By HeapNews
The Lagos State Government has reaffirmed its commitment to tackling poverty and unemployment among young people by prioritising digital and entrepreneurial skills for students in state-owned tertiary institutions, officials said at the weekend.
Tolani Sule, Commissioner for Tertiary Education, told undergraduates at the government-sponsored Job Initiative Lagos (JIL) programme at Lagos State University (LASU), Ojo, that the administration of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu would not allow students to fall behind in an increasingly digital global economy.
“Despite competing demands for state resources, the government has continued to prioritise digital and entrepreneurship knowledge as a vital key for youth and graduates to achieve self-employment,” Sule said.
He urged participants to take the training seriously and “justify the government’s investment” by applying the skills to contribute to Lagos’ economic growth. The funds used for the programme, he noted, are public resources that must translate into measurable impact.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Tertiary Education, Adeniran Kasali, said the curriculum was developed by leading experts in digital and entrepreneurial development and delivered by facilitators with practical experience navigating challenging business environments.
Kasali encouraged students to “immediately put their newly acquired knowledge into practice,” saying the training was designed to equip them to become future employers of labour.
The three-weekend programme is being held concurrently at LASU and the Lagos State College of Health Technology, Yaba. It forms part of the state’s THEMES+ Agenda, which aims to position Lagos as a regional digital hub and boost the global competitiveness of its undergraduates.