European Business Chamber Nigeria, EuroCham, has urged the Federal Government to partner with international industry players to address Nigeria’s technical workforce deficit, saying the country’s estimated $14 billion annual skills gap could undermine investment and economic growth.
EuroCham said findings from a recent study showed that the skills shortage costs the Nigerian economy about $14 billion every year, with deficits reaching 68 per cent in ICT competencies and 63 per cent in agricultural expertise.
It added that the power sector is currently operating with only about half of the skilled workforce it requires.
The recommendations were contained in an advocacy paper titled: ‘Bridging Nigeria’s Technical Workforce Gap: A Public-Private Roadmap for Harmonizing Industrial Skills and Accelerating European Investment Impact’.
According to the chamber, the shortage of certified, industry-ready professionals threatens to slow the inflow of foreign direct investment into Nigeria, particularly as economic ties between Nigeria and the European Union continue to deepen.
It noted that since both parties elevated their relationship to a strengthened Strategic Partnership in March 2026, the European Union has maintained more than €35 billion in annual trade with Nigeria and about €26 billion in foreign direct investment, supporting over 130,000 direct jobs and accounting for 31 per cent of Nigeria’s total foreign trade.
EuroCham said the EU remains Nigeria’s largest trading partner and single largest source of foreign direct investment.
The chamber argued that while investment commitments continue to rise, Nigeria’s supply of certified technical professionals has not kept pace with industry demand.
To address the challenge, it proposed five key interventions: aligning national technical certification with international industrial standards; introducing tax incentives and duty waivers for companies investing in training infrastructure; digitizing and fast-tracking expatriate quota processing to facilitate technology transfer; establishing industry-led dual-education apprenticeship programmes with polytechnics; and creating a unified national registry to monitor technical skills development and local content compliance.
Speaking on the recommendations, General Manager of EuroCham Nigeria, Mr Chigozie Okwara, said stronger collaboration between government and the private sector was essential to ensure the country develops the workforce needed to sustain growing investment.
He said: “Nigeria’s partnership with European investors has never been stronger, and this paper reflects our commitment to matching that momentum with a workforce that can deliver on it.
“Government has already taken real steps by expanding technical education and modernizing polytechnics, and we see this framework as a way to accelerate that work, not compete with it. EuroCham is ready to invest alongside government to make sure Nigeria’s technical talent grows as fast as the capital coming into the country.”