By Franklin Alli

26 Nigerian students will this month join their counterparts from all over the world for human capital development at the London School of Economics and Political Science(LSE).

The President of the School Alumni Association in Nigeria, Mr. Okadigbo Okonkwo, who disclosed this in Lagos, said the 26 Nigerians have been admitted by the LSE for various programme spanning 2011-2015.

At a send-forth ceremony for the new offers, he urged, the students to make the best out of their studies, stressing:”It’s a very huge investment. It is expensive but it is worth every Pound you are going to pay.”

According to him, the Alumni creates a unique worldwide network. The association works to provide events and online networking to engage members worldwide.

The Executive Director, Bank of Industry, Mr. Mohammed Alkali, who chaired the occasion, said knowledge and learning is critical to human development.

LSE is one of the international brands that is know for developing human capital. This is the reason why the bank is partnering with the LSE. As an Executive Director of BOI, I’ll give support to the Alumni Association of the LSE.

“The problem of human capital in the country is due to the fact that the country has not utilised and deployed its human capital resources in the way it ought to.”

He further noted that to develop human capital in the country, the nation needs to get its priority right by doing the right thing.

“It is a collective responsibility to address this challenge. Every body must get involved. It’s not a one man affair,”he said.

Chinwe Madbuike, who shared her memorable years at the school, said that LSE opens door to opportunities and dreams.

“LSE is a passport to getting a job,” testified Peter Ochaja.

Guest Speaker, Stanley Agwuh, CEO, Employee Energy Limited, a Human Capital Development and Business Consultancy Firm, said learning’s the only way individual and organisation can compete in today’s global economy.

He described knowledge economy as the latest stage of development in global economic restructuring.

“Thus far, the developed world has transitioned from an agricultural economy (per-Industrial Age, largely the agrarian sector to industrial economy (with the industrial age, largely the manufacturing sector to post -industrial production economy (mid-1900s, largely the service sector to knowledge economy (late 1900s – 2000s, largely the technology / human capital sector.”

Agwuh, who spoke on the theme:’Learning in a Knowledge based economy a panacea for individual and organisational competitiveness’, said Denmark, Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands and Norway including the United States and United Kingdom, have developed their economies through this model.

He said that the way forward for Nigeria, currently occupying 129 position on the knowledge economy index, is to adopt the knowledge economy model.

It is characterised by huge investment in education, ICT, inovative system and tariff incentive regime.