Lagos — Education and labour market experts are calling on President Bola Tinubu to launch a National Youth Career Development Initiative, warning that Nigeria’s ongoing reforms in technical and vocational education could fail without structured career guidance in schools.

Despite the intelligence and industriousness of Nigerian youths, analysts say very few have a clear career development plan beyond obtaining a degree or certificate and seeking formal employment. With job scarcity and skills mismatches worsening unemployment, stakeholders argue that alternative career paths, such as vocational and technical training, remain underutilised.

“Rivers of talent are going to waste because our education system does not help students discover their strengths or align their skills with the needs of the economy,” a university lecturer told PUNCH. “Career counselling in Nigeria is almost non-existent.”

The gap, observers say, dates back to the colonial era when schools were designed to produce clerks and administrators, not innovators or skilled tradespeople. Although Nigeria’s 1977 National Policy on Education revised in 2013 mandated guidance and counselling services in schools, implementation has been poor.

A 2020 survey by the Institute of Counselling in Nigeria revealed that only 15% of secondary schools have functional counselling units, most of which are manned by untrained personnel. This shortfall, experts warn, has produced “a generation of aimless graduates” and widened the disconnect between education and the labour market.

The economic toll is high. The World Bank estimates youth unemployment costs Nigeria billions in lost GDP annually, while a University of Ibadan study linked career indecision to anxiety, low self-esteem and depression among young Nigerians. Rising unemployment has also been tied to crime, cultism, and extremism, with Nigeria ranked 7.28 out of 10 on the global crime index.

President Tinubu’s administration has pledged to revitalise technical and vocational colleges and launched the Nigeria Education Loan Fund. However, experts caution that without a coordinated career development framework, these efforts could have limited impact.

They point to global models including Finland’s integrated career guidance in schools, Singapore’s education-career alignment system, and Australia’s National Career Education Strategy as templates for Nigeria to adapt.

Recommendations include the appointment of a special presidential adviser to design and implement the proposed initiative, bypassing bureaucratic delays. Such a programme would mandate functional guidance units in all schools, staffed with trained counsellors, and align student aspirations with workforce needs.

“This is about giving young Nigerians the tools, confidence and clarity to chart their career paths,” the lecturer added. “If we act now, within a year we could see measurable improvements in employment readiness and economic productivity.”