A majority of Nigerian workers believe their jobs are at risk from changes in technology and globalisation, but they are already developing skills to combat this shift 84 percent of the Nigerian workforce devote significant effort to upskilling; 78 percent would also reskill for a new job, according to a study by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and The Network
LAGOS, November 27, 2019 – Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy is home to almost 200 million people and a growing energetic young population-more than half of population is below 30 years old. Despite having a young population, Nigeria is yet to fully harness the potential of such youthful energy to grow her economy.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), in 2018 unemployment and underemployment rate stood at 43 percent of the labour workforce and is mainly driven by youth unemployment and underemployment which stood at 55 percent. While there are several factors driving unemployment in Nigeria, one factor that must be addressed urgently is the un-employability of graduates from Nigerian tertiary institutions. Former government representatives and business executives lament the un-employability of graduates from Nigerian universities.
For example, over the past few years the Nigerian tech industry has witnessed significant growth. Companies like Andela, Jumia and Farmcrowdy are taking the lead and leveraging technology to change industries and how people work. This growth has not gone unnoticed as tech giants such as Facebook and Twitter have recently moved to enable start-ups and enhance innovation opportunities in Nigeria. Despite this growth and with such a vibrant young population, tech companies lament the lack of local talent to drive the growth needed in the nation’s tech space.
BCG and The Network as well as local partners -Jobberman and FindAjobInAfrica have done some work to assess the changing work environment and have found that Nigerians are getting increasingly aware of the impact of globalisation and technology on work today and are committing more time than their peers across the world to develop the right skillset in response to these changes. This survey polled 366,000 people in 197 countries to assess their awareness of how work is changing and their willingness to change along with it. Nigerians are the most sensitive to megatrends in globalisation with 74 percent of the 550 respondents in Nigeria acknowledging that globalisation will have an impact on their jobs.
Knowledge of these impacts drives a willingness to learn and develop in order to compete in the new global order – 84 percent of Nigerian workers are willing to devote a significant effort to upskilling. This desire is primarily driven by younger workers as 84 percent of those willing to devote significant time to gaining new skill and knowledge are young Nigerians below age 30. This is encouraging news for Nigeria as workforce is eager to embrace dynamic change.
Apart from upskilling, Nigerian workers are willing to reskill – acquire a new skill in order to get a new job. The study shows that 78 percent of surveyed Nigerians are willing to acquire new skills for a new job under any circumstance. Again, this is primarily driven by young Nigerian workers and emphasizes the desire of people in this age bracket to gain relevant skills in order to compete favourably with their peers globally.
Respondents in Nigeria believe that analytical skills, communication and leadership are the most important skills for the future to cope with change and to compete effectively in the global talent pool. In addition, according to the report, Nigerians acquire these skills primarily through on the job training, self-study and Conferences/seminars. This shows the desire and motivation of Nigerians to take ownership and independently seek out opportunities to improve their skillset.
These findings are really interesting and relevant to government agencies, private companies and educators as they seek to groom local talent that will build industries in Nigeria that can match global standards. In order for companies to adapt to global changes, it is imperative to invest in skill-building programs to help people prepare adequately for the future of work.
Employers in Nigeria should harness the desire by young Nigerians to upskill and reskill by creating programs such as internships that allow young graduates to develop relevant skills on the job. Employers should also invest in on the job training and retraining programs for current employees especially young employees. International companies willing to invest in Nigeria must recognize the desire learn amongst Nigerian workers and plan to invest in developing local hires.
In addition, the ministry of education and stakeholders in the education system should invest heavily in revamping current curriculum and training/retraining teachers in order to provide graduates with the right knowledge and skillset to compete in the global talent pool. Employers should also take proactive steps to support education institutions to develop curriculum that help graduates fit into the requirements for work as it is today.
“Nigeria’s very young population is a very important asset to drive the level of growth the country needs to fulfil its potential. This is why we find it very interesting that young Nigerians are very self-aware and willing to make the effort to close knowledge and skill gaps. Leaders across all facets of the Nigerian economy must use this knowledge and make targeted interventions towards improving the skill set of Nigerian workers with special emphasis on young workers” said Joao Hrotko partner and managing director at the Lagos office of BCG.
“At BCG we see ourselves as part of the solution which is why place a huge emphasis on recruiting young local talent and investing in their development through internal and external trainings so that they display superior skills and knowledge compared to their peers across the world”
BCG’s Global Report
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