The Nation Newspaper

Category: Small Business and Entreprenuership

  • Rise and rise of supermarkets

    Rise and rise of supermarkets

    Bukola Afolabi in this report writes on the boom in supermarkets and other related sales and marketing outlets across the major cities in the country

    IT is anybody’s guess how and what has led to the boom in supermarkets in recent times as virtually every alley and street you visit these days, you find shops and many retail outlets offering all kinds of items for sale.

    Currently, most people, especially the emerging middle-class in the country, patronise the modern grocery stores which were until recently considered to be exclusively for the elite. Though these international retail shops showed stiff preference to stocking of foreign foods some years ago, increased demand by Nigerians for locally-produced foods, particularly those with no equivalent imported ones, is changing the trend.

    Nigeria’s growing number of foreign and local megastores are taking more stock from local farmers and processors, departing from the former practice of stocking almost exclusively imported foods.

    Fast moving consumer goods companies are keen about the future of retail business in the country. Nigeria’s slowly but steadily growing retail sector is adapting to the demands of consumers. And the expanding presence of local and foreign malls across the country shows these consumers are not all in Lagos.

    Lagos, always opened to business, is the obvious first port of call for retail companies. The state wants to alleviate poverty and promote sustainable economic development by focusing on power generation, agro-allied businesses, intermodal transportation and housing. A cluster for small to medium scale enterprises and two allied parks are underway.

    For foreign malls, thinning margins in the developed economies coupled with slow economic growth has made the search for new markets imperative. Nigeria and Morocco, according to Accenture, have drawn the attention of retail giants like Walmart. Kenya, based on the Nielsen Emerging Markets Insight, has the highest penetration of modern retail channels Africa’s growth isn’t driven by oil and copper alone.

    Accenture estimates that by 2020 Nigeria’s expenditure on non-durable goods will be N13 trillion naira; the agriculture, financial and real estate sectors are expected to be beneficiaries as capital accumulates and the retail sector evolves. Inadequate logistic; limited access to credit, for micro businesses and the slow adoption of online payment may delay this evolution, but it won’t stall the emergence of multiples of local and foreign retail businesses.

    According to McKinsey, several trends are driving retail penetration on the continent. A young optimistic emerging middle class based in 50 urban areas across the continent are demanding well priced consumer products that are of good quality.

    Though television and word of mouth are the greatest influences, the media habits of African consumers are changing. They are accessing the internet via ubiquitous mobile phones. McKinsey warns that businesses looking to expand into Africa must mind the gap: Africans have distinct and regional differences.

    Accenture says these changing habits have led to three mega trends: the polarised, expectant, inter-connected consumer. As a result, retail businesses will have to learn to differentiate, explore reaching consumers via multi-channel advertisement and distribution outlets, and match consumer expectations.

    The Nation gathered that locally-grown and processed foods on the shelves of the megastores have increased by about 50 percent in the last two years. Industry watchers say this is due to increasing demand by Nigeria’s growing middle class who are motivated by aspirational shopping habits and health concerns.

    Edobong Akpabio, chief executive, Visionage Agrotech Farm, attributed this to the higher prices of locally-produced foods and the non-existence of foods such as locally-produced and packaged sweet corns and canned potato chips, as well as the high cost of infrastructure, especially power.

    Due to outcry by local producers, many leading retail shops in the country now also stock locally-produced foodstuffs such as tomatoes, onions, cucumber, cabbage and carrots which were still being imported into the country about two years ago.

    Ernest Onoja, manager, Favour Foods, said even though he had been involved in the processing and supply of local foodstuffs for several years, it was in the last two years that there was mass acceptance by retail shops in Nigeria. “That was after we improved on the packaging,” he said.

    Nnamdi Anakwe of Foramifera Market research also agreed that the marked improvement in packaging of traditional Nigerian foods has made them acceptable by both foreign and locally-owned retail shops.

     “It was difficult convincing retailers to have my product on their shelves, probably because the product is not popular. Dried mushrooms are rarely available in the market here. You commonly get the imported ones in cans. Some of the supermarkets are so sceptical that they demand assurance from regulatory bodies such as the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC),” said Chiamaka Uzendu, producer of dried mushrooms, who started her business about a year ago and has not been supplying to any supermarket until recently.

