Economy
Labour Market Information, Key to Policy Making, Planning– FG
The Federal Government says Labour Market Information System(LMIS) is key for policy making, education planning, career guidance and enterprise strategies.
Sen. Chris Ngige, Minister of Labour and Employment, said this while declaring open a three-day workshop on Labour Market Information System on Wednesday in Abuja.
Ngige, represented by Ms Daju Kachollom, the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, said the workshop was imperative towards addressing the problem of unavailability of labour market information.
The minister said that the lack of labour market information had weakened the foundation of national planning and development.
“ This is because LMIS can provide policy-makers and decision-makers with insights into current and future labour market trends.
“Well-established LMIS provide insight into both the supply side and the demand side of the labour market.
“Thus, helping to forecast trends for job seekers, training institutions, enterprises and policy-makers, ’’he said.
Ngige added that the information on wages, working conditions and general labour market conditions were important for a number of stakeholders.
He said that the LMIS would be beneficial for students that were planning their career paths, job seekers that were searching for sustainable employments and enterprises that needed to remain competitive within the market.
He also said that the LMIS would be useful for trade unions that needed information in order to properly represent the interests of their members.
“Similarly, employers also need information on the availability of skilled labour, particularly if they are considering expanding a business line or adding new products and services.
“If we must generate comprehensive, reliable and up-to-date labour market information, there is need for better collaboration to maximise resources available, share information collected
“We must create a referral system of job vacancies in order to streamline services for both enterprises and job seekers, ‘’he said.
Ngige, therefore, called for increased collaboration between employment service providers, industrial associations, trade unions, and employers’ organisations required for a successful public employment service.
He, however, said that the current process of accessing LMI was ”unwieldy and cumbersome leading to avoidable waste of time and other valuable resources.”
He added that, it was in a bid to address these challenges that the ministry took the bold initiative to establish the LMIS in collaboration with other stakeholders.
“This is to bring together all the fragmented labour market information that we have across many Ministries and Agencies into one place.
“This is so that it can give tangible results for national policy making.
”Through this innovative approach, users of LMI will be able to access it through this source – the LMIS, ’’he said.
Also speaking, Kachollom,said the purpose of the workshop was to appraise stakeholders on steps taken by the ministry to establish a national Labour Market Information System.
Kachollom, represented by Mr John Nyamail, Director, Employment and Wages in the ministry said that effort had been made in the past to establish labour Observatory in Nigeria and none came to fruition.
According to her, the aims of LMIS were to bring together all the relevant stakeholders and institutions involved in the generation of labour market information in a single platform.
“This will ensure synergy, remove duplication and facilitate evidence-based decision making.
“ The ministry cannot succeed in this endeavor without the active cooperation and involvement of all stakeholders.
“ LMIS focal points for each MDA that will be appointed at the end of this meeting are expected to work with the Team of Consultants on an ongoing basis to ensure the success of this project,’’she said..
Speaking, Prof. Abubakar Rasheed, Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC) said the commission had been vested with the responsibility of ensuring the orderly development of university education in Nigeria.
Rasheed, represented by Mrs Margret Oyedele, Deputy Director, in the commission, said the LMIS helped to create an overview of the Nigerian Education and Training System.
He said that it also provides an insight into the structure, size and operations of the system.
“It also help to provide an overview of the relevant skills needed to drive our economy as presented and also present brief overview of the economic growth and employment in the country, among others, ‘’he said.(NAN)
To end the week, the stock market rebounded from previous losses, gaining N74 billion.
Investor interest in MTN Nigeria, FBN Holdings, Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) and other equities lifted the market.
Notably, the market capitalisation opened at N56.014 trillion, adding N74 billion or 0.
13 per cent to close at N56.088 trillion.The All-Share Index also advanced by 0.
13 per cent, or 129.44 points, closing at 97,606.63, compared to 97,477.19 recorded on Thursday.As a result, the Year-To-Date (YTD) return increased by 30.54 per cent.
The market breadth closed positive, with 31 gainers and 19 losers on the floor of the Exchange.
On the gainers’ chart, Consolidated Hallmark Plc and Sterling Nigeria led by 9.
45 per cent each to close at N1.39 and N4.98 per share respectively.Mecure followed by 9.19 per cent to close at N10.10, Regency Alliance Insurance gained 9.09 per cent to close at 72k, while Fidson Healthcare Plc increased by 8.24 per cent to close at N15.10 per share.
Conversely, Deap Capital Management and Trust led the losers’ chart by 9.93 per cent to close at N1.36, NEM Insurance trailed by 9.71 per cent to close at N7.90 per share.
Daar Communications also lost 9.52 per cent to close at 57k, Tantalizers shed 9.09 per cent to close at 60k, while Dangote Sugar declined by 3.31 per cent to close at N31 per share.
Analysis of the market activities showed trade turnover settled higher relative to the previous session, with the value of transactions up by 20.33 per cent.
