Why Nigerian graduates are unemployable, by ACCA

Oluwatoyin Ademola

The Country Head of Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Mrs. Oluwatoyin Ademola has explained a major reason graduates in the country remained unemployed.

Ademola said based on demands from corporate organisations, it was discovered that some of the graduates write the ‘wrongest’ curriculum vitae, yet they were ignorant of their mistake.  

She spoke during ACCA Nigeria November Summit held in Abuja, adding that the summit was a platform to engage unemployed youths.

Ademola said, “Basically, what they tell them is what they expect to see on their CV, how they expect it and how to write it because some of these organisations look at the CVs. One of the reasons Nigerian students are not employable is because they probably have the wrongest CV ever and they don’t understand it.

“ACCA has over 20, 000 stakeholders including students and members. Some are not graduates. I know that First Bank and some other banks hire them on internship basis pending when they finish and get engaged.”

She said the core value of ACCA was opportunity and accessibility stressing that the event was organised as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to support all stakeholders.

She explained the association has been in partnership with employers of labour in the country and globally to reduce discrepancies arising from job agencies. Ademola stated that issues of engaging and sustaining qualified employees were major concerns to many corporate bodies in the country while ACCA intend to bridge the gap.

According to her, the ACCA also went in partnership with selected universities across the country to offer students internship programmes or permanent jobs.

“What we have discovered is that most of the times, these students never get to meet the employers because they go through the agencies. So what we have done is to remove all the agency business so they can talk to the employers themselves.

“We tell them part of the partnership is employer talent recruitment. The abilities to make sure their universities are employable and for the students to get a job.  

“We discovered that some of our members have been biochemistry, engineering graduates but accountants. It is because the ACCA qualification is so flexible. It doesn’t mean you have to be an accountant,” she said.

It was gathered that about 6,500 people have registered with the professional body while it target annual reduction of high unemployment rate in the country.

Present at the summit were First Bank of Nigeria (FBN), Guarantee Trust Bank (GTB), Mansard Insurance, Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading (NBTC), Price Water Holding, Access Bank among others.