  • ‘Real estate investment remains a goldmine’

    ‘Real estate investment remains a goldmine’

    Nigerian born Max Nonso Menkiti, a graduate of economics, based in the United Kingdom, had the option of taking a promising banking job in England but chose to follow his dream and passion, which is setting up shop as a real estate consultant. As an individual with the tenacity and perseverance to succeed, Menkiti’s dream came true with the birth of the Millennium Apartments in faraway England. Expansion of his business empire saw him visiting Nigeria to commission the latest project in highbrow Lekki, Lagos, recently. Nneka Nwaneri met him. 

    The concept of Millennium Apartments began in England, when I found myself during my spare time not studying, spending time in clubs and such places. I later began having meetings architects at the age of 19.

    I was being fascinated by structures and how people congregate. I also loved music and used to collect records in those days. They are called LPs and CDs.

    When I found myself drawn to that industry and spent a lot of time going to bars where I got a few jobs managing such bars, where I was a DJ and began and began reorganising clubs for people and I followed my passion.

    Though, I studied Economics in England. At some point, I had to make a choice to either be a banker in England and do the nine to five jobs like my friends or follow my passion. I chose the latter and things built up and I owned my own bar and restaurant in England until I came back to Nigeria for a holiday.

    During the holiday in 1997, I saw a lot of Lebanese occupying the Island and owning restaurants and cafes. I knew it was not right so, I challenged that and thought to set something up that could compete with the foreigners and that was how we started.

    The beginning was very difficult. It wasn’t easy breaking through in Nigeria with electricity problems.

     It wasn’t easy but it’s been worthwhile leaving England and its nine to five jobs. Now, I will look at spaces and create. I look at our customers and imagine what they will like to feel. I take the perspective, creative and draw up the perfect product, which is very difficult to do England. That goes to show that Nigeria is working if you follow your dreams and don’t focus much on the negative aspects of the country.

    We run almost like normal hotels with a prestige studio apartment called self contains. The idea was gotten in England and their style of renting apartments. They are one-bed apartments and two-bed apartments, but the difference between us and a regular hotel is that we run serviced apartments. Here, you can do from light cooking to heavy cooking.

    Comfortably furnished with all the trappings of a regular house, which include couches, beds, cookers and you are set to go. Just come with your dress and start living; no use buying any equipment. Full DSTV Channels with 24 hours light and security.

    There is a guest lounge with Wi-Fi to service them while they wait. There is a pool and gym and is sure to be everything in one package.

    Passion

    Hospitality has been my passion and I have been in the business for more than twenty years. I have had and run successful clubs and restaurants in England.  From the age of 21, I got a passion to serve. I also have an artistic flare for decoration and I create unique buildings. I look and get different ways of getting people to relax. The only difference is that I have learnt to build a business around my passion. I have simply monetised mine.

    Watching people relax is my passion; so I design chairs and empty spaces. When business and passion come together, you are sure to have a successful enterprise.

    Management style

    The concept of Millennium Apartments is designed not to be staff intensive. We take the best staff, train them and retrain them. So, we are light on staff, heavy on quality with chambermaids.

    Compared to other hotels, we run at about forty percent of their staff strength which gives us a cost advantage over others.

    Compared to a regular hotel, we are more affordable because we bill according to short and long stay. The longer you stay, the lesser you pay. It thus, reduces the hassles of the strict rules of hotels. Here, you feel like you are in your house and still pay lesser than a normal hotel.

    Such apartments are set for the business minded people, those who don’t want to think of the hassles of running a domestic staff; those who want to hop and go and everything is still running and a clean environment.

    With my experience in hotel business for about fifteen years in Victoria Island, Lagos, this is our fifth property haven done properties for expatriates in V.I. In so doing, we noticed that there was this demand for people who stay longer than a week or two. They always asked for cooking facilities or more space that a standard hotel could not typically provide.

    Millennium was set up to solve that challenge and was designed to take the best from the classy hotels and the best from serviced apartments and fuse them together. It’s the real definition of home from home.

    All the apartments have home kitchenettes. Anyone staying in Lagos for a month can just stay in millennium with a separate living room, own decoder all encompassed.

    For those that do not want to cook, we outsource caterers. Millennium fills the gap for those who want more than a hotel experience. Just for an expatriate who instead of looking for a house, paying a yea’s rent, having to buy furniture, bother himself with the hassles of running generating sets; Millennium fills that gap completely. So, we are neither a hotel nor a serviced apartment, we cross between both.

