Africa