iCreate: Sterling, Bosch bring Africa's biggest skills Olympics to Lagos

Temitope Adebayo

iCreate Africa, organiser of the iCreate Africa Skills Festival has said Nigeria’s best artisans will converge on Lagos from December 4 -5 to compete for laurels at the grand finale of the festival following the conclusion of the regional finals in Kaduna and Enugu.

The festival which is the biggest of its kind in Africa is in its second edition. Sponsored by Sterling Bank Plc, from inception, the festival also enjoys support from Bosch Nigeria Limited, GIZ, Trace TV, Siemens, Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), and Universal Learn Direct Academia Limited (ULDA), among others.

Speaking at a press conference in Lagos recently, Chief Client Engagement Officer of Sterling Bank, Mr Moronfolu Fasinro said the bank is partnering with iCreate Africa to boost acquisition of technical skills because it is committed to solving the unemployment the challenge among young people on the African continent.

He said the way to resolve the unemployment challenge going forward is through skills acquisition by young men and women rather than focusing on white-collar jobs, adding that “We know that youth employment is a key part of creating a society that is harmonious and productive.”

Fasinro noted that vocational jobs are what move an economy in its day-to-day operations and Icreate was bringing various people together to work on how to change the narrative about the labour market.

“We are very happy to partner with iCreate to produce this sort of opportunity so that these people could change the face of employment on the continent in the future,” Fasinro said.

Also speaking, Chief Marketing Officer of Sterling Bank, Mr. Dapo Martins, said Nigeria needs to also focus on the export of skills instead of concentrating on the export of crude oil and agricultural products alone. He noted that most Nigerian graduates who travel abroad either find themselves washing plates in restaurants or doing other menial jobs.

He lamented the situation whereby skilled technicians are usually shipped in from outside the country because they are not available locally.

Also speaking, Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of iCreate Africa Skills Festival, Mr Bright Jaja, explained that it was clear to him at the beginning of the journey that the idea of the festival was different and unique, and would probably not make sense to a lot of people.

“But we were consistent because we understood the concept and background. Having done thorough research on the employment situation in Nigeria, we realised that the only solution to the challenge was to rebrand jobs away from the existing perception and notion that if one is not a medical doctor, lawyer or an engineer, he has failed,” he said.

Jaja noted that over time a lot of young people had to go through tertiary education under stress and depression even though they knew that the courses they were studying were not what they wanted or had the interest to pursue.

The Founder/CEO said the objective of iCreate was to create five million jobs in five years by empowering about one million people who would, in turn, employ at least five people in their businesses.

He said the strategy is to rebrand the way society perceives vocational skills and gets young people to be interested or attracted to what they have passion for in the overall interest of the economy.

Retail Marketing Manager of Bosch Nigeria Limited, Mr Samson Ajayi, said the iCreate Skills Festival was pivotal to the company because it addressed a lot of structural issues in the Nigerian economy, adding that as an engineering company that makes mechanical parts, the festival provided a unique avenue for the company to contribute its quota to the Nigerian economy.

Also commenting, President of Universal Learn Direct Academia Limited (ULDA), Engineer Olawumi Gasper said the company was very happy to work with iCreate and congratulated Mr Jaja for inspiring young Nigerians to develop a passion for skills acquisition.

The press conference was attended by other stakeholders including Trace TV, Fashion Academy, House of Tara, and Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF).

The iCreate Skills Festival is a platform that promotes skills excellence, showcases skills standards and careers demonstrates benchmarks of excellence in teaching and learning and creates interest in public sector agencies and private organisations to invest in skills development.

The 10 winners from the first edition represented Nigeria in Russia in 2019. They include Otareh Alvin who won in the cooking category, Nejo Tolulope (graphics), Silas Adedoyin (web design), Patrick Obafemi (app development), Barnabas Kudi (robotics), Afolabi Caleb Kayode (art), Ms. Malissa Onojo (tailoring), Yusuf Abdullahi (barbing), Kingsley Ihejirika (hairdressing), Ms Faiza Usman Adamu (make-up), Joshua Olalekan (carpentry), Oladoja Peter (tiling), Kumshuan Talgang (plumbing) and Prince Isitua (bricklaying).