The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has said that no fewer than 250,000 young Nigerians have been enrolled in the Federal Government’s Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programme nationwide, officials said.
The Technical and Vocational Education and Training programme is a federal initiative designed to equip young people with practical and entrepreneurial skills through hands-on training.
The programme forms part of broader efforts to expand opportunities for youth employment and skills development across Nigeria.
Dr. Alausa spoke about the enrolment figures at an event in the Alausa area of Lagos State, where he highlighted the government’s focus on skills development as a pathway to increased self-reliance for young Nigerians.
The minister said that the programme has enrolled 250,000 youths across the country, a figure drawn from nationwide registration and training activities under the TVET initiative, which has set an overall target of enrolling one million participants.
Dr. Alausa noted that the programme has been in place for multiple months and reflects an expansion of federal efforts in practical skills training.
He said the training encompasses a range of technical and vocational trades, although he did not list specific trades during his remarks.
The ministry has encouraged additional participation by youths through accredited training centres nationwide. The federal government’s objective is to scale skills training to reach a larger number of participants as the programme continues.
High enrolment figures underscore the popularity and reach of the TVET initiative among Nigerian youths. Skills development programmes like TVET are considered important tools for addressing unemployment by equipping young people with practical competencies that can support self-employment or formal job opportunities.
Continued expansion of the programme could influence workforce development strategies nationwide, potentially increasing the number of technically skilled workers in sectors such as construction, trades, manufacturing and services.
