The Federal Government has deepened its education and skills development partnership with the United Kingdom (UK) as part of efforts to prepare Nigerian youths for global employment opportunities through technical training, digital skills and apprenticeship programmes.
The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this during a bilateral meeting with the UK Minister of State for Skills, Baroness Smith, on the sidelines of the 2026 Education World Forum in London.
According to a statement signed by the minister’s Special Adviser on Media and Communications, Ikharo Attah, the meeting focused on expanding cooperation in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), digital learning, workforce readiness and skills development.
Alausa said the President Bola Tinubu administration was repositioning TVET as a major driver of employment, industrial growth and national productivity under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
He noted that ongoing reforms by the Federal Ministry of Education were aimed at aligning education with labour market demands to equip young Nigerians with skills needed in emerging sectors of the economy.
According to him, priority areas include clean energy, healthcare, engineering, digital technology and artificial intelligence.
He said: “The Federal Ministry of Education is aligning education reforms directly with labour market needs to ensure young Nigerians are better prepared for emerging economic opportunities.”
Alausa explained that Nigeria was implementing a modern skills framework centred on quality assurance, stronger industry participation, globally recognised accreditation and structured apprenticeship pathways.
He added that the partnership between Nigeria and the UK would involve Federal Technical Colleges, the National Board for Technical Education, IQM and other relevant agencies to support curriculum development, staff exchange programmes and skills-matching initiatives.
The minister further revealed that both countries had agreed on plans for UK skills institutions to visit Nigeria to jointly develop programmes in clean energy, healthcare, engineering and digital and artificial intelligence-related fields.
He said discussions also covered apprenticeship models that would better align training with industry needs while ensuring quality standards and effective programme duration.
Alausa stressed the need to improve the perception and recognition of TVET by creating clearer career progression pathways for learners, drawing lessons from reforms under Skills England.
On global education financing, the minister, who serves on the board of the Global Partnership for Education, urged continued UK support for the GPE 2026–2030
Replenishment Campaign, which Nigeria would co-host with Italy on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly in New York in September 2026.
Responding, Baroness Smith commended Nigeria’s ongoing education reforms and pledged deeper bilateral cooperation in skills development.
She also promised to advocate sustained UK support for the Global Partnership for Education ahead of the replenishment campaign.
