The Governor of Kwara State, Dr. Abdulfatah Ahmed, has advocated a complete review of the university education curricula to make graduates job creators rather than job seekers.
Ahmed made the call in his address during the maiden convocation of the Kwara State University, Malete.
He said that in view of the high rate of graduate unemployment, universities must innovate by considering new ways of cultivating entrepreneurial mind set in the graduates.
He said: “The currula should be completely overhauled to include vocational programmes that would imbue the graduates with the spirit of self-sufficiency and innovation after leaving the Universities.”
Ahmed noted that such innovations informed the partnership between KWASU and the state government to train 1,000 unemployed youths as young entrepreneurs through the Kwara Youth Entrepreneur programme.
According to him, the scheme is designed to produce 3,000 young entrepreneurs by 2015, adding that the first batch of 150 youths, who recently graduated from the programme, will benefit from a N45 million micro-credit fund to jump start their businesses.
The Vice Chancellor of KWASU, Prof. Abdulrasheed Na’Allah, said the 231 students who graduated have been trained to be creators of wealth and not parasites on the nation.
In another development, the Senate Committee on Education has commended the Kwara State Government on its extensive transformation of the education sector, particularly its regular fulfillment of the counterpart funding terms of the Universal Basic Education projects.
The Chairman of the Committee, Senator Uche Chukwumerije, gave the commendation when he led members of the committee on a courtesy call on Ahmed.
Senator Chukwumerije said it was heartwarming that the state government has registered profound achievements in all the three tiers of the education system.
He said Kwara State was one of the few states in the country that have been able to access the 2011 UBEC fund based on credible performance.
The senator remarked that with the positive attitude towards basic education, construction and rehabilitation of classrooms as well as the reduction of school fees at the state-owned Kwara State University, Ahmed was doing well.
He said: “You are giving this state a new future and a brighter future.
“Please do more of what you are doing.”
In his remarks, Governor Ahmed said his administration’s perception of education was that it must be functional and relevant, hence the promotion of vocational and technical education by the government.
Ahmed said over 400 classrooms across the state at basic and post basic levels of the education system have either been constructed or rehabilitated.
The Senate Committee on Education was in the state as part of its oversight functions to federal educational institutions in the state.
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