No middle class in Nigeria – Minister

The Minister of State for Education, Prof. Anthony Anwukah, on Thursday said the middle class did not exist in the country.

Anwukah made this known at the 25th anniversary celebration of the National Business and Technical Education Board in Benin.

He said that what existed in the country was the “very rich and the poor”.

He said that in view of this, there was need to develop a viable middle class and enhance their potential through technical education.

Anwukah said that to achieve this, the Federal Government was encouraging NABTEB and other colleges of education to produce people with requisite manpower to drive the nation’s development technically.

The minister said that there was the need for youths to learn skills that would ensure their employability.

Anwukah described NABTEB as a critical ally and agency charged with the responsibility to equip.

Prof. Ifeoma Isiugo-Abanihe, the registrar of the board said that technical education was the answer to eradicating poverty in the country.

Isiugo-Abanihe said that the anniversary was in the celebration of past and present leaders and staff of the board.

She said that the board was significant in the journey of national training in Nigeria.

She said that the major challenge of the board was the poor perception of people that Technical Vocational Education Training was a system for drop outs.

She said that the future of a country significantly depended on the technical level.

She said that about 70 per cent of youths had so far been admitted into technical education in the country for technology related drills.

The Governor, Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, said the board had been consistent in meeting its mandate.

Obaseki, represented by the Commissioner for Education, Christopher Adesoto, said the theme of the celebration was apt as it would enable the board take stock of its achievement over the last 25 years.

He said that the Edo State Government believed that education went beyond acquiring certificates, hence the commencement of his administration’s rehabilitation of the technical college in the state.

He called for improvement of the board’s quality control mechanism.