The push to revamp the primary and secondary education in Nigeria and to make it more functional in preparing pupils with relevant skills and knowledge for productivity and to compete with the global world just got a great boost as the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) approves its first indigenous tools for learning Entrepreneurship and skill acquisition in Nigeria at basic levels.
The Entrepreneurship Education tools were developed by Business Matters Incubators’ Catch Them Young (BMI CTY) Initiative; the initiative aims to groom young entrepreneurs and equip them with the skills and mindset needed for success in the business and global world.
BMI as an organization and Its founder Engr. Nnamdi Felix Unachukwu has been advocating for a revamp of the current school curriculum to a more functional one; in May 2024, the organization brought together several stakeholders in the education and business sector to launch its BMI CTY Initiative, where its entrepreneurship learning tools were first displayed to the public. Following the launch, it continued its advocacy, to which the Ministry of Education and the government listened and are very committed to transforming the education sector and also bringing changes to the current school curriculum with the infusion of Entrepreneurship and vocational studies into the Nigerian school curriculum.
The Entrepreneurship Education tools that BMI CTY had developed over the years had been approved, assessed, and recommended by NERDC as the first indigenous tools for learning Entrepreneurship and skill acquisition in Nigeria at both primary and secondary education. The organization also designed a Train the Trainer (TTT) tool, which is a robust tool that will train the teachers in under one month and get them ready to teach the pupils in classes. It is also setting up a Skills Lab model that can be replicated and implemented across schools and communities where practical skills and vocations can be learned by pupils which supports the National Council on Education (NCE) plan for every child upon graduation from primary and secondary school must have learned two skills.
The organization is currently discussing with some state governments on implementing entrepreneurship education in their various state; several schools have begun using the tools in classes with outstanding results and participation from the pupils.
Entrepreneurship Education in Nigeria’s basic and secondary school education will not only equip the pupils but will have a long-term impact on the economy and the country at large; the era of massive unemployment will be over as this is the only solution to Nigerian unemployment. The challenges of youths taking up criminality and other negative vices propelled by the get money quick syndrome due to lack of jobs will be tackled because a solution has come that is sure to work if rightly encouraged and supported.
Business Matters Incubators are open to state governments for public presentation, which it has embarked on; schools are also encouraged to start getting these tools for their use in including Entrepreneurship Education in their schools.