By Kehinde Oluwatayo

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Technical education has been identified as a veritable tool in stimulating economic development in any society.
An educationist, Dr Toyin Olobayo who made the remarks during an interview with The Hope called on governments at all levels to revamp the sector.
Olobayo who stated that technical education is capable of providing job for the teeming youths in the country stressed that without it there is bound to be unemployment.
According to him, the neglect of the sector has made Nigeria to rely on other nations like China for simple things that should be manufactured in the country.
“Till now, things like spoons, stoves, even iron sheet that should be manufactured in our technical schools are still being imported to the country and this is seriously affecting our economy,” he said.
He stated further that countries like America, China and other developed nations place high value on handwork which are gotten mainly from technical schools.
He added that continuous practice of handwork will help people to have mastery of it adding that manufacturing these things by technical students will bring down the prices, prevent capital flight and increase the GDP from the people.
He called on other states in the country to emulate Lagos state that has started developing technical education. According to him, roadside mechanics in the state were incorporated into technical education.
” Do you know that the roadside mechanics were incorporated into technical schools? By the time they are taught in the four walls of the classroom and acquire basic skills, it will help them in their work and will also help the country to compete with the western world”, he stressed.
He advised government at all levels to pump enough fund in the sector to resuscitate it.
He also advised them to sensitise the youths in particular about the importance of technical education saying that they will embrace it if they know.