The Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Idris Bugaje, has applauded the Katsina State Government for pioneering the translation of National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF) learning materials into the Hausa language, describing the initiative as a landmark achievement that will deepen access to technical and vocational education, particularly in grassroots communities.
Bugaje gave the commendation during a courtesy visit by officials of the Katsina Youth Craft Village to the NBTE headquarters in Kaduna, where the delegation presented newly developed Hausa-translated training manuals covering various trade areas offered at the centre.
He described the initiative as the first of its kind in Nigeria and praised Governor Dikko Radda’s administration for revitalising the Katsina Youth Craft Village through an investment of over ₦5 billion, saying the intervention had positioned the state among the country’s leading centres for skills development.
“Katsina Youth Craft Village is doing very well, and it is highly commendable, especially under the leadership of Dr. Dikko Umaru Radda. This administration injected substantial funding, renewed interest and strong support, making these remarkable achievements possible,” Bugaje said.
Leading the delegation, the State Coordinator of the Katsina Youth Craft Village, Kabir Kofar Soro, said Governor Radda’s administration had made skills acquisition a key pillar of its youth empowerment strategy.
He disclosed that the Craft Village currently offers training in 14 trade areas and has developed standardised learning materials translated into Hausa to make vocational education more accessible to people in rural communities.
“Our people, especially those in rural communities, are often left behind in skills education. Translating these materials into Hausa will make the knowledge easier to understand and apply,” Kabir said, noting that the initiative was inspired by countries such as China, where technological advancement has been driven through education in indigenous languages.
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He added that the translation project was undertaken by professors and language experts under the leadership of Shehu Abdulkadir to ensure accuracy and quality.
The coordinator also revealed that the Craft Village is preparing for its second graduation ceremony next month, during which 1,662 trainees will receive certification across various trades, nearly tripling the 600 graduates produced in the previous batch.
According to him, the centre’s graduate tracking system indicates that between 80 and 85 per cent of past trainees are now successfully engaged in businesses related to the skills they acquired.
He further disclosed that the institution now has three External Quality Assurance Managers (EQAMs); four to five Internal Quality Assurance Managers (IQAMs); more than 100 Quality Assurance Assessors spread across the state’s three senatorial zones; as well as about 250 instructors and facilitators supporting its training programmes.
Responding, Bugaje expressed confidence that the trainees would graduate with National Skills Qualification (NSQ) certificates under the National Skills Qualification Framework and pledged that the NBTE would participate in the forthcoming graduation ceremony.
He also commended the development of standardised learning materials for trades such as leatherwork and encouraged the Katsina State Government to seek national adoption of the manuals, citing a similar precedent in Kaduna State where locally developed instructional materials were later recognised as national reference documents.
“This is highly commendable. Translating these materials into Hausa makes technical training more relatable and easier to understand. In vocational education, instruction can be delivered in any local language, removing barriers between learning and practical application,” he said.
The NBTE Executive Secretary also recommended translating some of the learning materials into Ajami script to extend vocational education to Almajiri pupils across the state, arguing that equipping them with employable skills would help tackle the challenge of street begging.
He recalled that during the Sokoto Caliphate, Almajiri pupils combined Islamic education with vocational training and urged collaboration between the Katsina Youth Craft Village and the State Islamic School Board to revive that model.
Bugaje also encouraged the Craft Village to expand beyond its current trade offerings and begin preparing artisans for specialised roles needed in major national infrastructure projects, including the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gas pipeline, the proposed Nigeria-Morocco gas pipeline and the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project, all of which he said would require thousands of skilled workers.
He commended the Katsina State Government for consolidating various skills development programmes under the Katsina Youth Craft Village to improve coordination and expressed optimism that the institution would continue to grow as a national model for technical and vocational education.
The NBTE boss, an indigene of Katsina State, said he looked forward to attending the forthcoming graduation ceremony in celebration of the achievements of the trainees and the state’s sustained commitment to human capital development.
