Ministry, Zinox Group To Build Database Of The Unemployed

The Ministry of Labour and Productivity has partnered the Zinox Group, an indigenous Information and Communications Technology firm, to build a database of the unemployed in the 774 Local Government Councils of the country.

This is coming on the heels of plans by the Federal Government to create jobs for the unemployed in the country.

The Minister of Labour and Productivity, Dr. Chris Ngige, had decried the fact that the ministry did not have credible database of unemployment in its various forms, according to a statement by the ministry on Monday.

The minister gave an assurance that the ministry would roll out its programme on employment generation once the 2016 budget was passed.

“By the end of the first quarter, we will hit the ground running,” Ngige was quoted as saying.

While citing Yudala that has employed 420 graduates as an example, the Chairman, Zinox Group, Dr. Leo Stan Ekeh, said that a database of the unemployed could be built without incurring expenses.

He explained that Zinox was looking forward to collaborating with the ministry to build a national database where the unemployed in the 774 LGs could register their profiles for easy access to employers.

Ekeh, who led the organisation’s management team on a courtesy visit to the ministry, added that the platform would create avenues for qualified graduates to be located for employment irrespective of where they resided.

He said that his decision to seek collaboration with the ministry was borne out of the need to reduce to the barest the unprecedented rate of unemployment in Nigeria.

Ekeh expressed worry that quite a lot of Nigerians were either unemployed or underemployed.

“The biggest challenge in the industry is to find qualified people; there are graduates but they don’t have skills; we think we can change things around,” he added.

Ngige reiterated the determination of the government to tackle unemployment, adding that the skill acquisition centres spread across the country would be resuscitated for the use of unemployed Nigerian youths to acquire relevant skills.

According to him, the ministry’s is ready to collaborate with any organisation willing to assist in creating jobs, stressing that working with Zinox would in no small measure lead to the creation of jobs for the teeming unemployed youths in the country.