    That we chose a location in Lekki that is serene and six minutes away from Victoria Island is not by accident but a perfect location just a little away from the business district of V I.

    For those foreign partners who want the best of things that work. With all facilities embodied in a top decor, it is all at their fingertips. Top finishings with power showers don’t come cheap. They are luxury. We don’t follow the trend in Nigeria where people cut to provide cheap things.

    Providing standard luxury in Nigeria is very expensive so the niche we occupy does not point us at the bottom of the market. We are made for the middle and top class and that is why our priced are categorised. For those who stay longer, they get more value but quite affordable than staying for thirty to sixty days in a hotel.

    Marketing edge

    With the level of security in the state, investors are coming in. Hotels should be of standard and be able to comfortable house foreigners.

    The need for Nigerian’s accommodation has increased. So, it is a national response for entrepreneurs to rush into the hospitality field, but we in Millennium have been our passion since 1997 and this is our fifth property. We have properties and products. Hotels will come and people will copy. But it is essential to know your game and know your niche.

    I’m making a bet that in the next four to five years, some hotels around won’t exist because it is not their passion and it is not their thing. They will only make short term cash, take the money and move on. Four to five years later, the properties will be dilapidated without good management and staff training.

    For Millennium Apartments, we are pioneers and we like to carve a niche in the business of luxury apartments where you can come in and stay day to night with everything provided for where you can choose your own bouquet of services. This is the first of many products to be rolled out under the Millennium Apartments platform and we hope to be in other parts of Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja and export brand to neighbouring countries of Ghana.

    Whatever is to be done in the hospitality business should be done properly. Everything is imported, even to the wallpapers, Italian tiles and glass fountains, invisible wiring and to run something of International standard, you have to get them abroad.

    It is expensive to get quality in Nigeria but that separates the real interested investors from the short term quacks. But that’s the price that you need to pay if you want to play the whole length of the game.

  • Reward for entrepreneurs

    Reward for entrepreneurs

    It was all joy and celebration at the recent monthly appraisal of Medpro Global Resources.

    Medpro is a network marketing firm that partners Golden Neo-Life Diamite (GNLD) in selling information about relevant food supplements that can help the human system fight anti-bodies.

    The event provided a platform for young CEOs to express their joy not for what they now earn but because they have grown enough to become employers of labour, thus helping to reduce the number of Nigeria’s teeming unemployed youths.

    Speaking at the monthly appraisal/award and end of the year party, Akeem Ojora, Chief Executive Office, Medpro Global Resources charged Nigerians to stir up the potentials that they carry stressing, “Everybody has qualification but one thing that is not the same to everybody is the potentials we carry.

    “I am not saying it is wrong to have that qualification, but it is wrong if you don’t have a personal business you do along with your paid job.”

    Ojora further express beliefs that to amalgamate education and entrepreneurship for the advancement of Nigeria, Nigerians must realise that education is good, “because if people do not go to school the knowledge would not be there and the potential may not be developed.

    “But the truth is, no matter how educated you are, entrepreneurship is number one. Personal development of what you have that other people do not have is what would keep you going. If you want to be a key player in life, you don’t depend on what everybody has in common. If you look the world economy today the downward slope is not affecting some people why.”

    According to him, the difference between July 2011 when he started network marketing and now is that he has great joy when he remembers the number of people he has been able to empower because he believes that success without a successor is failure.

    Ojora has built his business so much so that the staff strength has exceeded about a 100 individuals who are practically independent in their lines of business.

    “If there is an economic meltdown, it would affect the people who go to work to earn salaries because by the time the employer observes the heat is drawing near to him what he does is lay some staff off so the point remains that people who chose to be staff are the ones who would feel the heat and not the employer.

    “Education is light but that light is meant to show you how to use what is deposited inside you and not to remain a follower all of your life,” the international presidential team (IPT) members observed, adding that many do not want to face challenges or take any form of risk to become successful but maintained that ‘Life without challenges would be boring.’

    Sandra Azuka Ngozi, another network marketer through GNLD, has only spent one and a half year in the network marketing but her experience in this line of business gives her overwhelming joy.

    Ngozi had been a lecturer with different qualifications before she worked as a data base administrator yet life was not just fun. According to her, she now earns nothing less than $50, 000 per annum.

