The acting director-general of the Centre for Management Development (CMD), Modinat Olusoji, has strongly advocated for the inclusion of skill acquisition programs in university curricula across the country.
Speaking in an interview with journalists on Saturday in Abuja, Olusoji emphasized the urgent need for educational institutions to align their teaching methods with the realities of the modern job market.
“There are changes in society; things are done differently, so the curriculum we were using five or 10 years ago will not be the same thing we are using now,” she stated.
Olusoji highlighted the disconnect between academic theories and practical application as a significant issue facing graduates today. “What the people are learning in the university must be related to what they are coming out to do when they graduate. If there is no relationship, you will just discover that you have a bundle of people with a lot of theories that they cannot put into practice,” she explained.
To address this gap, Ms. Olusoji called on both the government and educational institutions to prioritize skill development within their curricula. She argued that such programs would equip graduates with practical skills that are critical, especially in an economy where white-collar jobs are scarce.
“They are able to develop their skills and make use of that skill to benefit the country,” she continued. “So, those are the things we need to be doing to make sure that while we are teaching them those things that have to do with theory, the practical must be going on side by side with it so that their skill can be made use of when they come out of the university.”
The CMD boss’s remarks underscore a growing recognition of the need for educational reform to produce graduates who are not only knowledgeable but also practically skilled and job-ready.
NAN