Varsities should produce job creators, not job seekers – Airline CEO

L–R: Vice-Chancellor, Veritas University, Abuja, Prof Hyacinth Ichoku; Visitor to the University and President Catholic Bishops' Conference of Nigeria, His Grace, Most Rev. Dr. Matthew Ndagos; Executive Chairman of United Nigeria Airlines and award recipient, Prof Obiora Okonkwo; His Eminence, Cardinal John Onaiyekan; Pro-Chancellor and Chairman, Governing Council, Prof Augustine Echema at the university's 15th convocation ceremony.

The Chairman of United Nigeria Airlines, Prof Obiora Okonkwo, has challenged Nigerian universities to prioritise entrepreneurship and practical skills development, saying graduates must be prepared to create jobs rather than depend solely on paid employment.

Okonkwo, who made the call at Veritas University’s 15th convocation ceremony in Abuja, advocated integrating entrepreneurship education into all academic departments, including medicine, law, engineering and the sciences.

In a statement issued on Sunday by Okonkwo, he argued that the country’s higher education system must move beyond awarding certificates to equipping students with the knowledge, skills and mindset required to become self-reliant and contribute meaningfully to national development.

The airline chairman maintained that entrepreneurship should not be treated as a peripheral discipline but as a core subject for every university student, irrespective of their course of study, among other recommendations.

“Entrepreneurship I am advocating should not just be a by-pass discipline; it should be a core subject that must be made available to all the students in every department.

“So that if you are studying medicine, you are thinking of entrepreneurship for medicine. What if tomorrow you want to be a private practitioner? If you are going to law, even if in the science department, these researchers will be able to think of the entrepreneurial aspect of their research outcome,” he said.

Okonkwo, a professor of entrepreneurship, argued that the quality of education should not be measured merely by the number of graduates produced but by the knowledge, skills, moral values and sense of responsibility they acquire.

The entrepreneur, who disclosed that he established his business while still a student, said he had never been an employed person after graduation.

He said his experience had reinforced his conviction that entrepreneurial training should begin early in students’ academic journeys.

“I am a professor of entrepreneurship, so I am not just in the theory aspect; I am also in the practice. I have seen the ups and different things happen.

“If you are in school and you are able to have an idea of how things work in the business world, that is why after my first, second degree with first-class distinction, I have never been an employed person after my graduation. I had set up my business even while I was in school,” he said.

Okonkwo, however, acknowledged that entrepreneurship was not necessarily the career path for every graduate, adding that he was willing to guide students interested in establishing businesses.

He also advocated stronger collaboration between universities and industries, particularly through internship programmes that expose students to practical experience before graduation.

Describing internship as critical to bridging the gap between classroom learning and workplace demands, he disclosed that United Nigeria Airlines had signed memoranda of understanding with Nnamdi Azikiwe University and Afe Babalola University to train mechanical engineering students in its aviation maintenance unit.

According to him, students participating in the programme are paid during their internship, receive certificates upon completion and are considered for automatic employment based on their performance.

He said the programme had recorded impressive academic outcomes, with students who participated in the training graduating with at least second-class upper degrees.

Okonkwo said the initiative demonstrated the benefits of industry-based training and urged universities to expand partnerships with private sector organisations to improve graduate employability.

He further disclosed that his convocation lecture on entrepreneurship education at another university had been adopted as a policy document, with a committee established to study its recommendations and determine how they could be implemented across universities, among others.

The call for Nigerian universities to produce graduates capable of creating jobs comes amid longstanding concerns over graduate unemployment, skills mismatch and the limited capacity of the formal sector to absorb the growing number of young people entering the labour market.

Nigeria’s higher education system has traditionally been criticised for placing greater emphasis on theoretical knowledge and the award of academic qualifications than on practical skills, innovation and enterprise development. This has fuelled calls for universities to strengthen entrepreneurship education, technical training and industry-based learning to prepare graduates for the changing demands of the economy.