The Nation Newspaper

Tag: entrepreneurs

  • Building young entrepreneurs

    Building young entrepreneurs

    Students from various higher institutions, last Thursday, stormed the corporate headquarters of The Nation, to participate in an entrepreneurship seminar organised by the African Liberty Organisation (ALO) in collaboration with the newspaper and the Network For Free Society.

    The event, which was held in the newsroom, also featured a book presentation and award of cash prizes to winners of The Nation/Africanliberty.org essay contest.

    Mentoring the participants included the president of Students For Liberty (SFL), Alexander McCobin, who came from the United States, The Nation’s Online Editor, Mr Lekan Otufodunrin and the Director of Outreach, African Liberty Organisation, Mr Adedayo Thomas.

    Dignitaries at the seminar included the Education Secretary of Oshodi-Isolo Local Government Area, Mr Adewale Alausa among others.

    Welcoming the students, Wale Ajetunmobi, CAMPUSLIFE Editor, explained the activities of the organisation, urging the participants to use the opportunity to network with their peers from across the world to promote freedom and entrepreneurship.

    Speaking on the core values of SFL and McCobin said groups are global network of youths promoting capacity free enterprise and economic liberty without border.

    “We have the responsibility to promote the virtues of liberty and free enterprise via global and regional partnerships with students for a common goal of promoting and sustaining liberty. The libertarian spirit has been recognised and felt across the world through the Students For Liberty activities in Venezuela and Turkey. Through the active involvement of the libertarians, the status quo is being changed in Egypt,” he said.

    Otufodunrin advised the students to make meaningful contribution to the society, advising that there was need for them to go a step further by harnessing the business part of using Facebook and Twitter for personal empowerment and development of the economy.

    Presenting the book titled: Politicians, dependence, and the bubble that broke the world economy, Alexander said the aim of the work was to support free enterprise in Nigeria and change the belief of people about capitalism.

    Edited by Tom Palmer, Vice President for International Programmes at the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, the 180 page book is divided into four sections, endnotes and featured essays by foremost political economists including David Betto, Piercamillo Falasca, David Green, Aristides Hatzis, Johan Norberg, Tom Palmer and Micheal Tanner.

    Palmer, in his introductory essay, pointed out that the book was intended for those who preferred to ask hard questions and to pursue them with open minds, stressing that history, economics, sociology, political science and mathematics should be tools to understand welfare states rather than emotional responses or conspiracy theories.

    The programme also featured one-on-one interaction, where Thomas said the platform was to share ideas, create policies on economic prosperity and engendering intellectual entrepreneurship among the youths and students.

    He stressed the need for graduates to be creative and cultivate the habit of saving in order not to be perfect designers of curriculum vitae.

    At the end of the seminar, cash prizes were presented to the winners of the essay competition. Yusuf Oguntoyinbo, a student of the Federal University of Technology, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), won $1,000 for coming first in the contest.

    Also, Joseph Timothy, from Ekiti State University (EKSU) and Denis Eze, University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), who were first and second runners up, were presented with $700 and $500 respectively.

    The winners were also given full scholarship and return tickets to the Students and Young Professional African Liberty Academy (SYPALA) conference holding in Kenya next week.

  • Expert seeks tax rebates for local entrepreneurs

    A TAX expert, Mr Kareem Tajudeen, has called on the Federal Government to improve on its tax exemption or rebate policy to assist indigenous entrepreneurs boost their income.

    Tajudeen, a partner in T.A & Co., a tax consultancy firm, in Lagos stressed the need for more tax holidays for indigenous businessmen.

    “The Federal Government should extend its tax exemption programmes to many other sectors besides agro-allied businesses and importation of mining equipment.

    “The government must aim to encourage more investments in other industries and by implication, boost our economy, he added.“

    Tajudeen said it was akin to boosting foreign direct investment in the country by extending tax rebates to foreign investors as incentive to diversify the economy.

    He said: “Tax exemptions are a good source of motivation: it has a way of accelerating national development.

    “Unfortunately, most businessmen do not make use of tax professionals to explore business avenues where such exemptions can be optimised to tripple their net earnings.

    “Only a foolish businessman will not see value in engaging the services of tax professionals to advise them.

    “It may add to overall running cost, but it is better than taking a decision that will be detrimental to the business profitability in the end.“

    Tajudeen advised indigenous entrepreneurs to get more education and awareness about tax laws being implemented in the country, saying that such education serves a utilitarian value to them.

  • NASSI tasks entrepreneurs on skills

    NASSI tasks entrepreneurs on skills

    Small scale entrepreneurs need more skills to become globally competitive, Chairman, Lagos Zone of Nigerian Association of Small Scale Industrialists (NASSI), Mr Segun Kuti-George, has said.

    He spoke at a workshop organised for members of the association on Writing a bankable business plan.

    He said healthy competition was important for businesses to grow as no small business intended to remain small forever.

    “Many other people are doing the same business with you; so, what one needs to have an edge over others is to cultivate some skills that will be peculiar to you and your business.

    “Excellent communication and customer service skills, self discipline, time and people management skills and skills in packaging of business plans are essential now for business growth.

    “While competition is one of the challenges that business owners complain about, whereas they don’t know that it is healthy for them,” Kuti-George said.

    He also advised small business owners to imbibe some of the business qualities of renowned businessmen and women.

    A speaker at the workshop, Dr Olatunji Dawodu, said it was not good to rush into a business without passion for the venture.

    He said making necessary findings about a business and understanding how established businessmen survived in such a business were necessary for survival of such ventures.

    “It is not everyone who cannot get a job that is capable of doing business. Without adequate preparation, businesses failed,” he said.

    He urged banks to produce templates of business plans to assist small business entrepreneurs to get loans from them.

    Dawodu lauded women for their efforts in harnessing their business potential to assist their husbands to sustain their homes.

    “I urge our government at all levels to invest more to support the Nigerian woman,“ he said.

     

  • VLBC empowers entrepreneurs with N2m

    VLBC empowers entrepreneurs with N2m

    No fewer than ten young entrepreneurs last week obtained non-interest loans courtesy of Victory Life Bible Church, Abeokuta Ogun State.
    The scheme under the Youth Empowerment Trust (YET) of the church is designed to promote economic self-reliance and greater productivity.
    YET’s co-ordinator, Dr Eniola Fabusoro, said the beneficiaries underwent one year free entrepreneurial training courtesy of the church to enhance their skills.
    He said entrepreneurship remains the surest path to lasting wealth and national development, pointing out that fewer companies are offering employment these days.
    Fabusoro said: “The jobs are getting tougher to come by and more people are leaving paid employment. This means only entrepreneurship can sustain people and that is why we are doing this”.
    The beneficiaries received loans ranging from N100, 000-N250, 000 to run their businesses.
    Fabusoro said they were carefully screened and given between 3-6 months to commence repayment.
    The repayment plan, he said, was conceived to ensure their businesses survive, which is why the beneficiaries have been given 18-24 months.
    One of the beneficiaries said she intends to run a hairdressing business in Ita-Eko area of Abeokuta.
    She expressed belief her business plan will succeed, stressing that repayment will never be an issue.
    According to her: “I have strong faith in God and the plan I have drawn up. This model will succeed and I should re-pay before the stipulated period”.