Federal government has stopped the issuance of visas to foreigners seeking to take up jobs in the country, according to President Muhammadu Buhari.
Buhari who stated this at the 27th Engineering Assembly of the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), in Abuja, explained that the visa restriction to foreign engineers, enforced by the Ministry of Interior, was in compliance with Executive Order 5 signed by him.
Represented by Suleiman Adamu, minister of Water Resources, Buhari, said the decision would free up more jobs for Nigerians and improve local content.
Besides, he said he had approved two key regulations for the engineering/construction sector. They include the Regulation on Licencing of Engineering Firms and Regulation on Construction Industry.
Buhari said: “I recently signed the Executive Order 5, which states that procuring authorities shall give preference to Nigerian companies and firms in the award of contracts, in line with the Public Procurement Act 2007.
“The implementation of this order has started and as expected some of its attendant benefits including the promotion of science, technology and innovation in several centres of the economy are beginning to manifest.
“Directly connected to these benefits is the fact that the Ministry of Interior has now restricted issuing visas to foreigners seeking to take up engineering roles in the country. Overall, the proclamation of Executive Order 5, meant to improve local content and free up more jobs to Nigerians and give them increased access to procurement opportunities, is achieving its intended purpose,” Buhari said.
However, the President stated that absence of up to date engineering curriculum in tertiary institutions in Nigeria to reflect the current global trend in engineering had drastically reduced the competitiveness of Nigerian engineers.
“There is a disturbing gap between engineers trained in Nigeria and those trained abroad. Hence the need for universities to churn out quality and well trained professionals,” he said.
