Jobberman and partners lead collaborative effort to boost youth and women's employment in Nigeria

Leaders and stakeholders from the private sector, government, civil society and development organisations gathered at the inaugural Partners’ Convening hosted by Jobberman Nigeria to assess progress, exchange insights and co‑create pathways that expand dignified, inclusive employment for young Nigerians and women.

The event, themed “From Impact to Action: Collectively Designing the Future of Youth Employment in Nigeria”, took place over the weekend at the Eko Hotels in Lagos. It was organised under the Young Africa Works strategy in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation.

Speaking at the convening, Hilda Kabushenga, Group Chief Executive Officer of The African Talent Company (TATC), Jobberman’s parent company, reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to building scalable opportunity systems for young people.

She said, “Nigeria’s young people hold immense potential, but potential alone does not guarantee prosperity. What we have built through partnership is not just a programme, it is an ecosystem that connects skills, employers, innovation, and inclusion. Today is a reminder that when we work together, millions can access the dignity of work, and entire communities can be transformed.”

Ahmed Alaga, Head of Programmes Impact and Partnerships at TATC, opened his remarks by stressing the need for collaboration.

He noted, “Our journey has taught us that no single institution can solve youth unemployment. It takes collective ownership – from training partners to employers, government ministries, and local community networks. The impact we celebrate today is a shared achievement, and the work ahead requires even stronger cooperation.”

When asked about the most significant shift in Jobberman and TATC’s approach to youth employment in Africa, Alaga responded, “I think the most significant shift is understanding the requirements that support transitions for young people, not just in Nigeria but across Africa. And then being able to provide interventions that are able to address them. There are two sides to a coin: the supply side and the demand side.

“The supply side basically focuses on the gaps that young people actually have and how we can fill those gaps. Because many times with employers, young people who come fresh out of the universities do not have exactly what it takes to hit the ground running. So, we want to close that gap.”

Alaga explained that many employers, while eager to hire young talent, initially perceive certain risks.

“They are prone to either make mistakes because they lack experience or, most especially, that for many of the young people they want to hire, technical skill is always critical, and a major miss is the soft skills required. Lastly, we need to understand what the ecosystem will support, especially the kinds of young people that we focus on, and particularly women, PWDs, and IDPs.

“We also need to have that conversation with employers to understand the need to hire young people and women. And we have numerous reasons why they should. We have research that supports that.

“For instance, from our research, our gender‑based survey shows that boards with more than 14 percent of women are most likely to be more profitable than boards that do not have women on them. So those instances get employers to begin to see the need to have more women on the board.

“Those are some of the things that we’ve seen, and we want to begin to amplify them so that we can have more young people transitioning to work,” he said.

Addressing journalists about achievements and challenges, Alaga said, “We’ve done so well for the past seven years. You know, they said the benefit of good work is more work. And we have taken on that challenge to spread our wings, to address all the unemployment challenges that, you know, marginalize young people and women across Africa.

“I think that since inception in Nigeria, we’ve trained roughly over three million people. And we’ve been able to place about 1.1 million young Nigerians, with an average of 69 percent being women. We also tend to keep a close tab on our participants from training to all the points where they get a job.”

Partners at the convening highlighted the value of a connected ecosystem approach. Dr. Oluwatobi Awaye, Managing Partner of DOIT Services Business and Consulting Limited, said, “Working with Jobberman has shown us what is possible when interventions go beyond skilling and prioritise real‑world outcomes.

“We have seen young people transition into roles, launch businesses, and build confidence. This convening reinforces that sustainable impact comes from partnerships that listen, adapt, and innovate together.”

The event’s highlight was the testimony of programme alumni whose lives and career paths have been transformed.

Iniobong Michael, HR manager at Bon Agro Chemicals in Kano, told THISDAY exclusively that training was previously only online, “but now they have both physical and online trainings. Today, I can say that Jobberman is very innovative, efficient, and impactful. After their training, you won’t leave the same way you came in. Also, it is important to know that this convening will give them more drive to continue the good works they are doing.

“Also, people should not just be trained, they should be exposed even if it’s for the internship’s sake, and this internship should be granted beyond the training to improve the quality and experience of the training.”

Hauwa Dahiru, another impact alum, shared, “As a young woman with disability in Kano, I struggled to find dignified work until I walked into a Jobberman Job Centre and finally felt seen. Through their CV support, interview coaching, and guided placement, I was able to secure a job close to where I live. They did not see my disability; they saw my potential.”

Over the past six years, the Young Africa Works partnership has supported more than 3.3 million young Nigerians with training and career‑development courses, and has placed over 1.1 million of them in dignified, fulfilling work, with a strong focus on women, persons with disabilities and displaced persons.

The convening concluded with a call for partners to deepen collaboration, strengthen inclusion and scale innovations that can accelerate employment outcomes for Nigeria’s growing youth population.