Our youth not imbued with productive skills, competencies_Gov Mbah

The Governor of Enugu State, Barr. Peter Mbah, on Tuesday stated that the Nigerian education system has not imbued our youth with productive skills and competencies needed to engineer sustainable development of the nation.

To address this ugly development, he said that the youth must be inculcated with experiential learning ecosystem which would equip them with relevant skills and knowledge to surmount societal problems.

Governor Mbah who is also the Visitor to ESUT made the disclosure while presenting the 1st Distinguished Personalities Lecture Series entitled “Experiencial Learning: Building the Wealth of the Nation,” at the new 1000-capacity Barr. Dr. Peter Ndubuisi Mbah Multi-purpose Hall, Enugu State University of Science and Technology, ESUT.

“In a globalized world, competition is by no means local, and the meritocracy of ideas is the underlining philosophy that holds sway. To produce globally competitive youth, who can remain here in Enugu and yet, “japa” their skills globally, our education ecosystem must immediately shift from rote learning to Experiencial Learning!

“Education must be tailored to meet the exigencies of present needs and aspire to solve future challenges. Education is fundamentally, the cornerstone of our progress, the bedrock upon which our future stands.

“Experiencial Learning ensures that education is deeply connected to the challenges and opportunities of the real world. It fosters critical thinking, creativity and collaboration. It empowers students to see themselves not as passive but as active problem-solvers,” he said.

While stressing that the Experiencial Learning model of Enugu Smart Green Schools aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs, he added that it equips students with relevant skills to tackle critical challenges in the society such as energy, agriculture and ICT.

The ESUT Visitor used the occasion to charge all Enugu state-owned tertiary institutions to deliver experiencial learning to the youth of the state, challenging management of the institutions to reflect it on their curriculum reforms and research trajectories.

In his remarks, the Chairman, ESUT Governing Council, Sir Chinyeaka Ohaa, said that one of the key objectives of founding ESUT was to encourage the promotion of scholarship and technological excellence through the provision of relevant equipment and infrastructure that will catalyze human capacity development.

While commending Gov Mbah for his support to educational sector in the state, he added that he was the first State Governor that beat the United Nations recommended benchmark of 30% of the annual budgetary provision to education sector.

He further noted that the governor has paid attention and devoted huge resources in uplifting the university with the objective of placing it on the global map in research, science and technological excellence.

Earlier, in his welcome address, the Vice Chancellor of ESUT, Professor Aloysius-Michaels Okolie, lauded the support of the state government to the University, especially in areas of equipment procurement which helped the University to scale through accreditation and resource verification exercises.

He said the University has recorded increments in quota for Medicine and Surgery, Medical Laboratory Science among others, adding that the aim of the present Management “is to make the University globally competitive in research and innovations”.

In his remarks, the Chairman of the Occasion, Monsignor Prof. Obiora Ike, challenged the personnel of the University on ethical conduct, stating that knowledge without character will lead to adverse implications to the society.

Monsignor Ike noted that ESUT had done well in repositioning research and scholarship and enjoined the Management to concentrate in teaching digital skills to the students and staff of the University in tandem with the demands of the fourth industrial revolution.