Social/Kiddies
‘Skills Acquisition, Key To Youth Empowerment’
The problem of youth empowerment and employment is a world wide phenomenon,although it is very topical amongst countries of the developing world. Confronted by the scourge,the United Nations recognized the need for a frontal tackling of the menace by drawing world attention to it.
The world, last Saturday, celebrated World Youth Skills Day. A day set aside to celebrate the strategic importance of equpping young people with skills for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship.
As the world undergoes rapid technological economic and societal transformations, young people will need the right skills to successfully navigate these challenges and achieve their full potentials.
Celebrations were held all over the world with special programmes and events organized by the United Nations.
On the occasion of the 2023 World Youth Skills Day, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres emphasised the need for quality education and described the acquisition of skills as a neccessity for the next generation.
According to him, “Equipping young people with quality education, training and skills are essential. This World Youth Skills Day reminds us all that teachers stand at the forefront of this global effort “.
With the 2023 theme: “Skilling teachers, trainers and youth for a transformative future” ,this highlights the essential role that teachers, trainers and other educators play in providing skills for youth to transit to the labour market and to actively engage in their communities and societies.
Here in Rivers State, youth unemployment remains a major issue. Despite efforts by the Rivers State Government to address the problem through employment opportunities, a lot of youths remain unemployable due to lack of skills.
To address the obvious lack of skills among young people, schools and institutions are now adopting strategies to ensure that even graduates are empowered with one skill or the other. It was for this reason that the Rivers State University, Nkpolu Port Harcourt introduced a new Faculty of Entrepreneurial Studies aimed at empowering students and graduands with skills.
Similarly, the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education in Port Harcourt also set out to bolster entrepreneurship education to prepare students to launch themselves out on their own as industry – ready graduates.
Even at the post primary level of education, attempts are on to ensure that students are equipped with skills to enable them become independent.This is something that needs to be encouraged generally.
In an interview with The Tide ,Director of Carina International School, Port Harcourt, Pastor Jeff Anika thanked the United Nations for highlighting a day like this for youths on skills acquisition.
Anika stated that his school encourages and emphasises on skills training for students, especially in the secondary section.
According to him,”we are into skills training especially at the secondary section, we train the children in Computer skills, Sewing/Fashion Design, Cooking, Fine Arts,among others. The trainings are done in the school by invited resource persons or outside the school in collaboration with the trainers.
We are doing this to help our students gain training that will help them later in life.
You can see,the way the society is going skills is vital for these young ones to survive. Looking for white collar job is tough. Getting a skill in addition to their degree certificate gives them an edge above others”, he said.
In a seperate interview, a fourth year Marine Engineering student of Rivers State University (RSU) Miss Scotia Princewill,said skills training and acquisition is very important for young people in order to contribute their quota in society and empower themselves.
She explained that some parents before now encouraged their children to acquire skills during holidays but with the celebration of a skills day by the United Nationd there should be more enlightenment for parents,guardians, government and corporate bodies to help train the youth.
Miss Princewill also said that, she is in the process of acquiring a skills in computer programming to be precise, web development,adding that RSU now offers a compulsory 300 level entrepreneurship course for every student before graduation.
”This is a good thing happening in our University. We have a big centre for entrepreneurship for students to engage in a skill at 300 level before graduation. I opted for electrical fittings though we were taught the theoretical aspect”,she said.
World Youth Skills Day celebrated every year on July 15 was established by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)in 2014 to acknowledge the crucial significance of equipping young individuals with necessary skill sets for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship.
Given the advancements in technology and ever – evolving nature of the job market, it has become increasingly important to empower young people with adaptable and versatile skill sets. World Youth Skills Day 2023 is an opportunity to emphasise the role of skills development in enabling the youth to thrive in the economy.
Some of the programmes for this year’s day by the UN include, Youth Lead Innovation Sportlight Virtual programme that convened a dialogue on the importance of multi shareholders collaboration to enable future- proof skills for youth through trainers’ and teachers’ empowerment.
Empowering youth for a Sustainable Future in Bonn,Germany, hybrid event co – organised by UNESCO – UNEVOC and World Skills International which showcased the positive impact of youth skills development on societies and economies.
Also, a high level panel at New York, UN headquarters, ECOSOC Chamber which was organised by the Permanent Missions of Portugal and Sri Lanka to the United Nations in collaboration with UNESCO,ILO,and the office of the Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth which brought together Member States, young experts, social partners, teachers, educators and various stakeholders on the way forward for youths for a transformative future.
By: Ibinabo Ogolo
It is the idea of God that family should exit. Children form part of the family. God loves family so much that Jesus was born into the family of Joseph.
Everyone’s family is good and important. Children should not look down on their family whether they are rich or poor.
Children should respect and honour their family and foster love among their siblings. They should work together and make peace in the family. They should always stand in the gap. It is good for family members to carry all along since everyone may not be doing well.
The Christianity that children learn is practised in family. Faith-based organisations do a great job in moulding children’s character. Those are the behaviours that children exhibit towards siblings in family.
Every child born in a family is there for a purpose. A baby born into a family is supplying something. It may be joy, wealth and so on. Everyone is important in a family.
Adolescents who have graduated from school but may not be contributing financially can do one or two things at home. You can engage in preparing meals at home while parents are away for a job or business. Contributing in house chores will go a long way to relieve parents of stress after a day’s job.
