The Director-General of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Dr. Afiz Ogun, has said that President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms are yielding positive results, assuring that Nigerians will be happier after his re-election in 2027.
Ogun stated this in Jos on the occasion of the 55th anniversary ceremony of the establishment of the ITF, which also coincides with his 3rd year as Director-General, noting that the pains of the current reforms will soon give way to prosperity.
Speaking before an audience of trainers, industry officials and government dignitaries at the Yakubu Gowon Auditorium, Ogun said he was moved to campaign for the president after reading the “body language” of participants who, he said, appeared skeptical about claims of progress in the oil and gas sector.
“I could almost hear people saying, ‘We cannot buy fuel now; it is expensive.
Things are hard,’” Ogun told the crowd. “So permit me to campaign a little before I read my speech.”
He singled out two policies that have drawn widespread public criticism, fuel-subsidy removal and exchange-rate unification, as essential, if painful, corrections.
“Before this government came in, the dollar was running like an airplane”, he said.
He said when the President came in, it continued running, almost up to ₦2,000.
Some ask why he did not stop it immediately, he added, while stating that the resulting stabilization is now attracting investment.
On subsidies, he said the old regime enriched a small cadre while ordinary Nigerians queued for adulterated fuel.
“Their wealth grows when poverty increases,” he said of those lobbying to reinstate subsidies.
Ogun, who left Nigeria in 2004 and returned only upon his 2023 appointment, described his selection as evidence of Tinubu’s search for “competent hands” beyond political patronage.
He pointed to Lagos State, where Tinubu served as governor, as a template for national renewal, arguing that the state’s rise from insecurity and economic stagnation to one of Africa’s wealthiest subnational economies resulted from policies initially derided by critics.
“People criticised him then, just as they do now,” Dr. Ogun said, citing the empowerment of informal transport workers (“Agberos”) as a move that ultimately reduced armed robbery.
“Sometimes when a good leader does something that looks strange, people condemn it without thinking deeply”, he argued.
Established on October 8, 1971, by the military government of Gen. Yakubu Gowon, ITF was created to address post-independence manpower shortages, he stated.
Marking the anniversary alongside his own three-year tenure, Dr. Ogun outlined a transformation agenda centered on digital reforms, international certifications and expanded vocational access.
Skills-Up Artisans (SUPA), a program to train, standardize and certify artisans, with hundreds of thousands trained across three phases and another 200,000 targeted for 2026; more than 7,000 have sat for international certification exams, he said.
He said the ITF is in collaboration with City & Guilds (U.K.), Japan’s METI and AOTS, Turkey’s Alberk QA Technic (for ISO 17024), the Dangote Group, Bank of Industry, NELFUND and NBTE.
On infrastructure expansion, he added that a new fuel station at headquarters (47,600-liter capacity), staff quarters in Port Harcourt, a Model Skills Training Centre in Enugu, renovations in Akure, Benin, Calabar, Apapa and Ilorin, and a Mechatronics and ICT Training Centre under construction in Ikare-Akoko.
He highlighted Nigeria’s admission as the 83rd member of WorldSkills International and the establishment of a WorldSkills Academy in Abuja.
Dr. Ogun said the fund had shifted from a “starter-pack” exit model to three sustainable pathways: Talent Export, Industry Placement and Business Incubation.
Tying internal reforms to national policy, Dr. Ogun credited presidential support for staff welfare with driving performance gains.
“When we ask for staff welfare, the President is always supportive,” he said, citing promotions, capacity-building, health insurance, pension programs and a staff fuel-card scheme.
He reported that ITF’s performance index had risen from 39 to 170 under his watch.
Ogun concluded his remarks by urging Nigerians to set aside ethnic and religious considerations in evaluating leadership.
“Let us remove ethnicity. Let us remove where he comes from, whether he has a Christian or Muslim wife. Let us take Nigeria as Nigeria,” he said.
The celebration featured cultural performances by ITF Model School students, interfaith prayers and a novelty football match between management and junior staff.
A second day of activities on Friday includes a training walk from headquarters to Miango Junction, visits to an orphanage and a correctional facility, and indoor board games.
Bamanga Jada, Managing Director of the Oil and Gas Free Zone Authority and a guest speaker, praised the fund’s trajectory.
“When I was taken to your Centre of Excellence, what I saw was amazing” adding that “It was of international standard”, he said.
Ogun ended his address with a vision for ITF’s global standing.
“I want to see an ITF known across borders as the leading, learning and development agency that Nigerians can depend on… and that competes favourably with other learning and development agencies worldwide”, the Director-General stated.
