The Federal Government has expressed the willingness to key into the thriving global outsourcing market, which has grossed almost $350 billion for seven top countries that engaged in it, with a view to tapping into its huge job opportunities for the nation’s teeming youths.
In its efforts to benefit from it, the Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima, will on Monday, March 4, 2024, in Gombe State, launch the Outsource To Nigeria Initiative, OTNI, a private sector-led, government-enabled programme anchored by the Office of the Vice President.
It is designed to create jobs in the business process and technology-enabled outsourcing sector.
The Initiative is part of efforts and determination to actualize the agenda of President Tinubu’s administration on job creation.
Deputy Chief of Staff to the President (Office of the Vice President), Sen. Ibrahim Hadejia, who disclosed this at a briefing in Abuja yesterday, noted that OTNI, when successfully rolled out across the country, would be the fastest way to achieve job security for Nigeria’s teeming youths.
He said the Office of the Vice President was supporting the initiative because of the huge job opportunities in the thriving global outsourcing market, which grossed almost $350 billion in 2023 for the seven top countries that engaged in it.
Senator Hadejia said: “The jobs created in this sector are well-paying jobs, the market is growing rapidly, it is projected to grow to over half a trillion dollars by 2030.
”If we can get a big chunk of this market, it will not only be the alternative to oil, but also probably the biggest employer of young people in the country. This is why it has the full backing of the Office of the Vice President.”
“When you look at what global outsourcing partners are looking for, we are probably in a better position than even most of the countries engaged in it today.
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”We are an English-speaking country, we now have better IT infrastructure than we had 10 years ago when the boom started. And we have the skill sets, we have the human resources – vibrant and young people to actively participate in this sector.”
The Deputy Chief of Staff urged other state governors to emulate Gombe and leverage the opportunity created by the OTNI launch to provide good jobs for youths in their respective states.
On her part, the founder and Chief Executive Office of Outsource Global, who is the promoter of the programme, Mrs Amal Hassan, said the launch of OTNI on March 4 simultaneously in Gombe, Abuja and Kaduna would mark a turning point in Nigeria’s business process and outsource sector.
She disclosed that based on the requirements of the domestic and international markets, the initiative would aggregate all the talents in a worknation platform and then provide capacity building, based on the needs of the international market.
She stated further that it would set up centres of excellence, engage in international global branding and communication aimed at showcasing the strengths and capabilities of Nigerian talents and also the deployment of the trainees to work in the international market and even the domestic market.
HIGH AIRFARES: Intl airlines reduce inventory tickets as NCAA intervenes
Following Nigerians’ outcry over the increasing cost of air tickets in the country, Acting Director General of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, Captain Chris Najomo, has set up a 10-man committee to look into air fares reduction, particularly on the international routes.
Najomo’s decision came two days after the NCAA held a high-level meeting with foreign airlines operating in the country on the need to unblock low inventory tickets hitherto blocked for over 18 months.
The meeting, held at the NCAA headquarters in Abuja, had in attendance representatives from the NCAA, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, FCCPC, and the National Association of Nigerian Travel Agencies, NANTA, while the International Air Transport Association, IATA, made a presentation on behalf of foreign airlines.
Chaired by Director of Special Duties, NCAA, Mr Horatius Egua, the committee is tasked with ensuring that foreign airlines comply with the directives of the government to unblock all low inventory tickets and recommend appropriate ticket pricing.
Egua, who represented by Najomo at the meeting held between February 12 and 13, 2024, in Abuja, lamented the air fares which he described as discriminatory.
He said: “We cannot continue to pay higher fares, compared to other countries in the sub-region that have similar distances, using the same operating aircraft.
”We have the market and in some cases, we have more liberal taxes. This is unacceptable and we reject this.
“For instance, a distance of six hours from Ghana to London may sometimes cost about $800, while a similar distance with similar operating aircraft costs over $2000 in Nigeria. This is discriminatory and an unfair practice and we reject this in totality.”
Meanwhile, after the NCAA’s intervention, Lufthansa German Airlines, KLM, Egypt Air, Ethiopian Airlines, British Airways, Royal Air Maroc, RwandAir and Turkish Airlines have released all categories of low inventory tickets, while Air France has yet to effect adjustments.
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