Need Oriented Curriculum in our education system: a Strategy for capacity building in Nigeria

The early economists, long in the past, saw land as the chief source of the wealth of a nation, but with time it was discovered that countries with rich gifts of nature like fertile land and abundant mineral deposits were not doing better in development. Emphasis then shifted to manpower development, level of technology and capacity utilization. Nigeria today, among other third world countries, is facing serious developmental problem of capacity underutilization as a result of serious unemployment, despite the fact that a reasonable proportion of the national income is spent to expand educational institutions in Nigeria – a striking economic paradox. This paper therefore examined the manpower need and capacity building in Nigeria, the role of education in manpower development, the curricular problem of the Nigerian education system and how to adjust the curriculum to boost capacity building in Nigeria. It however recommended the measures that can improve the situation in Nigeria.