By Ayodele Oni
Nigeria’s first-ever National Industrial Manpower Development Policy is underway.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who announced the plan, said the country’s greatest asset lies in its people rather than its natural resources.
He also stressed the urgent need to bridge the gap between educational output and industry requirements to unlock Nigeria’s economic potential.
These were contained in a keynote address at the opening of the National Industrial Manpower Summit (NIMS) 2025 at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja.
A statement by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to The President on Media & Communications
(Office of The Vice President), stated that the President, who was represented by his deputy, Vice President Kashim Shettima, pointed out that the country must urgently invest in its citizens or risk dire consequences.
The summit with the theme, “Manpower Development: The Bridge Between Potential and Productivity,” brings together government officials, industry leaders, academia, and international partners to develop actionable recommendations for workforce development.
The president stated that “For a nation with a median age of about seventeen, Nigeria is an incredibly young country. This youthfulness is a gift, but it is also a responsibility.
“We must make our young people not just a demographic statistic but a central component of our policy-making process.
“An improvement in human capital, along with infrastructure and sound policy, is the bridge between development and setback in every nation. We cannot afford to divest from our people because the world will not pause to wait for us.”
The President said the summit “is not just a forum for discussion; it is a call to produce actionable recommendations that will form the basis of Nigeria’s first-ever National Industrial Manpower Development Policy.
“I assure you that this administration will review, adopt, and implement viable proposals with urgency.
“Our mission is to align the education and training of our young people, and indeed the larger workforce, with the needs of industry. We must reverse the mismatch between what our institutions produce and what our economy requires.
“This cannot be realised unless we foster robust collaboration between the public and private sectors to prepare young Nigerians for the demands of today’s job market,” he noted.
Earlier, the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan Enoh, noted that the summit is not just a ceremony or another line in the calendar of events, but a crossroads where Nigeria elects whether to remain as a nation of vast potential – often admired but unrealised, or whether the country is ready to step forward as a nation whose productivity matches its promise.
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