As a growing child, I had developed a very keen interest in flight; no aircraft passed my hometown without getting a wave from me and other children in the neighbourhood. I still sustain that interest to date. This was what motivated me to attend the Boeing Aircraft exhibition in Seattle, Washington State, USA in October 2015 as part of my holiday fun.
Boeing, the world largest aerospace company and a leading manufacturer of commercial jetliners, needs no introduction to any urban dweller that has travelled at least three times by air; chances of flying in a Boeing aircraft are very high. To maintain its leading position in the business and to meet the stringent regulatory standard designed for aircraft, the company recruits and retains the best hands across the production and distribution chains.
My joy was full when I was privileged to have a Nigerian young engineer as my tour guide at the Boeing Museum, not only for the national pride of having a Nigerian engineer in the respected world-class institution but also because I would not have to strain my ears so much to decode the often complex American accent. While I got fulfilled with the fun and ambience of the exhibition, I also got thinking and wished we got it right in Nigeria. I engaged the young man before the tour and he confirmed to me that he attended St. Gregory College, Obalende, when it was a public school under the Lagos State government before he moved to Embry Ridle Aeronautical University in Florida, the No. 1 aeronautics university in the world, to study Aeronautical Engineering.
While the young engineer was busy explaining the principles of aerodynamics and evolution of wing technology from 1911 to date, my mind was busy wondering where we, as a nation, got it wrong. The young mind obviously noticed the periodic loss of attention and took pains to go back to the basics on each occasion, simplifying what he thought could have been my problem of understanding. Little did he know that I am sufficiently groomed to understand basic engineering principles. You could not have graduated from great Ife Agric Faculty without passing through basic foundations of engineering back then. You also needed to take courses in Agricultural Engineering up till fourth year of the five years requisite for graduating in Agriculture. Although I am not an engineer, great Ife groomed me well to understand the basics.
Then what were my problems? They were manifold. First, I marvelled at the opportunity this young guy had to study a course of his dream in America and the fact that he got admitted to a first-class aeronautics university. He did not need to know the VC of the school, neither did he need to know the professors to secure admission. He studied hard and got recruited by a first-class airplane manufacturer without any connection or bribe. As a matter of fact, he was recruited by Boeing in his third year in college ahead of graduation. Such is the practice of corporate institutions in the USA to catch them young.
I asked myself where and what the contemporaries of this young man will be doing in Nigeria. In proper context, I tried to calculate where a 21-year-old would be in Nigeria of today after leaving high school. In 2010, for instance, some would have been lucky to gain admission to university and, of course, this young engineer would have been compelled to change his course from his dream Aerospace Engineering to Mechanical or Electrical Engineering. Not too bad anyway but with ASUU and NASU strikes, graduation would possibly be in 2016. Then he will have to contend with the compulsory one-year national service before he is ripe for the labour market. I need not over-flog the constraints in the labour market. His father will require a note from aviation minister or the presidency for him to work in Nigerian Airspace Management Agency.
My mind also went to alternative job opportunities in the aviation industry in Nigeria and I realized that this guy would have been waiting on the wings in Nigeria if he must practice his chosen career. I reflected on the fact that there is no national carrier in the country and it is noted with sadness that smaller countries are taking advantage of our inefficient aviation industry to make a kill. Ethiopian Airlines is one example of a well-developed aviation business contributing significantly to the national income of Ethiopia. Togo is upcoming with a good grasp of the regional business. Kenyan Airways is another notable airline, all feeding fat on Nigerian passengers. Perhaps this young engineer would have been lucky to be engaged by any of these airlines but that will be in the unlikely event that they cannot recruit their staff from their home countries.
So where did we get it wrong? In providing answers to this question, I reflected on my own education system and the opportunities available at my own schooling time. I finished high school in the late 70s and was admitted to study Agriculture in Ife a year after my graduation. Unlike most school leavers now, students at my time only focused on academic excellence in chosen subjects and little attention was placed on career plans. Guidance and counselling was virtually unavailable. My first course of choice was Biochemistry just because it sounded good and I was offering Chemistry and Biology in school. I later opted for Agriculture because my father was an agricultural officer in the Ministry of Agriculture.
Segun Awofiranye is a Lagos-based banker/risk manager.
