Skill is very important in the life of every human being. The reason why many technicians earns more than some university graduates is because the technicians acquire more practical skills than the theories, unlike the graduates who were fed with theoretical experiences while in the universities. It can take you to places you do not expect you will find yourself. Skill acquisition is the ability to be trained on a particular task or function and become expert in it. It is a pity that there is “huge” parading of unemployment in many parts of the world today especially in Nigeria. This is giving many youths in different parts of the world today a sleepless night. It is one of the causes of rapid growth in crime in many parts of the world. But do you think there is any relationship between someone who has acquired skill on how to perform a particular job and make money from it and unemployment? The answer is no because the skill he has acquired can always speak for him/her.
Today, there are many unemployed graduates in the country. This is partly as a result of our long system of education that is more of grammar and not much practical learning. It is evident that the highest number of unemployed is found in the African Continent. The truth remains that the major causes of the unemployment among these vibrant youths is lack of skill to back up what they learnt from their institutions of learning. When these graduates were still in school, they did not border to learn at least one single skill, maybe that which is related to graphic designing, typing, hair dressing, electrical maintenance and others. If they have learnt any skill at all, the rate of unemployment will reduce among them.
IS SKILL ACQUSITION IMPORTANT IN THE SOCIETY?
“Skilled person can survive in any environment.” As water is very essential to human life, so is skill training and acquisition needed in the life of every serious minded human being. Skills can do a lot of great work in the life of every living soul. Lack of entrepreneurial skills is one of major causes of corruption.
For these reasons, Development Education Centre (DEC Enugu) during the past 3 decades engaged in the provision of entrepreneurial Skills acquisition programme which empowered over 3000 out of school female youths from 500 communities in the South East of Nigeria since its inception.
In 2015, DEC will graduate 40 well trained out of school female youths in the areas of as:
§ Computer Literacy
§ Fashion & Designing
§ Cosmetology
§ Catering and Hotel Management
§ Bag/Shoe making
§ Hair Dressing
§ Bead making.
Equipment’s and free interest loans was given to the graduating students to enable them take off smoothly.
DEC has in the same vain introduced Business Education for these youths, to empower them with the needed knowledge and understanding on how to do business in a tough economy like Nigeria.
The importance of Entrepreneurial skill development in our society today cannot be over emphasized because gone are the days when jobs were available everywhere both in the private and public sectors of the economy and employers go about looking for potential graduates for employment. The question of choice of job or the type of employer the one would like is now a story after graduation is now thing of the old. White collar jobs are scarcely available. Hence many graduates are desperate to get any job to keep body and soul together. Indeed there is paradigm shift in the labour market.
Therefore, the need to acquire and develop specific entrepreneurial skills cannot be neglected because entrepreneurship is vital to creating employment and indeed a special form of employability for graduates. Empowerment helps individuals or groups to fully access personal/collective power through knowledge, skills and motivation for proper functioning in their society and contribution to the economy. The importance of acquiring entrepreneurial skills includes
· Self-employment: a skill acquired man is a self-employed man. A self-employed person can never go hungry because the skill he acquired provides food for him/her on a daily basis. But one who lacks skill acquisition will find it difficult to be self-employed because he/she has nothing to offer.
· Helps the society not to depend on white collar jobs.
· Helps youth develop a positive attitude towards work and labour.
· It reduces poverty.
· Helps youth to be self-reliant and independent.
· Diverse job opportunities. Have you ever seen someone who acquires many skills alone? Such person is classified as someone who is up and doing. Those who have many skills stand the chance of gaining more jobs from many establishments. People who have many skills are being searched for by many companies. Company A,B & C stand in a queue fighting over one person. They are searched for because they can do many functions due to the series of skills possessed.
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· Effective function: Organizations that employ skilful workers to assist in their organizational duties lose nothing at all because there will be always effective functions performed by the employee. This is because the employee has acquired necessary skills needed for him to perform the work as desired by the organization. The knowledge he gained from the training on that specific job makes him to do the organizations work as desired by the management of the organization.
· Crime Reduction: Skills acquisition reduces the crime rate in our society. People begin to think on many dirty activities they will do to make money when they do not have anything to call job of their own. But with acquired skill by an individual he/she works and makes money from his/her acquired skill. This will make him/her to feel comfortable in life and do not disturb his/her life in any way. Also the skills acquired by the citizens who were indulging in crime before can be used to convert those who are still partakers in such bad practice. They can go after their old bad friends and teach them the new skills they acquired thereby converting them to good.
CONCLUSION
A skillful person speaks with confidence while the none skilful is filled with fear. Entrepreneurial skills builds individual self esteem, engender growth process and changes that is never ending. Therefore, friends learned or not, are hereby encouraged to go for skills acquisition because good and lucrative skills acquired can make ways where it seems there is no way.
