Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima, has called for stronger partnerships between universities and industry leaders to prepare graduates for the global digital economy.
Speaking at the 2026 graduation ceremony of the American University of Nigeria (AUN), Shettima said the debate triggered by recent remarks from a fintech executive should serve as a challenge to higher education.
Although he did not mention names, Shettima was referring to Moniepoint CEO Tosin Eniolorunda, who said Nigeria lacks skilled talent to meet global standards. Eniolorunda noted that his firm had struggled to fill 500 vacancies with world-class professionals since 2025.
Shettima acknowledged the need for capacity development but said some of the criticism of Eniolorunda’s remarks was valid.
“Some of the pushback that followed was legitimate,” he said. “Compensation structures, currency pressures and the reality that Nigerian engineers now command global opportunities were part of it. The talent is not absent. In many ways, it’s just responding to rational market signals.”
He urged universities to formalise industry partnerships capable of creating “structured and sustained pipelines” between academia, fintech firms, and emerging industries.
“This is not a task government can accomplish alone, and it is not one that the private sector and corporate investors can do without universities,” he added.
Shettima said ongoing reforms under President Bola Tinubu aim to align education with 21st‑century labour demands. These include strengthening accountability, expanding access, and integrating digital and AI‑focused learning into national policy frameworks.
He also praised AUN for graduating 12 former Chibok schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram in 2014.
“The graduates that this country desperately needs are those who bring their full capabilities to solve the Nigerian problems,” he said, describing AUN’s support as “an act of institutional faith.”
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