Much emphasis, over the years, has been given to education in structured settings like schools. The importance of such academic feat has been prominently foregrounded and regarded as significant for the growth of any nation, and even more important for personal development. But recently, vocational education is gaining more grounds and has been included in the Nigerian secondary school educational curriculum.
The primary purpose of vocational education is to prepare persons for employment in recognised occupations. From the foregoing, vocational education could occur either through formal, informal or semi-formal training.
Popularly recognised as Technical and Vocational Education and Training, this training has been regarded as a crucial vehicle for inclusion, social equity and sustainable development. This is because it affords both the literate and the non-literate categories in every society the opportunity to become a professional in certain fields. That is the reason Gazi Abdur Rashid says, “Vocational training is basically life and need-based education, which can convert an unskilled, inexperienced and illiterate population into human resource.”
Vocational training in crucial for developing countries like Nigeria because it is an avenue to enhance the quality of life of its population through work, without or along with formal education. In other words, TVET engenders self-employment and economic productivity of the populace, which makes it easier to fight under-development, poverty and unemployment challenges that more often than not engulf third world nations.
In addition, vocation training for individuals can be instrumental in improving the quality of life and standard of living. It will further give people the opportunity to participate in issues of national development. The application of vocational training in countries like Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand has proved that its economic benefits are numerous and, if well utilised, would be immensely beneficial towards economic stability.
Through TVET, young and adult illiterates can become employable through the skills gathered from vocational training. It can transform people in such categories into skilled professionals in select fields and provide opportunities for self-employment and gradually help to tackle unemployment in the society.
Vocational training focuses on the acquisition of skills and abilities that would be beneficial for the individual as well as for the society.
While most organisations may focus on learning through formal education, some non-governmental organisations have focused on propagating both formal education and vocational training. Recognising this viable tool for national development and economic growth, NGOs in Nigeria and beyond are exploiting the prospects of vocational training. Such organisations have been actively training people on specific skillset in diverse fields ranging from technology, business to agriculture and a host of others.
Women Economic and Leadership Transformation Initiative, an NGO dedicated to empowering young and adult females, also actively participates in both formal and vocational education through the inclusion of TVET as part of the curriculum in the WELTI academy. For over four years now, WELTI has successfully trained hundreds of women in different Nigerian states and exposed them to opportunities through vocational training. A number of positive feedbacks have been received on the impact of such activities on the individuals, their immediate environment as well as the society they are in.
As individuals, organisations and governments recognise the need for vocational training, there is need to enlighten the populace on the prospects of such training for their personal development and the nation’s development. Vocational training should be seen as an asset that it is for national development and economic growth.