    The 3-ruby-director opined: “the era we are now is the 21st century, the era of information and entrepreneurship and one of the businesses you can do is network marketing where you put in a little effort and the rest would be covered by your members.

    “What most graduates are afraid of is to hawk. We don’t hawk, what we do is to market information and people pay for it because many of us do not know our health status.”

    Similarly, Mgbemena Evans tells of her fantastic one year experience in a line of business that has successfully transformed her life from ‘nobody to somebody.’

    Evans recounts that before now she was an employee earning salaries, which she could only describe as ‘never enough’.

    “Anyway, when I joined, I didn’t take it serious but when I went for one convention in January this year, I now decided that I should take it up full time and since then my life has changed in all ramifications.”

    Speaking with winner of the CEO’s Award of the year as best upcoming recruiter for 2014, Asabe Sankey, was formerly a call centre agent earning N50, 000, which she described as frustrating when compared to the nature of her job.

    According to her, the 9 years working experience is nothing compared to the less than a year experience in business networking. Her words: “When I got this opportunity, it was on a part time basis, so had it been that I keyed into this opportunity when I got then, I would have blown now.

    “The award I won today means I am supposed to be a CEO of a company because I always represent my boss in my team and I cannot talk and not get people key into it,” Sankey maintained.

    Ojora, who advised Nigerian youths to take responsibilities for their lives and not to depend on friends or family for assistance, said: “Your future is in your hand, don’t give it to anyone.”

     

  • Rising above life’s challenges

    Rising above life’s challenges

    Imagine a visually impaired man running a $700, 000 business! This is the story of Ayo Awe, who rose to become a successful entreprenuer. Awe’s success story, as captured by DANIEL ESSIET, serves as an inspiration to others that, there is ability in disability. 

    At a young age, Ayo Awe  was diagnosed of a visual condition capable of leading to the loss of his sight. Subsequently, he received several treatments to correct it; but it was to no avail as the condition of the eyes deteriorated faster than expected, and was finally certified to be permanently visually impaired.

    Downcast and distraught, Awe braced, determined not to surrender to this vissicitude of life. And as he battled to adjust to this life-changing experience with  faith  in God, he  made up his mind to get quality education. For him, this was the only way to liberate himself from poverty and become relevant in the world.

    After sailing through his primary and secondary  school  education  in Lagos in flying colours, fortune shone on him as he got a scholarship  to study  Economics at the University  of Texas, Houston,United States (US) in  2002.

    Moving  to  the  US  turned out to have other advantages as well.  The low-stress environment and the government’s support for the  visually  impaired  persons, enabled him to  cope  with  high-quality  education challenges  faced by freshers. He graduated in flying colours  and  enrolled  for a  Masters in Information Technology (IT) at the University of Texas, Dallas.

    Keeping an open mind, maintaining an upbeat attitude, Awe  saw himself through his   programme and became a certified IT professional with eight  international  certifications  in Enterprise Solutions and  other  areas.

    After a stinct with various organisations, which further sharpened his knowledge and gave a boost to his market  value, he  began  to dream of  starting  his own  business.  He started AlphaGRC consultancy- firm that provides   specialised IT services  in SAP security and  audit space with $5, 000.

    Even though physically challenged, as chief executive officer, Awe leads the group, its global vision and develops key strategies, policies and systems, while being a role model for the company’s culture. Today, the business is worth $700,000 with branches  in United Kingdom and  Nigeria. He has eight people in his employ.

    Awe’s success story is a testimony to his belief that “adversity cannot  stop anyone from   achieving his  goals.”

    Consequently,  he has also set up a Foundation- Timeless Vision Foundation (TVF), a  charity  organisation  that promotes awareness, provide hope and improve standards of living for  blind people struggling to survive in the society.  Through all of his projects, Awe continues to inspire hope, ignite hope, and make it happen for the visually impaired.

    “At TVF, our core belief is that blindness should never  be a stumbling block to any man’s dreams.  TVF’s  immediate, short-term focus is primarily directed at benefiting the visually impaired community in Nigeria. In the near future, TVF is committed to expanding the scope of service to other developing African nations,” he added.

    Awe is working to give people with visual disabilities access to business opportunities.

    Through the foundation,  he  helps the blind    access new technologies and expose physical  challenged Nigerians   to peers of different abilities, building respect for people with special needs and a more inclusive society.

