AKINWALE ABOLUWADE
Chief Sunday Dare, Minister of Youth and Sports, has tasked the youth in Oyo State on the importance of skill acquisition, saying that it is a good addition to their educational pursuits.
Dare spoke at the weekend while addressing some youth during an empowerment programme in Ogbomoso
He stated that “There is no job in government. Politics can only feed you for a season, but vocational skill can feed you for life.”
Describing himself as the Number one youth in Nigeria, the Minister urged the youth against seeking white-collar jobs.
According to him, about 350,000 jobs are available on cyber security which the Internet savvy youths can take advantage of to overcome the challenges of unemployment.
“Few weeks ago, we did a research in my Ministry and we found out that there are about 350,000 jobs in this country for cyber security experts. The phones you are holding could be hacked into and you will need a cyber security expert to build a fire wall against the attack. Across the world, more than 4 million jobs are out there for youths on cyber security. The jobs are there, but the youths that have the knowledge are not there.
“We advertised sometime and 61,000 youths applied across the country. We have trained 31,000 of them in six weeks. 100 of them were excellent and they will get their certification. Once they get their certification, they can work anywhere in the world.
“You don’t have to have a degree; you just have to be smart. To some of you, there is nothing you cannot do on your phones. Apply that knowledge for your advantage,” he said.
The Minister added that is not compulsory to obtain a university degree to be fulfilled in life, citing examples of youth who were trained in POP making and CCTV installations.
He said, “We know how much we are paying those handling our POPs and Solar installations. Many of those youths. don’t have more than O’ Level results and they are making good money in their vocational skills. Anything you want to do, ensure you have additional skills.
“One of the boys that we trained in the art of CCTV has set up offices in five states. Every single business needs CCTV, and it is so easy once you have the knowledge and equipment. So, my advice is that you should empower yourself and create wealth for yourselves. There is no job in government.
“Now there is a video online. It is called ‘Do It Yourself.’ It is a 15 minutes video. If you watch it 10 times, you will become one of the best painters. It will teach you what paint you should use; how to mix it; what type of brush you need to apply on the surface and it will just be like it is done by a professional.
“My house in America needed painting about five years ago. The cost of paint then was $150. The Oyinbo painter would have collected $1,200 for the painting. That was how I went to DIY and learnt how to do it. Though the painter would have spent four days to do it, I used 12 days to do it, and I paid myself $1,200. The painting is still in my house till today.”
