The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has called on the Federal Government to prioritise the effective implementation of the National Talent Export Programme (NATEP), highlighting its potential to generate employment and increase foreign exchange earnings.
This appeal was made by NECA’s Director-General, Mr. Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, in a statement issued on Monday in Lagos by the association’s Media Relations Officer, Mr. Seun Amigun. Oyerinde commended the Federal Government for reviving the initiative but stressed that its success hinges on meticulous execution.
Designed to position Nigeria as a global hub for service exports, talent development, and the international deployment of skilled professionals, NATEP aims to create one million jobs over five years and enhance the country’s foreign exchange inflow by leveraging its abundant human capital.
Oyerinde referenced data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which recorded over 2.3 million unemployed Nigerians in 2023 and 133 million living in poverty in 2022. These figures, he said, underscore the urgency of implementing job-creating initiatives such as NATEP.
“While Nigeria is rich in both natural and human resources, the primary challenge lies not in policy gaps but in poor implementation and coordination,” he noted.
He expressed optimism that NATEP is strategically positioned to address these challenges by focusing on the development and export of Nigerian talent. The programme is built on four key pillars: policy support, talent development, infrastructure and innovation, and financial incentives.
Oyerinde pointed out that the talent export and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sectors have long suffered from a lack of coherent policy direction, hampering their growth.
He expressed confidence in the leadership of Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, noting her track record as the former head of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), which introduced several business-friendly reforms.
According to Oyerinde, the re-launch of NATEP has already attracted international attention, resulting in partnerships and memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with global technology firms such as Huawei and Microsoft.
“These developments signal strong potential for positioning Nigeria as Africa’s leading outsourcing destination,” he added.
Nonetheless, NECA advised that NATEP’s implementation must align with international standards, including key International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions that promote ethical outsourcing. These include ILO Convention No. 88 on public employment services and Convention No. 181 on private employment agencies.
Oyerinde also encouraged Nigerian youths to register in the NATEP database to benefit from its opportunities and urged them to acquire globally recognised skills and certifications through reputable training institutions.
He further recommended integrating key technical skills into the national education curriculum from the secondary school level to create a sustainable talent pipeline for the programme.
In conclusion, Oyerinde stressed the importance of balancing domestic demand for skilled labour with the export of talent, warning that failure to manage this balance could exacerbate brain drain and lead to further socio-economic challenges.