A total of 304.43 million shares valued at N5.60 billion were exchanged in 6,950 deals, compared with 277.75 million shares valued at N4.65 billon in 7,091 deals traded in the previous session.
Meanwhile, Access Corporation led the activity chart in volume and value with 68.26 million shares valued at N1.34 billon.(NAN)
By David Torough, Abuja
The Nigerian Economic Society (NES) has decried Nigeria’s socioeconomic dilemmas, including; low personal incomes, dysfunctional education, healthcare systems, unemployment, rising inflation, poverty, amidst other critical issues.
This was part of the communique at the end of the association’s 65th annual conference held recently in Abuja with the theme: Socioeconomic Development in Nigeria: Imperatives, Implications, and Impacts.
It emphasised that the factors greatly contribute to insecurity, food scarcity, energy poverty, widening social inequality as macroeconomic instability and called on relevant stakeholders to urgently address the challenges.
President Bola Tinubu who was represented by the Vice President, Kashim Shettima through
Dr. Tope Fasua, underscored the
pivotal role of economists in shaping national development.
Tinubu reiterated the importance of their role to make the citizens feel integral and empowered, knowing that their contributions were crucial to the country’s development.
He urged them to approach the economy optimistically, stressing that their work was crucial, and that improvement was
always possible.
In his remarks, Minister of Budget and National Planning, Atiku Bagudu underscored the importance of socioeconomic resilience amidst global economic challenges.
He acknowledged the relevance of the conference theme, stating its timeliness in addressing Nigeria’s development needs.
On his part, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Olawale Edun who delivered the keynote address on “Leveraging Economic Reforms to Leapfrog Nigeria’s Socioeconomic Development,” underscored the potential benefits of these reforms and stressed the need to better utilise Nigeria’s human and natural resources to spur socio-economic development.
He predicted that while structural reforms might cause short-term economic shocks, they would stabilise the economy in the long run, bringing hope for a brighter future.
In his presentation, the NES President, Professor Adeola Adenikinju who presented “Nigeria’s Socioeconomic Challenges: Lessons from the Structural Adjustment Programmes,” recommended:
Instituting an economic governance structure for the country, designating
some Ministries as economic ministries that qualified economists and allied professionals
must staff, adopting macroeconomic models to analyse the impacts of policies and assess
alternative scenarios.
Adenikinju also recommended; implementing export-led growth strategies by promoting value-
added exports and incentives for export-oriented industries and infrastructure, prioritising agro-allied industries to boost socioeconomic outcomes, implementing targeted subsidies or social safety nets to cushion vulnerable populations against the immediate impacts of reforms, amongst others.
The 65th NES Conference provided significant insights into Nigeria’s socioeconomic
development challenges and proposed actionable recommendations.
Participants emphasised the need for visionary leadership, policy synergy, and a commitment to long-term economic transformation to ensure sustainable development for Nigeria.
By Tony Obiechina, Abuja
The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) says it will henceforth issue Outline Business Case (OBC) Certificate of Compliance and the Full Business Case (FBC) Certificate of Compliance within seven days.This follows the charge by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the Director General of the Commission, Dr Jobson Oseodion Ewalefoh “to accelerate investment in National Infrastructure through innovative mobilization of private-sector funding”.
President Tinubu also charged him to work assiduously to boost infrastructure development in Nigeria as part of the renewed hope agenda of the current administration.In view of the above, Dr Ewalefoh-led management team of the ICRC has streamlined the approval processes of the commission to issue its certificates of compliance within seven days. This will accelerate the turnaround time for approvals by the Commission.“In line with the charge of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, and following his Renewed Hope Agenda, we have streamlined and updated our approval processes to issue either of the Outline Business Case Certificate of Compliance (OBC) and the Full Business Case Certificate of Compliance (FBC) to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) that meet the requirements within seven days.“This is part of efforts by the current administration to accelerate infrastructure development, bridge the infrastructure gaps and stimulate the economy through investment of private sector funds in Public Private Partnership endeavours.“By streamlining our processes, the Commission is in no way foregoing any of its stringent approval steps or key requirements, therefore, only business cases that are viable, bankable, offer value for money and meet all other requirements will be approved.“The ICRC cannot do it alone, therefore I implore all chief executives of MDAs to match our momentum and align with this charge of Mr. President to accelerate Infrastructure development and ensure that PPP projects are not stalled at any point but delivered within record time.“The Commission is ready to partner and collaborate with all MDAs to actualize this,” he said.In a statement by Ifeanyi NwokoActing Head, Media and Publicity on Monday the ICRC DG in August rolled out a six-point policy direction which among others, focused on accelerating PPP processes, boosting inter-agency collaboration and ensuring innovative financing.The ICRC was established to regulate Public Private Partnership (PPP) endeavours of the Federal government aimed at addressing Nigeria’s physical infrastructure deficit which hampers economic development.
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