    He has been an ambassador, educating the public about what it’s like to struggle with blindness, while delivering a message of hope for people living with visual impairment.  His ability to communicate his feelings and positive outlook on life has touched thousands of peoples’ lives.

    Awe is determined to lead by example, has very high personal standards for himself artistically, academically and socially, and is an exemplary role model for young people striving to overcome challenges in their lives.

    His words: “Our biggest problem is not that the world is full of disabled people but the fact that the world is overwhelmingly full of more abled people who choose to do nothing about it. Our vision is to see a Nigeria where blindness won’t be a stumbling block for any blind person to achieve his/her dream.’’

  • Making money from bee-keeping

    Making money from bee-keeping

    The increasing demand for natural honey and its by products has made bee keeping the new fad for young, aspiring entreprenuers, writes DANIEL ESSIET.

    Bee keeping  is a lucrative business. This is a result of   the demand for  pure honey, believed to be efficacious in curing ailments, such as cardiovascular diseases, heart problems, high blood pressure, and cancer.  As demand has increased, there are more opportunities for people to take advantage of it.

    At  the  head of the  campaign to  get  more  farmers to embrace bee keeping is Ayodele Salako, an Ibadan-based apiculturist/apitherapist.  He said he  had  been smiling to  the bank  since  he  discovered  there  was  more  money  in keeping bees  that  repairing air conditioners- his profession by training.

    Initially, he started the  business from  Lagos. He  later  moved  to  Ibadan to acquire  more lands.

    Today, bee keeping has made him a   celebrity and boosted his income through the treatment of ailments using honey. He  started  with  two hives. At the moment, he has over 30 hives and this  monthly  revenue  is on the rescue. He is  so enthused  with  the  business because he sees more profit coming as he acquire more hives. A lot  of people  he  has trained has  gone  to set up  large  number  of hives. The  result  is bountiful harvests  that  have contributed significantly to improve livelihoods of most rural communities  around  Lagos  and  the  South-west.

    But  it is simple to start.  With N10, 000, one  can  acquire one hive and  make  up to  N40,000 after the harvest of  honey. Those able to  start with N100, 000 can go into the  production of, beeswax, pollen, propolis, bee venom, royal jelly, bee colonies, bee brood, queen bees, and package bees among  others.

    That  Salako  is one of the most successful beekeepers in Oyo State is partly due to the  fact that he  uses honey  to treat  ailments .The competitive edge that provides Salako  with is so great that even  honey producers got in touch with him to  offer  medical  help.

    This  enables  him to make  money  from  treatments  and this  has  catapulted him from the position of a low-paid, run-of-the-mill beekeeper to one of the most successful beekeepers with people interest in his techniques.

    Very few are aware that bee farming could be integrated into crop farming to increase crop yields. For this reason, he is mounting  a  campaign  to  get more Nigerians  to take to bee farming.

    He is determined to draw farmers to the neglected bee farming as results will support the adoption of beekeeping along the crop production system.

    With increasing honey laundry, his  strategy is the production  of   quality honey and other value added beehive products.

    Right now, he is facing some challenges  which include bushfires/wildfires running through beefarms

    On  the  average,  a farmer  can  position an  hive  at an appropriate point and  harvest the honey after four months.  For a farmer to  practise a commercially viable apiculture, the  advice is that  one   starts  with  a least  10 hives. A standard  hive has   two compartments with lower part meant for the queen bee and the upper one housing the worker bees. If well catered for the hives can last for many years.

    Most of the farmers keep bees for their by products such, as honey or wax, but Salako  has found fortunes in extracting bee venom  to  treat  certain aliments.   According to him,  the venom has numerous medicinal values and can be answer to many of the current paradox ailments that seem to be having no immediate answer .

    Salako listed some of the ailments that could be combated with bee venom to include headache, insomnia, osteoarthritis, fractures, inflammation, high blood pressure, skin problems, back pain, infertility in women, eye problems, wounds that have refused to go for about three years.

    To  enable him  administer  treatments,  he   attended  a training  in apitherapy   which  takes  up to three years.

  • Firm trains 100 SURE-P interns on entrepreneurship

    s part of efforts to enhance the employability of at least 50,000 unemployed graduates in the 36 states of the federation and the FCT, the Federal Ministry of Finance in collaboration with SURE-P has sponsored a three-day capacity building training for graduate interns facilitated by Sinbol Consult Limited.

