The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has announced the establishment of an Entrepreneurship Skills Development Centre aimed at integrating entrepreneurship education into secondary schools.
Dr. Mohammed Ladan, Director/Secretary of the FCT Secondary Education Board, made this known in Abuja on Monday during a two-day workshop for FCT teachers on innovation and entrepreneurship education.
Ladan revealed that the centre is currently under construction at Government Secondary School, Giri, and is expected to be completed by the end of the year. The project is in partnership with Brunel University Business School in the UK, which has committed to furnishing and equipping the facility once it’s completed.
He explained that the centre would serve as a national hub for entrepreneurship education, benefiting all 36 states and the FCT. It will also be used to train stakeholders and entrepreneurship educators working in skills acquisition centres across Nigeria.
“We’re tired of churning out graduates with no employment prospects. This initiative aims to equip students with the tools to become job creators rather than job seekers,” Ladan said. “Our goal is to tackle unemployment with Abuja leading the charge.”
He highlighted that students are being taught to recognize and solve real-world problems using locally available resources. Some are already developing creative solutions, such as converting waste nylon and polyethylene bags into interlocking tiles, making toilet paper from recycled cartons, producing syrup from date fruits, and crafting flowerpots.
Students are also gaining hands-on experience in trades like welding, fashion design, plumbing, bricklaying, electrical work, shoemaking, and hairstyling.
Ladan noted that the ongoing teacher training is the third in a series designed to prepare FCT schools for a more entrepreneurial curriculum. The first phase targeted school principals, the second focused on vice principals in charge of academics, and the current session involves over 400 teachers from public and private junior and senior secondary schools.
He added that a fourth training phase will be directed at artisans to further enhance skill development and inspire students to explore their full potential.