BY SEGUN ADEBAYO, ABUJA – The Director General and Chief Executive of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Sir Joseph N. Ari, on Wednesday unveiled the organisation’s many achievements in year 2020, stressing that despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the Fund attained several milestones and is poised to do more in 2021.
According to the text of a press briefing made available to Forefront, Ari declared that in 2020, “despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, we implemented the following skills intervention programmes: the National Industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP), Special Skills Development Programme (SSDP), Federal Government Skills Empowerment Programme (FEGOSEP), Info-Tech Skills Empowerment Programme (ISEP), and Agri-Preneurship Training Programme (ATP). Together, the programmes trained thousands of Nigerians that were empowered with start-up packs for them to set up on their own.”
Describing 2021 as the year that is to witness ‘Skills Escalation for Prosperity,’ the ITF DG noted that the agency has “commenced processes for the implementation of more skills intervention programmes. The Programmes earmarked for implementation are namely: the National Industrial Skills Development Programme (NISDP), the Construction Skills Empowerment Programme (CONSEP), the Skills Training and Empowerment Programme for the Physically Challenged (STEPP-C), the Passion to Profession Programme (P2PP), and the Agri-Preneurship Training Programme (ATP).”
In 2021, Ari added, skills programmes is set to “train about 12,000 Nigerians between three and six months in the following trade areas: Web design and programming, Advance Computer networking, Mobile app development, Iron bending, Masonry, Crop production, Aquaculture, Poultry, Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration, Plumbing, GSM repairs and Ladies’ wig cap making.
In line with the vision of the Federal Government to use ITF on lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years, the proposal of agency in that direction is currently receiving attention as the Fund is set to “train over 7million Nigerians in the Agriculture, Construction and Facility Maintenance, Information and Communication Technology, Manufacturing and Services sectors between 2021 and 2031.”
Speaking on collaboration with partners in realising the mandate of the ITF, Ari said “the Fund entered into collaborations and partnerships with local and international organisations. Currently the ITF is in partnership with SENAI of Brazil, Institute of Technical Education Services (ITEES) of Singapore, Galilee International Management Institute (GIMI) in Israel, International Labour Organisation (ILO), United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Agency (NECA), Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Bank of Industry (BoI), the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) as well as the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) amongst others.”
Recalling that ITF entered into an MoU with the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) for up-skilling of serving Corps members in 2020, the Fund also noted that “it signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development (FMYSD) to train 23,130 youths in the 36 states of the Federation and the FCT under the Ministry’s Youth Skills Development and Entrepreneurship Programme (YOSDEP) in 22 trade areas.”
Expressing optimism that the ITF the signed agreement with the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) has broadened the prospects for capacity building of staff of the Academy and exchange of faculty members for short periods, Ari declared that “the ITF will continue to pursue such partnerships in view of the integral role they have played in the actualisation of our Mandate. For instance, our collaboration with ITEES of Singapore led to the establishment of the Model Skills Training Centre (MSTC), Abuja which is the most modern skills centre of its kind in Nigeria. Similarly, our collaboration with SENAI of Brazil led to the acquisition of Mobile Training Vans that we deploy for training of Nigerians in hard-to-reach areas.”
In a bid to reduce the infrastructure deficits in the country, Sir Ari listed several projects that were completed in 2020, among them were “the Mechatronics Workshop and Administrative Block at the Industrial Skills Training Centre (ISTC), Kano; Katsina Area Office Complex, Katsina; Lagos Island Area Office Complex; the Modern Library Complex and Central Store at the ITF Headquarters in Jos and the ITF Staff School Classroom Block.”
The ITF DG said that projects that have been completed and awaiting commissioning before the end of 2021 are the Gusau Area Office Complex and Vocational Wing, Minna Area Office Complex and Vocational Wing, Aba Area Office Complex and Vocational Wing, and Awka Area Office Complex and Vocational Wing. Others are the Multi-purpose Building in Maitama, Abuja, the proposed Institute of Hospitality Management at Oba Akran in Lagos, Headquarters Auditorium and Gymnasium, the Access road to the Headquarters Auditorium and Gymnasium and a special Agriculture Green-house at Ofada-land in Ogun State.
Apart from the Fund providing direct services to employers of labour for optimal production in 2020, Workers from over 200 organisations across the country, according to Ari, were trained by the ITF.
Realising that the Coronavirus pandemic has demonstrated that it is not enough to have physical infrastructure, “the ITF had automated most of its business processes which made it easier for the Fund to conduct our operations even with the restrictions and disruptions caused by the pandemic. E-platforms were already created for the Students’ Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) and the Reimbursement Scheme, while the Electronic Resource Programme (ERP), which enables the staff to carryout various work-related activities was also deployed.”
There were also new administrative structures that came into operation in 2020. According to Sir Ari, “four new departments were created namely: the Public Affairs Department, Standardisation, Certification and Consultancy Services Department, Internal Audit Department and Legal and Council Affairs Department. One Unit called Estate Management Unit was also created, leading to a 14 Department and two Unit structure for the Fund. The development is to address the areas of the Fund’s Mandate that hitherto did not receive maximum attention, as well as to match the expanded scope of operations.”
The management was also engaged in promoting staff welfare “to motivate the workforce for optimal performance as it is universally acknowledged that when employees are fully motivated, they become more committed to their duties and are generally more productive.”
In its avowed determination to train students of Engineering, Technology and other Allied disciplines in our tertiary Institutions, Fund spent whopping sums on the Students’ Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) amounting to Six Hundred and Thirty Two Million, Nine Hundred and Thirty Five Thousand Naira (N632,935,000.00) on SIWES, while Seventy Seven Million, Seven Hundred and Eighteen Thousand, Seven Hundred and Fifty Naira (77,718,750.00) was paid as supervisory allowance between January 2020 and June 2020”
The ITF DG also announced that the Fund shall be celebrating its golden jubilee celebration in 2021 since the establishment of the agency on October 8, 1971.
“We are particularly exultant that the Fund has not merely existed for 50 years but has contributed meaningfully to the growth and development of our great country by training over 25 million Nigerians that are manning key sectors of the national economy.”