    Speaking at the commencement of the training, the Project Director, Mr. Peter Papka, represented by Mr. Kenayo Elikwu, said the aim is to address the problem of unemployment in Nigeria, adding that “the graduate internship opportunities is the first to hold in Nigeria and provides a platform for the reduction of vulnerability among unemployed Nigerian graduates.”

    According to him, the training was also expected to improve skills through work placement, prepare the interns for mobile money agents and ultimately equip them for self-employment opportunities in the cashless economy.

    Speaking further, he noted that the graduate internship scheme (GIS) is one of the interventions of SURE-P and it is a platform that provides young graduates with one-year temporary work experience to make them stronger candidates for job openings in the labour market as well as boost their chances of being self-employed.

    In his remarks at the training programme, Mr. Kemi Ajisebutu of Sinbol Consult Limited stated that other efforts that the GIS is using to drastically reduce unemployment include strategic partnerships in the area of export training, creative industries, environment, financial inclusion, agriculture, education and ICT.

  • Bakers delight in new margarine

    HANNO FOODS, a subsidiary of Deekay Group of Companies, has launched a new brand of margarine, Haano 15kg.

    Justifying the need for the new product, Heads, Brands and Corporate Communication of Deekay Group, Damilola Owolabi said before now, it had only one stock unit of margarine which is the small 250 gram unit for household use, but the major users of the margarine who are the bakers and the few of those who use it to cook demanded for more.

    “Bakers are the major consumers of the margarine and they complain that they always end up using a lot of the 250 gram for their baking and that was what informed the introduction of the 15kg to cater for their heavy use.

    “It is a two -ear company and we are still in the process of evolving. Next year, our products will be relaunched into the market. We partner with the bakers association because bread is a major food in Nigerian market. From their own testimony, we will have an extension of word of mouth on the product. Bakers are the major target for this brand.”

    The event which attracted over 40 bakers from 20 local government areas in attendance, including the chairman, Association of Master Bakers and Caters of Nigeria, Prince Jacob Anjorin, who attested to the high quality of the product.

  • ‘How studying agriculture inspired my startup’

    ‘How studying agriculture inspired my startup’

    Utibe Akpabio Edobong, a graduate of Agriculture Economics from Babcock University, is the Executive Director of Green Animalia, an agric-based startup. In this interview with Yetunde Oladeinde, he talks about the initial challenges of establishing a startup, opportunities and potential. Excerpts: 

    How did you conceive the idea of the integrated agriculture project which you named Green Animalia?

    I just wanted to be scientific about it and my mum was wondering how I was going to do it. So, why don’t you change the plant to green? and that was how the name stuck.

    Why did you decide to go into agriculture?

    Initially, it wasn’t just a plan to study agriculture, but at that point I just wanted to do something that would make me independent. I thought to myself that I wanted to be on my own and not be under any body. I looked at all the courses that I was good at in secondary school and I realised that I was good in agriculture. That was how it started.

    When you started, what were some of the challenges that you encountered as a young person?

    Well, I would say that the challenges started right from secondary school because people weren’t as keen about agriculture as a course. When you tell anyone that you want to be a farmer, what comes to mind is planting cassava on two hectares of land and nothing more. So, I started thinking of ways to make agriculture more attractive. If you go to schools, you would find that the percentage of those going to agriculture was very marginal. In my school in a set of about 200 students, you had only 11 studying agriculture in my class and it was really bad. So I began to look at things that I could do and be different and not just be like any other person.

    You went to Babcock University. What was the training like?

    The school also was a challenge and had its problems and I would say that they didn’t really support agriculture like a course like law or a course like medicine. You found out that we were restricted to the classroom. It was only during the industrial training that gave one the opportunity to see things in a practical way.

    So, at what point did you get a real practical experience apart from your internship?

    I wanted to come up with a concept on the integrated aspect of farming, a system that would stand the test of time. I started asking myself certain questions like why can’t we recycle our agriculture waste and all that. I read a lot about integrated farming and also read a lot about waste recycling. In the process of reading, the first interesting thing that I came up with was biogas. It was interesting and I am still working on how to explore this area.

