Monday, March 4, 2013
Monday, February 4, 2013
Action Plan for employment is on course, says Wogu
Action Plan for employment is on course, says Wogu
To curb the threatening menace of insecurity and other sundry,
Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chief Chukwuemeka Wogu has once
again highlighted policy options of the Federal Government aimed at
changing the structure of employment in the country.
The minister added that government was poised to implement the
National Action Plan on Employment Creation, NAPEC, targeted at
creating five million new jobs annually within next three years.
According to him, effort would also be made towards establishing more
skills acquisition centres and implementation of Local Content policy
in all the sectors, especially in the Oil and Gas industry in order to
boost job creation.
Wogu, at a recent meeting in Lagos said government will always call on
Nigeria Employers' Consultative Association, NECA to support the above
plans and programmes from time to time in the course of their
implementation.
He said that the Transformation Agenda of the Goodluck Jonathan-led
administration will appreciate the cooperation, support and
collaboration from all Nigerians who look forward to better days for
posterity.
The minister called on relevant stakeholders to come up with a
blueprint on achieving industrial harmony from the employers’
perspective. “Together, we hope to join the league of twenty most
developed nations of the world by the year twenty-twenty.”
He assured government's determination to collaborate with its
development partners to strengthen industrial relations institutions
and increase the capacity of the inspectorate role of the ministry of
labour, adding that the University of Lagos is collaborating with the
African Regional Labour Administration Centre, ARLAC, in Zimbabwe as a
specialized diploma and degree warding institution on labour in the
English Speaking African countries.
Government also spoke about the effort being on both the review of
curriculum and infrastructural development at the Michael Imoudu
Institute for Labour Studies, MINILS, Ilorin.
According to him, 'to achieve a relative industrial harmony will
entail an appreciable level of good governance anchored on sound
principles of governance. Government is taking a holistic and
proactive measure to address observed gaps in labour administration.
Such measures include capacity building for labour administrators and
enforcement of existing labour laws.'
The minister stated that from the macro-economic perspective,
government is aware that an equitable legal framework will defend
people from abuse from any of the social partners hence a home-grown
economic blueprint has been tailored to meet our peculiar economic
circumstance. “The policy of gradual withdrawal of government from
active role in state enterprises is a mark of respect for the expected
impact on the lives of ordinary Nigerians. It is designed to encourage
community groups, professionals and young entrepreneurs to turn their
ingenuity and commitment to venture into entrepreneurship and sound
management which ultimately should create new jobs and relief the
negative outcomes of globalization.
“This was amply demonstrated in some of the already launched
Programmes by Mr. President, and the inclusion of Entrepreneurship
Programmes in the curriculum of Nigerian Universities,” said Wogu.
Labour minister stated that the analysis of the recipe for industrial
harmony can not be exhausted, adding that there is need for a national
discourse and intellectual engagement on the way forward as the
current challenge of industrial disharmony is global. 'We must debate
to adopt adaptive measures to cope with the global wave of
industrialization and demands if we are to achieve our desired
economic development and growth.'
Given the relative success of the Regulation on Labour Administrative
issues on Contract Staffing / Outsourcing in the oil and gas sector in
regulating and reducing the number of disputes, the minister said
government was prepared to engage stakeholders in the
telecommunication sector as well. “Our plan is to identify and
articulate similar consensus building in other sectors so that the
economy can generate the required steam for development and growth. We
are broadening the base of our consultation on policy options.
Government will continue to draw from the wealth of its social and
development partners on fashioning out ways of growing the economy,”
added Wogu.
SEWUN charges government to initiate people-oriented policies
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