Technology has changed many things and that sounds great, but do you know that technological innovation can make the job that you do go on extinction? This is not limited to jobs, there are some professions that will become extinct by 2030.
With the advent of technology, change has become more tangible that you can literally see and feel change everywhere around you. With the rate of change that we are experiencing now, the future looks and feels good, but can it be good all the way? As things change and new things come alive, old things are more likely to be forgotten and even die.
The recent figures from the National Bureau of Statistics reveal that 11.55 million Nigerians that are willing and able to work are out of jobs. As new technologies take over the work space and as many jobs become extinct, the number of people that will be out of their jobs will be on a steady increase if they don’t keep up with the change.
We are not trying to scare you about the future, but we want to make you are aware of the changes that will likely happen in the future to come. In this article, we would take a look at 10 jobs that will likely go extinct in Nigeria in a few years to come.
Click here to read top 10 jobs of the future that will trend in 2025
1. Cashiers
As machines take over most aspects of the work environment cashiers (especially retail cashiers) may no longer be relevant in the workspace in years to come. With the steady rise in self-service and automated purchase process, the role of a cashier will likely fade out in a few years to come.
People are usually busy and will like to shop and make transactions as fast as possible. Customers also look forward to having less human interaction while shopping to make the process faster and even more effective. With recent technology and even the ones that would likely come in the future, customers will be able to make a purchase with little or no human interaction at all, which will put the job of cashiers at risk.
I know you may say that machines in supermarkets and stores will still need to be operated by human beings. Yes, that is true but in years to come zero humans will be needed in the purchasing process and machines will take over the whole process. This has already started happening, let us take Amazon as an example, Amazon developed Amazon Go stores that use motion-sensing technology and cameras that enable customers to take products off shelves and leave the stores without waiting in line.
2. Factory Workers
Looking at the future, say 10 or more years to come, the process manufacturing will become more automated. Factory workers may become less relevant in the production process as machines will take over almost all the process of production.
The use of more machines in manufacturing will make the process easier and even more effective because there will be more output and a reasonable cut down in the problem of dealing with human weaknesses like fatigue.
A recent article published by the New York Times revealed that Workers now are producing 47 percent more than 20 years ago. Through the development of automation, robotics, and advanced manufacturing, the sector has bounced back along with the overall economy.
The rise of technology is not limited to developed countries alone, but in few years to come manufacturing companies in Nigeria will need fewer humans and more machines in the manufacturing of products which will make the jobs of factory workers less needed and most likely go extinct as technology continues to advance. Rapid advances in robotics and artificial intelligence are enabling machines to match or outperform humans in a range of work activities.
3. Bank Tellers
With the invention of mobile Apps, people no longer visit the bank to make transactions. You can do almost all your bank transactions using your mobile phone. You can check your account balance, credit another person’s account and even open account without being physically present at the bank.
As technology continues to affect our banking space, bank tellers stand the risk of losing their jobs in years to come with the improvement of self-service banking.
4. Librarians
You can almost get any type of content on the internet, you only need a smartphone or any device that can connect you to the internet. With the daily rise of online resources, people don’t actually need to visit the library before they can access materials and resources.
Even when you need to visit the library to get targeted and scarce information, you can do that yourself without the help and assistance of the librarian. Most developed libraries are computerized, the computerized library allows you to search for materials and resources without manually looking through all the shelves or needing the help of a librarian. So with the computerization of the library, you can walk into a library, access materials and walk out without necessarily interacting with the librarian.
As the means of accessing resources gets easier by the day, and as the technology continues to improve, librarians are likely not going to be needed and will likely go on extinction in years to come.
5. Typists
As we continue to experience technological advancement in the 21st century, typists will have their foot out of the job market pretty faster than they expected.
Before word processor became an application, typists were very much needed for the documentation of information, but with the rise of technology, typists are on their way out of the job market. The world has become computerized and almost everyone can perform the basic task of typing using a computer and even other electronic devices. Also with the invention of social media, people can communicate without sending really formal messages, people can chat on different platforms to communicate with other people. Aside from the fact that almost everyone in the 21st century can perform the basic task of typing, typing is one duty that is part of everyone’s task and it is really not a distinct job role on its own again.
With voice detection/dictation, People can communicate and send messages without necessarily typing it. Typists are already not relevant as they used to be and will be well out of the door in years to come.
6. Computer Operator
As technology continues to evolve and as people get more technologically inclined, computer operators in Nigeria will soon have their legs way out of the door in a few years to come.
Let’s look back at some years ago when we used to have cyber café at almost every corner of the street where you would have a computer operator stand by that will help perform some functions on the computer, but what is the case now? These days you can hardly find one cyber café and because the cyber café has gone extinct to a large extent in Nigeria, it is also not very easy to find computer operator vacancies in Nigeria now.
The more technological inclined Nigerians become and with the advent of smart technological gadgets, you really don’t need someone to come operate your computer for you, because the computers that we have these days are smarter than what we used to have before. Now we move around with our laptops, and other technological gadgets to access the internet and even perform different task depending on the nature. So as people and computers keep getting smarter, computer operators will go extinct in years to come.
7. Post-master
With the advent of emails and quick delivery services that we see all around Nigeria, people hardly make use of the post office any longer maybe be for specific reasons alone. Instead of sending mails through the post office that may take a long time to reach the recipient, it is even faster and more effective to send emails that will be received in seconds. The rigorous process of sorting letters will no longer be needed with the advent of technology that allows you to send messages directly to anyone without the interference of a third party.
We may think that postal workers may not go extinct soon because of the delivery service, but that is not true because as technology continues to advance and as things get easier, postal workers will be way out of the door. If we are thinking it is not going to happen fast, then wait until you see Amazon’s prime air delivery service that will get your delivery to you as fast as you can imagine in any part of the world.
8. Telephone Booth Operators
When was the last time you went to a telephone booth to access a phone to make calls or send text messages? I am sure you would hardly find a telephone booth now in Nigeria again. Since the advent of mobile phones in Nigeria, making phone calls and sending text messages have become pretty easier than it used to be years ago.
According to statistics, in 2018 Nigeria mobile phone users hit 165, 000, 000 million so you can imagine the number of people that have access to phones and the reason why the telephone booth business has gone extinct faster than we imagined. Like you may have noticed that the tariff and charges for phone calls have reduced drastically compared to how they used to be before. So with lesser tariffs on calls and with airtime bonus from different network providers, there is really no need to for a phone booth in Nigeria anymore.
With the advent of digital media, people don’t need to buy a newspaper before they can get access to news or information, but with your smartphone and the internet, you can get news at your fingertips. Aside from newspapers, the world of printing has experienced a massive change over the years.
With these transformations that printing has experienced in Nigeria, we can then say that there will be no space for traditional printers in years to come.
Job roles often undergo changes in Nigeria due to one reason or the other. While some job roles have been renamed or changed, others have gone extinct due to the introduction of some new jobs. Years ago you see vacancies for receptionist all over the place, but that’s not the case now. Instead of seeing receptionist vacancies, you rather see vacancies for customer service representatives.
Most customer service representatives bear the responsibility of attending to visitors, greeting them and also addressing issues they may be faced with.
Receptionists are no longer as relevant as they used to be years ago. With security officers and customer service representatives, the role of a receptionist is no longer a core role in an organization which will make them go extinct faster than they imagined.
If your job role was mentioned above, and you think the future is not promising enough for you, then this is a clever call for you to look for job opportunities in other promising job fields.
Yes, it is true that we cannot see the future; however, with the ongoing innovation and constant change in job trend, we can sure tell what will likely happen to jobs in Nigeria in years to come.
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