What do you contribute to your family, especially during holidays both in nuclear and extended family?
The family you were born is constant but friends are temporary. You can decide not to continue in friendship but you cannot cut off your family. No matter how bad you think your family is and you decide to leave home, you must surely return. Your friends can harbour you for a while.
The child’s first identity comes from the family. What the child learns first comes from the family.
Family is the centre of love and care. People have started playing down on marriage because of neglect on basics of family. Marriage starts today and and the next few months, it is threatened. Respect for family plays a crucial role in marriage.
No child grows without parental control and influence. If a child refuses to grow without taking instructions from parents, he may grow up being wild. There are consequences when children do not obey their parents. There are those who want to be rebellious against their parents. They should know that their length of days are tied to their parents.
Your bioligical parents know you more than every other person. There is the wisdom and knowledge your parents have that you do not so it is proper to listen to them before choosing carriers both in academics and job. A young man or woman can choose who to get married to, but a greater role in the choice of who to marry and the marriage proper comes from the parents.
They know what is best for you. No matter how modern trends will influence you and prove it wrong, parent is the key. No one can love you more than your parents because they are your blood.
A lot of parents have been traumatised due to the fact that children they nurtured and trained turned their back on them at older age. Children should not abandon their parents for any reason.
As you grow up, situations may arise in marriage when you decide it is over with your spouse, but no matter the level of provocation with your parents, they will not despise you. Parents will also play a role in that regard. Problem arises in every family but how it is handled matters a lot.
Some children honour their mentors more than their parents. Although there are parents who shy away from their responsibilities. It is important that parents take full responsibility of their children. You cannot bring a child to the planet earth and refuse to perform roles as a parent. But parents may not quantify what they spent from childhood to adolescence. That is a blessing children cannot get from another person.
There are people who have attributed their failure in life to the fact that their parents, especially mothers are witchcraft. It is wrong to feel that your mother is instrumental to your failure in life. The only way to success is hardwork.
Let money not determine the level of love for your parents. Wherever a child goes, family is constant.
Eunice Choko-Kayode
Naturally, when a child is born, it is the role of the father and mother to decide a suitable name for the child. The husband and wife normally discuss and suggest the English or vernacular name of the baby.
But sometimes, when a baby comes into a family, grandparents hearts are usually filled with joy to the extent that they want to answer present, by giving their own names not minding the fact that the biological parents have given theirs.
This happens mostly when the marriage is an inter-tribal one. It also happens even in intra-tribal marriage. Grandparents want equal representation as far as naming a child is concerned. They also have special names as a result of circumstances surrounding the birth of the child.
This is still happening till date.
A lot of people have viewed this in different ways but there is nothing wrong about it. The most important thing is that the child bears as many names as he or she can. But one thing is certain, the child must bear one name in school.
Should circumstance determine a child’s name?
Women who are more emotional are always eager to name their children considering the circumstances surrounding the child’s conception and arrival.
The issue of grandparents naming a child comes up mostly when it is the first of the family.
In naming children by some parents in the olden days, they named their children according to the days in the week in which they were born, like Sunday, Monday, Friday and so on.
You may be shocked to hear that whether a child is given 10 names by parents or grandparents, when he or she grows up, will decide to change. There are several cases where some persons decided to change especially when they feel that the names given by their parents and grandparents do not give them joy. If they are not doing well in life, they may claim that their misfortune is caused by the name their parents.
Competition among children in schools be it primary, (kindergarten) and secondary come in different forms. It can be Mathematics , debate, quiz, spelling bee,competition, from organisations like Cowbell, multi-national companies, faith-based organisations among others.
They are organised mostly for selected intelligent ones, the best among their peers to represent a class, school or group. Prizes are normally set aside for the best as well as consolation prizes for runners-up at the end of each session.
The question is, are children willing to accept defeat when they fail? As parents, guardians, can you encourage your children or wards to accept defeat instead of shouting and comparing them with others who may be performing better either in schools or outside.
Some parents may be blaming their children for not doing well in competitions. They will like to tell their children if others who may perform better have ten heads. Those group of parents blame their children for every failure.
For your children to do better in competition, the parents too must have emotional intelligence. When you continue to blame your children for failure, how intelligent are you?
Some parents always want their children to be in the 1st position and unhappy whenever they secure 2nd position. There were instances where children smashed their trophies because they never got the position they wanted to get and their parents supported them.
Children should be able to accept it whether they win or not. They should be encouraged for every performance. Discourage the issue of “shame, shame, shame, shame”.
A parent says she always tells her children to win even if they will fail. Always give them the mentality that they can win. Children should be given the impression that they can win prizes and laurels in every competition.
Parents should not isolate their children from others in the neighbourhood. Allow them to play with others. Don’t threaten your children that you may not pay their schools fees if they fail. Comparing them with others may encourage or discourage them.
Coming first or getting award as a first class student from the university sometimes does not mean that the person is the best. And if the child does not merit any award in the lower classes, does not mean that he can not merit first class also.
It should be noted that coming first in academic competition may not really mean that the competitor will be the best at work place or business.
Accepting defeat is a way to move higher. Even if a child who competed with others did not come first, there are consolation prizes for runners-up. When you advise the child to accept defeat, you are encouraging her to win in next competition.
Remember all children cannot be on the same knowledge level Their learning abilities defer.
Eunice Choko-Kayode
