Governor Rauf Aregbesola, Bill Gates and World Bank have highlighted the urgent and critical importance of investing more and more efficiently in people to prepare countries for the economy of the future. They have highlighted the powerful link between investments and economic growth, stability and security. Shining a spotlight on human capital as a project for the world, they have highlighted the need to propel investments in people to the forefront of national and global agenda.
The World Bank, Bill Gates and Governor Rauf Aregbesola have all agreed that an impressive performance of the economy of most developed and newly industrialised countries is an impressive commitment to human capital development. They advised that Nigerians should always promote excellence in the acquisition and application of knowledge and skills in their specialized field to effectively contribute towards sustainable national development, even as they urged Nigerians to be ready to imbibe continuous self-development through study, experience sharing and thoughtful application of best practices in the workplace.
Bill Gates has harped on the need for Nigeria to urgently invest in human capital. Stressing that Nigeria has unmatched economic potential, he said that growth will come naturally when Nigeria maximizes its greatest resource, the Nigerian people. He spoke at the expanded National Economic Council (NEC) meeting chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the old Banquet Hall of the State House, Abuja.
He said “The Nigerian government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan identifies ‘investing in our people’ as one of three ‘strategic objectives. But the ‘execution priorities’ don’t fully reflect people’s needs, prioritizing physical capital over human capital. “To anchor the economy over the long term, investments in infrastructure and competitiveness must go hand in hand with investments in people.
The World Bank Group, in 2017, advised Nigeria to reduce its dependence on crude oil revenues and develop capacity of its citizens. World Bank President, Jim Yong Kim, who spoke at the opening of the 2017 World Bank Group-International Monetary Fund (IMF) Annual Meetings in Washington D.C, said Nigeria needed to invest in its people and develop their capabilities to create wealth. He said to help Nigeria address its challenges; the World Bank was working to maximize finance for development. The global lender is pursuing private sector solutions to help achieve development goals and reserve scarce public finance for where it is most needed, particularly investments in human capital. The global lender will continue to partner with the Federal Government to support people displaced by Boko Haram in the Northeast. Kim said the bank was undertaking a Human Capital Projects to help Nigeria invest more – and more effectively – in its people. The project will show how long-term investments in people can help grow economies – and create the political space for leaders to make critical investments.
The State of Osun in south-western Nigeria raised fund for educational development which is the foundation of human capital and used to finance infrastructure projects in human capital. The funds were used to finance human capital projects in the construction of education projects, among other development initiatives with which Aregbesola hopes to lay a solid foundation for the future of the state.
The State Government of Osun, under the leadership of Governor Rauf Aregbesola, in its resolve to champion inspiring innovations for Africa in human capital, has undertaken a ground breaking step to utilise ICTs to concisely tackle the learning problem through the Opón Ìmò Initiative. Opon-Imo (Tablet of Knowledge), an e-learning device which solved educational needs of Senior Secondary School students in Osun State. Opon Imo has become one of the biggest known digital initiatives in Osun’s educational history and Nigeria. Opon Imo has solve the educational needs of the state and cut cost in the sector as promised by Aregbesola, upon its inauguration, the project has solved the major educational problems of the state, leaving with it huge progress in human capital that the state had battled with for a long time.
Osun State, through its Opón Ìmò Technology Enhanced Learning System (OTELS), has developed a learning tool that could revolutionise learning in developing states around the world. This tool is called the Opón Ìmò, “Tablet of Knowledge”. As we transit towards knowledge driven economies, the need to build human capacity to gain competitive advantage has become a front burner issue for developed and developing nations. This situation is seen as more critical for developing nations which hold the majority of the world’s uneducated and have suffered decades of education infrastructure neglect.
Osun State government has won $1.5 million contract from the Federal Government to produce cables and assemble decoders for digitalisation of television. Finance Commissioner Mr. Bola Oyebamiji, who spoke at the training of the second batch of 5,000 youths on ICT, organised by RLG-Adulawo Company Ltd in Ilesa, said the Federal Government had announced September as the deadline for the digitalisation of television. He said the government won the contract when representatives of the Federal Government came to RLG-Adulawo Company, established by the Governor Rauf Aregbesola administration, to assemble electronic devises, and saw its capacity and competence to produce cables and assemble decoders.
According to World Bank, long-term investments in people would help economies grow. Over the next years, we would be working with a wide range of experts and economists in education, to help develop human capital,” Kim said. He added: “If you look at the numbers in terms of how successful African countries have invested in their human beings, versus other regions, you will know that it is a real issue. From next year, not just in Nigeria, but in the rest of Africa, we are going to focus on accelerating investments in human capital as well as investments in education, for the next phase in economic growth.” Kim also said the World Bank would be focusing on supporting Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) initiatives
Governor Aregbesola has realised that the skills, knowledge, and innovation that people accumulate are the greatest assets of economies on the rise. Recent evidence shows that human capital explains up to two thirds of income differences across the world. This is profoundly important for Africa today. Smart and timely investments in human capital will play the central role in shaping the trajectory of African nations in the coming decades, for a number of reasons. Without a greater supply of home grown talent in areas such as agriculture, energy, extractive industries, construction, manufacturing, and information and communication technology, it will be hard to build prosperous, inclusive, and resilient economies that can compete and succeed globally.
In line with World Bank and Bill Gates advice, Governor Aregbesola has always maintained that his administration focused on Human capital development through training which is the essential focus of his government, In today’s Osun – where the IT revolution has levelled the playing field between big and small schools and where students are more mobile and informed than ever – it is an absolute “must” to keep hold of and develop Osun workforce through human capital development.
UNICEF had led top government officials drawn from 17 states in the six geo-political zones of Nigeria to Osun for a four-day learning tour of its various social investment programmes and building human capital. Consequently, Osun developmental programmes have also impacted on the socio-economic profile of the state as reported by reputable institutions. In 2015, The Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) rated Osun 2nd Highest in Human Development Index among the 36 states in the Country.
Inwalomhe Donald writes from Benin City [email protected]
