Human capital refers to the knowledge, information, ideas, skills, and health of individuals. This is the “age of productivity of knowledge” in the sense that human capital is by far the most important form of capital in Wisdom economy or what some refer to as knowledge economy, and creativity economy. The economic success of young Nigerians, of whole economies, and Nigeria Vision 2020 depends on how effectively individuals, organizations and the PDP led government invest in the mind of young Nigerians. Studies suggest that capital invested in men and women constitute over 70 percent of the total capital in the United States. Also, studies show that in 1960 Eastern Asian nations such as Republic of Korea and Malaysia had population of 68% and 50% literacy. In the year 2000 the studies revealed that Republic of Korea literacy rate has moved up to 98% and Malaysia to 86%.
In United state the total invested in schooling, on-the-job training, health, information, and research and development is surely over 20 percent of gross domestic product. Human capital is certainly the fuel for the vehicle of a modern 21st century economy. While all forms of capital are important, including our oil and gas, machinery, factories, and financial capital, the productivity of young Nigerians is the most significant.
On the 19th of June 2008, I did honor a discussion interview from LTV where we had to talk about Niger delta youth and strategic solution to avert the restiveness. The co discussant from Warri made it known that, as some one birthed and brought up in the Niger delta, the young people seek relevance and fulfillment.
In the pew research on young people in America, the studies show that the two most important things a young American seeks is Fame and Fortune. Internet and audio visual media is facilitating exchange of social values more than ever and this makes me believe that an average young Nigerian would prefer fame and fortune.
I don think its wrong for any young person to want to be famous and control a financial fortune. Today, in Nigeria, a lot got the how to getting fame and fortune wrong. No thanks to those who honor corrupt leaders with chieftaincy titles and honorary degrees.
Our education institution has successfully produced functionally illiterate graduate. I mean certificated young people without ability to productivity of knowledge in organizational tax. The bond of our society is weaken because we have refused the young people who thought that their energy would be harness for purposeful development but got out to discover that organization is like vehicular movement at 100 km/hour and the university which trained them in Nigeria moves by 10 Km/hour. Illiterate of 21st century economy are so much because people don’t know how to learn, unlearn and relearn as economy churn and change. Every economy has basic tool and the present economy basic working tool is information technology and knowledge management.
I believe we can get out of this situation of mass unemployment, youth restiveness and endemic poverty. Since the federal government has not come out with a solution, individuals, corporate organization and religious institutions with capability have to come out to support the young Nigerian capacity building in Nigeria. We as links of organizations have started by initiating 21st century Relevance seminar for young people in Niger Delta and soon to other parts of Nigeria. The essence is to help individuals reach inward and come out with talent discovered, understand how to become skillful, learn how to trade it, and become a model with reputation capital.
Studies show that young people derive fulfillment from their passion and are more motivated when it brings fame and financial reward.
I think some of public leaders we have today may not be able to proffer a solution that can avert restiveness of young people in Niger delta because they seem to have been seriously affected by the fact that they were brought up during the colonial period and enhanced by military brutality culture. People brought up under condition of slavery may not have the capacity to respect human emotion, may see no reason why others should own basic needs of life until militancy threaten. Most people who don’t believe Niger delta should be developed are people who were given birth to when the colonial masters were still very much around in Nigeria.
We must put a discontinuity to the slavery ideology in the governance of Nigeria and value mental development of Nigerians. The Nigerian of the 21st century has to be “6e”personae; extra-functional literate, externally focus, elastic, emotionally intelligent, enterprise intelligent, and extraterrestrial connected. “It is people who write the software, provide the entertainment, interpret the data, create the new products, etc. Compared with workers in the industrial era, when many employees were little more than parts of a manufacturing machine, today’s employee represent the engines of the new economy”. – The future of work 2015 researched by Canadian management centre