    I didn’t go outside Lagos until recently when I went to Songhai. This was the first time that I saw this being practiced and it opened my eyes once more to the opportunities available. In farming, especially fish farming, there are a number of waste generated and I thought that instead of throwing it out and using it to disturb the neighbourhood, why don’t you make use of it elsewhere? First, I thought of how to sell it to others and package it nicely with a solution that won’t make it smell. Even if you use it in your house, it won’t smell. So when people eventually buy it, because it doesn’t smell, you have added value to it and it would sell at a higher price.

    This was one of the things that I was working on before I stumbled on biogas. Here, you have several tanks and a whole lot of underground piping and you need to have your own land and other things for this.

    How did you come about the new concept that you have here?

    Well, first I started with the fish and catfish was the idea from the start. I did it for about two years and I must say that at the beginning I did not know what I was getting myself into. I had only done poultry before this time, in school. I could not do fish because my school was the Adventist School and we were restricted on what we could do.

    So, I picked catfish from what I had read about the fact that it was easier to manage unlike tilapia. Next, I began to think of how to manage the waste and that was how we started planting tomatoes and discharged the waste from the catfish to the tomatoes. There were times when we had lots of the waste and had to discharge it. We then built some blocks on top of the ponds and we put some sand and planted.

    At that point, I used to carry the water up but it was stressful. We then connected a pipe from outside and used the pumping machine to tap and it watered the plants and made the process easier. It was quite exciting and the ideas started coming and we kept evolving. At a point, we had leakages which posed a problem but again we found ways to block the holes. The good part of it all is that if I had to redesign it for another person, it would be quite different from what we have now. So far, so good.

    How did the opportunity to go to Songhai come?

    My mother’s friend is into travels and tours. She takes people to places like Jerusalem for tours. So she organised a trip to Songhai and Songhai has one of the biggest farms in Africa. And what they practiced there is strictly integrated farming and so I got interested and applied to go. The four-day trip was a study tour and it was amazing. Even if you are not interested in agriculture and you go there you would be inspired.

  • Youths receive free vocation training

    An an effort to keep youths out of trouble and empower them, the Rotary Club Metropolitan, division 9119, Ikoyi, Lagos, organised a one-day free vocational training recently for youths in their catchment area in Lagos.

    The annual training according to them is to empower youths become entrepreneurs as the number of youths who are seeking admission into the university is on the increase, while many unemployed graduates are languishing.

    Thus, the training is to “empower these youths to become entrepreneurs and create means of livelihood for them,” said the division president, Rotarian Omo Egoegonwa, who partook in the training.

    How to produce antiseptic, liquid soup and finger food, were what the participants were thought this year.

    Free materials were lso provided for them which they will use to start their own business and certificates of participation will also be awarded to them after two weeks of the training, stated Egoegonwa.

    The few who learnt the vocation were picked in Ikoyi and Obalende area in Lagos State because “we have what we call Community Call. Our catchment area is Ikoyi metropolitan and we are trying to assist our immediate community, which is basically why we chose people from here. We have to tract youths that are unemployed who are interested and they don’t have means of training and we are just going to help, and give that extra hand.

    “The vocational training is an annual Rotary project and is an International Non-Governmental Organisation. The club has five needs and this training is one of the needs,” she said.

    However, the training was not well attended as only 10 out of the 21 qualified youths were present to partake in the training. “Some people say anything that is free is not appreciated but if you have to pay for it you will probably be more committed. If we have known that the attendant would be this low, we would have thrown it open for anybody to attend,” she said.

  • Group holds exhibition

    THE Youth Enterprise Exhibition (YEEx) is organising an event on Saturday, December 20 at the Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Conference and Exhibition Centre, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.

    According to its founder, Mr. Tayo Adedugbe, the exhibition  will  be  held  in collaboration  with YouWin Programme, Enterprise Development Centre of the Pan Atlantic University, and Federal Institute of Industrial Research, (FIIRO), Oshodi.

    This year’s edition, tagged ‘YEEx For Women, he said, “is for female entrepreneurs who are either just starting out or have been running their businesses for a while. He said women were free to attend the event.

    The First Lady of Lagos State, Dame Abimbola Fashola, will be the Special Guest of Honour, while Director General, FIIRO, Dr. Mrs. Gloria Elemo, and Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Mrs. Olushola Oworu,are expected to grace the event.

    The statement said exhibitors also have the opportunity to launch new products and services, meet with financial institutions, investors and venture capitalists for possible equity investment.