Employers and organised labour have disagreed with recent remarks by the Chief Executive Officer of Moniepoint, Tosin Eniolorunda, who claimed that Nigeria lacks sufficient talent to meet industrial needs. While some employers have criticised the remarks, others agreed that Eniolorunda was significantly correct and not far from the truth. This is even as the organised labour argued that Moniepoint's terms and conditions of employment may not align with industry standards, making it difficult for the company to competitively attract and retain requisite skills.
Moniepoint CEO's Claims
Eniolorunda revealed that the fintech company, which chose to hire only Nigerians in 2024, has faced difficulties filling hundreds of positions. According to him, despite an estimated 500 vacancies, the company has been unable to find candidates who meet its required quality and quantity standards. "In 2024, we made a decision that we will no longer hire from any other place than Nigeria. And we chopped the cane in 2025," he said, adding that even the few candidates identified were "not up to global standards." The comments have sparked widespread debate, with many industry stakeholders questioning both the accuracy and the implications of the claims.
Support from NECA
Supporting his claim, the Director-General of the Nigeria Employers' Consultative Association (NECA), Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, said: "He is significantly correct. Have you seen any employer say he is wrong? While the MD of Moniepoint might not be totally correct, he is also not far from the truth." He criticised the unstable educational system that is fraught with academic strikes and curricula that are equally unsuitable and not fit for purpose. While he commended the current administration for its pragmatic efforts to resolve the many issues destroying the university system, the NECA boss said much more will have to be done to restore the dignity of Nigerian universities and graduates.
Opposing View from Data Analytics CEO
However, the chief Executive Officer of Data Analytics Privacy Technology Limited, Segun Olugbile, who disagreed with Eniolorunda over the causes of the country's serious talent shortage, said companies should train young people instead of blaming them. Stating that the problem is not that Nigerian youths are unqualified, he argued that the real issue is the lack of systems to turn young people's potential into newer skills. Olugbile said Eniolorunda was right to highlight the difficulty of filling over 500 roles in his organisation. However, he added that blaming youths alone gives a narrow view of a bigger problem. He pointed to Moniepoint's boss's own story as proof, stating that Eniolorunda trained as a Mechanical Engineer but grew into a fintech expert after Interswitch invested in his development. Olugbile affirmed that the company did not wait for ready-made talent; it created one. He also cited the data protection sector as another example, stating that after Nigeria introduced data protection laws in 2019, there were few trained professionals. Instead of complaining, local firms like DAPT recruited graduates and trained them through programmes and internships. Today, he said Nigeria has more skilled data privacy experts, asserting that young people respond to opportunities. "When good jobs are hard to get and require experience that fresh graduates do not have, some turn to other activities. The solution lies in the company creating structured training programmes, paid academies and apprenticeships," he said. He warned that depending too much on expatriate workers is risky, as it leads to money leaving the country in the form of remittances and slows the growth of local skills. While the data analytics boss did not ignore problems in Nigeria's education system, he said that universities needed to improve further. Olugbile stressed that in fast-changing fields such as technology, the private sector must also play a significant role in developing talent. He urged Nigerian companies to stop searching endlessly for fully ready talent and start investing in young Nigerians. According to him, those who do this early will solve their hiring problems and help shape the future of the nation's digital economy.
Labour's Perspective
Responding to the claim, Assistant General Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Chris Onyeka, noted that the tech sector, which is relatively emerging, could not be used to meet the expectations of all stakeholders at the same time. He said this speaks to the need for each stakeholder to patiently play their role to close all gaps in the sector. Noting that the skill gap might be the consequence of many factors, he said, however, that it was possible that Moniepoint's terms and conditions of employment do not align with industry standards, making it difficult for the company to competitively attract and retain the requisite skills. According to him, Moniepoint is not the only tech company in Nigeria, and others are not crying out. He also faulted meagre salaries paid by these firms, saying, "You do not expect to pay peanuts and attract premium workers. Another reason may be the high exodus of tech skills across our borders, where there is better pay and greater security of lives and property." However, as this is a new sector, he urged employers to invest patiently in talent development rather than wait for ready-made graduates. He noted that Nigeria has the highest rate of tech skills in Africa and Moniepoint should invest in training them to meet its needs. "The funny thing is that those who are talking about the skill gaps were trained here. Flutterwave and co, including the boys in Drone Tech in Abuja, were all trained here, so instead of lamenting the gaps, it would have been interesting to know the solution the company is prepared to offer. As we speak, one wonders where the vacancies were advertised because, if those with requisite skills are not adequately matched with employers who need their skills, that creates an artificial skill gap, thus does not represent the objective realities," he said. Onyeka said the challenge requires restructuring of the nation's educational system to align curriculum content with industry and the broader labour market.
