In a bid to tackle youth unemployment in Nigeria, Hero Lager, a product of International Breweries Plc, has made significant effort to elevate the apprenticeship system and change its perception from a system for the less privileged and illiterate people to that of a business incubator, one that can significantly tackle youth unemployment in Nigeria.
Working with a team of university professors, businessmen and apprentices, the apprenticeship system was understudied to distil the learnings and formation an apprentice acquires in the four to seven years of apprenticeship training.
These learnings were structured into an academic curriculum which birthed the Hero Apprenticeship System.
For the first time in history, this age-long cultural practice was formalised and introduced to universities.
In February 2024, Hero Apprenticeship System recorded its first set of university certificate recipients in Nigeria.
The 250 successful candidates who were hitherto trainees under the apprenticeship system were awarded certificates from five tertiary institutions across the Southeast and South-South regions.
The convocation ceremonies took place at the prestigious Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka; University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN); University of Port-Harcourt, Rivers State; Rhema University, Aba; Paul University, Awka; and Onitsha Business School, Onitsha, which saw the former apprentices become certified by the institutions.
The innovative programme is designed to elevate the apprenticeship system, providing apprentices with the theoretical principles underlying the practical knowledge they have acquired from the immersive and hands-on style of apprenticeship training. This will undoubtedly unlock the potential for innovation and scale inherent in apprentices.
It is also noteworthy that Hero Lager is providing the beneficiaries from the Hero Apprenticeship System with 100 million Naira funding to kick off their businesses.
Equipped with knowledge and funds, the apprentices will become a force to be reckoned with in Nigeria’s business space.
Welcoming guests at the certificate award ceremony at UNN, the Coordinator, Consultancies, Research, and Training, University of Nigeria Nsuka (UNN), Business School, Professor Chuka Uzoma Ifediora, eulogised the Hero Apprenticeship System for bridging the gap in knowledge acquisition.
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