The Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture has called for stronger collaboration between it and the National Directorate of Employment to expand opportunities for young Nigerians, promote enterprise development and accelerate grassroots industrialisation across the country.

NACCIMA National Public Relations Officer, Mrs Madinat Adigun-Oladotun, made the call during a courtesy visit to the Director-General of the NDE, Silas Agara, over the weekend.

She was accompanied on the visit by the Managing Director of Qahhar Engineering and Consult Ltd and a member of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Campaign Council, Engr Idayat Yusuf.

Speaking during the meeting, the NACCIMA PRO emphasised that sustainable economic growth is closely tied to the productive engagement of a country’s young population, noting that Nigerian youths represent a significant proportion of the nation’s human capital and economic potential.

She explained that NACCIMA places considerable emphasis on youth entrepreneurship, vocational and technical skills development, digital innovation and industrialisation as critical pillars for building a more productive and inclusive economy.

She said, “At NACCIMA, we recognise that the future of Nigeria’s economy will largely be determined by how successfully we equip our young people with the skills, opportunities and platforms required to become entrepreneurs, industrialists and employers of labour.”

She added, “This is why NACCIMA has a dedicated youth platform, the NACCIMA Youth Entrepreneurs (NYE), which continues to receive strong support from our National President, Engr. Jani Ibrahim, in line with his vision of building the next generation of Nigerian business leaders and industrialists.”

Mrs Adigun-Oladotun, therefore, appealed to the NDE Director-General to support the establishment of a structured partnership between the Directorate and NACCIMA in areas such as entrepreneurship development, vocational and technical skills acquisition, digital innovation, enterprise incubation, mentorship, access to markets and business financing opportunities for young Nigerians.

She particularly stressed the need to build a stronger bridge between skills acquisition and actual economic production, noting that training young people without providing an enabling environment in which they can commercialise their skills could limit the long-term impact of empowerment programmes.

In this regard, the NACCIMA PRO proposed collaboration among NACCIMA, the National Directorate of Employment and State Governments to attract investors for the development of Cottage Industrial Parks across the states.

According to her, such industrial parks would provide shared production facilities, machinery, infrastructure, utilities and business-support services that would enable beneficiaries of NDE and other vocational training programmes to move beyond skills acquisition into actual production, entrepreneurship and industrial enterprise.

She noted that the proposed model could become an important pathway for converting Nigeria’s growing pool of trained artisans, technicians and young entrepreneurs into productive businesses, manufacturers and employers of labour.

She said, “Our objective should not end at training people and issuing certificates. We must create the ecosystem that enables those skills to become productive enterprises.”

She continued, “By working together with the NDE, State Governments and credible private-sector investors, we can establish Cottage Industrial Parks where trained Nigerians can have access to shared machinery, production infrastructure, markets and business support.”

She added, “This will help transform skills into businesses, businesses into industries, and ultimately contribute to employment creation and national industrialisation.”

Mrs Adigun-Oladotun commended the various initiatives of the NDE aimed at promoting self-reliance, employment creation and economic empowerment, expressing confidence that closer cooperation with Nigeria’s organised private sector through NACCIMA would further strengthen the impact and sustainability of the Directorate’s programmes.

Responding, the Director-General of the NDE, Silas Agara, exchanged views with the visiting delegation on areas of mutual interest and outlined the mandate, programmes and achievements of the NDE under his leadership.

The discussions also explored opportunities for stronger public-private sector collaboration in youth empowerment, entrepreneurship, vocational development and the creation of sustainable pathways from skills acquisition to productive enterprise.

The visit underscored the shared commitment of NACCIMA and the NDE to developing Nigeria’s human capital, expanding employment opportunities and creating an enabling environment in which young Nigerians can become active participants in the country’s industrial and economic development.