By Jimoh Ahmed,
Kayode Olabanji &
Kayode Afolabi
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The harsh economic situation in the country is fast bringing out some creativity among the youths in Ondo State.
Investigation conducted by The Hope revealed that the youths particularly secondary school students on holiday are now using their ingenuity to make ends meet.
Apart from changing their living pattern to being moderate, the trend has also affected how students and school children now spend their long vacations.
Findings by The Hope revealed that many school children are embracing and learning one trade or the other that will make them economically self-reliant in the nearest future as white collar jobs are now scarce to come by.
Our correspondent who went round some local government areas of the state discovered that trades like tailoring, barbing, hairdressing, phone repairing are mostly patronized by the youths with the support of their parents who stood as guarantors for them.
One of such apprentices, Joshua Agboola who is currently learning tailoring at Ikare Akoko said staying idle at home might expose him and others to crime and other societal evils.
Agboola advised her peers to take a cue by spending the long vacation to learn a skill that will be of immense benefit to them in the future as getting jobs after finishing school can be a pipe dream at the end.
A barber in Olokun, Agbaluku-Arigidi Akoko, Mr Dotun Pamilerin, who is having more than five of such holiday apprentices, described their initiatives as very innovative and promising.
A 20-year-old Nigerian in diaspora, Johnson Ojomo, in a telephone chat from the UK commended the new initiatives by young Nigerians like him and urged youths coming to UK or any other countries to ensure they have either professional qualifications or learn some skills as this will enable them to get more lucrative jobs or be to be self employed.
Report from Ondo South Senatorial District said students are using the long-term holiday to learn new ideas and vocations to avert the economic crisis in the land.
A secondary school student of Methodist Grammar School, Okitipupa, Bolawa Idowu confirmed that many of her mates have chosen one or two trades to learn during the holiday.
She said with the situation in town now, someone needs to enhance his vocation potential for future sake.
When asked if she was instructed by her parents to do so, Idowu who is a JSS 3 student learning tailoring at Balogun area, said she made the decision herself and was supported by the parents.
Another student, Ojibola Oyekanmi, who is also learning tailoring, said she chose to learn hand work in order to be an added advantage for her when she gains admission to a higher institution.
“With the way things are going, we cannot leave all responsibilities to our parents, there is need to support them and support ourselves as well,” she said.
Oyekanmi noted that, instead of staying at home or searching for a job after graduating from University, she could fall back on her handwork while searching for an office job, if any.
A student who learned tailoring in Ore, identified as Morekeji Osho said she has more to gain while learning her vacational trade of her choice due to the economic crisis.
Her words, “Ordinarily, I didn’t wish to learn a trade after we vacated from school but as the economic crisis persists in the country, I was forced to learn a trade, because time is coming when we will not be able to depend on our parents anymore.
“Our parents are trying to make ends meet, but we just need to have something to do to assist them financially, hence it is for our own good.
“So after I am through with my secondary school class, I can go back to the trade I learned and establish myself on it,” she added.
