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Tag: entrepreneurs

  • Training vital for entrepreneurs

    Training vital for entrepreneurs

    Redeemed Christian Church of God, Promise Land Parish, Lagos Province 47, Ajah, Lagos State in collaboration with Excel Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society Limited, is training and empowering more youths to become entrepreneurs, reports DANIEL ESSIET.

    From hairdressing to farming, the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) is exploring new routes out of poverty by helping youths to set up businesses.

    With a little help, some of the members of the church have set up businesses, and this effort has started to bear fruits. This is being done in response to the plight of the unemployed that has dominated the news headlines. The responses to this need are empowerment initiatives undertaken bythe government and faith-based organisations.

    A partner organisation is Excel Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society Limited, set up by Redeemed Christian Church of God  Lagos Province 4 and Lagos Province 48. It has provided a series of entrepreneurship training.

    ItsPresident, Pastor  Kayode  Vincent,  noted that entrepreneurship is the key to long-term sustainable development. This is because small business enterprises are tackling challenges in a variety of innovative ways.

    He said not only does such entrepreneurial assistance help people carve out a better life but it also opens  the way to get out of unemployment and poverty.

    To this end, Vincent said the society organised the specialised agric training aimed at entrepreneurs, graduates, and those looking into   the agricultural sector.

    The programme, the cleric explained, offers them access to training on business skills and connects them to peers and mentors to buoy up the skills and confidence they need to build a successful agro business.

    It also allows agro entrepreneurs to address the most common barriers entrepreneurs face in the marketplace

    Sessions covered included:  poultry farming, quail farming, piggery farming, vegetable and crop farming ‘snail farming and grass cutter and agro processing and marketing.

    The Pastor in charge, Redeemed Christian Church of God Lagos Province 47, Apapa Family, Pastor Olufemi Obaweya said the church believes there was a need to address the considerable socioeconomic challenges that are holding back economic growth and development, such as crippling unemployment, inequality and extreme poverty.

    According to him, the church was ready to support the government inkeeping the economy on the path towards inclusive and sustainable growth.

    He said the church also supports jobs creation and economic opportunities that would lift Nigerians out of poverty.

    Obaweya said the church held an agricultural training seminar, to provide information on investment and the need for Nigerians to go back to agriculture.

    Under the project, he said the church intends to improve their productivity and jumpstart their entrepreneurial activities.

    He said participants were trained on agriculture entrepreneurship.

    He noted that the choice of agric as the main focus was borne out of the fact that the sector is so wide and can accommodate everybody, adding that it has been the mainstay of the country’s economy, before the advent of the oil boom era.

    According to him, the training was a huge opportunity for young people with an entrepreneurial spirit, particularly for those entrepreneurs who are not yet active in the field of agriculture.

  • Women: Abuja’s new entrepreneurs

    Women: Abuja’s new entrepreneurs

    The nation’s capital is making a transition from a civil service town to a city of entrepreneurs, thanks to women.  GRACE OBIKE reports

    Time was when all you saw in Abuja was people who worked from Monday to Friday and retired to their apartments at the weekend or travelled out of town. Not anymore. The nation’s capital is fasting shedding its civil service toga and evolving into a city of enterprise.

    But that is just one side of the story. Of greater interest is the fact that women are driving this change.

    The BBC recently reported that 40 per cent of Nigerian women are entrepreneurs, which they say is higher compared to that of the rest of world. In Abuja, women are beginning to change the norm from a city of civil servants and politicians into a city of entrepreneurs, with most of the shops owned by women. Those who cannot afford the exorbitant rates of shops, convert the boots of their cars into shops. What is important is that their business is up and running, and women are in the driving seat.

    It is the norm these days for even the tiniest offices in Abuja to have women visiting regularly to sell various items either on cash and carry basis or on credit.

    Recently, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Coordinator, African Women’s Entrepreneurship Programme (AWEP) Samira Jibir, revealed that FCT female entrepreneurs are increasingly becoming a force to reckon with. She said one of the women making waves in the FCT is a bee farmer whose business has grown to the extent of her exporting her products to the US, Europe and other places.

    Another hugely popular entrepreneur in the FCT is Orya Febronia, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ugee Bakery and Confectionaries, makers of the popular Oven Pride bread.

    The owner of the multi-million naira bakery located in Karu explained that being a success-driven female entrepreneur involves more than having sufficient money to start up a business. She said that in order to ensure success in her trade, she travelled abroad for three months to study bakery.

    “After graduation from the university, I wanted to work in in the bank; I got married very early but my husband challenged me to be independent.

    “I didn’t just want to open up a bakery and bake like everyone else, I researched, began sourcing for the machines and went abroad for a three-month course on everything about baking. I was given all the recipes to produce different products; with  that I fell in love with baking.

    “If I see bread, without tasting it, I can tell you what it is made up of. When I came back, it took me three years to put things in order, the starting period was so hectic, I was in the market in Lagos for five years and when my husband moved to Abuja, I moved as well. It was difficult settling for a location but i did not want the City Centre because it is already tight, I decided on a place that will make an impact and will be noticed and appreciated, so i came here, bought the land and constructed  my bakery.

    “ I decided on a different kind of product, we have a lot of health issues these days centered around our way of life, I studied health bread, for instance I decided to put beniseed in my jumbo bread which different from the ingredients found in other breads, because beniseed is very good, so the idea for me is to bake healthy products for my consumers.

    “Apart from the normal bread, I make products that will balance up our health as adults. I am particular about it in my products.

    “I am a believer in the woman’s ability to change her world, I do not see myself as a woman with the strength and passion that I have. I believe that women need to identify what they want and do it right, even if her dream is to be just a wife; women need to understand that men do not want to marry a woman without passion or dreams, what you have upstairs makes you more attractive and not just the beauty.

    “I always tell girls that if they are determined they can make it in whatever they choose to do, I tell them that it is not all about making hair, dressing up and shaking their body when they move, I tell them, people that will stop you on the road will sleep with  you and just walk away but when you start having something real and tangible, the ones that will come after you will not be those on the street.”

    Chief of Karu, Emmanuel Yekwi in whose domain the factory is located, said that it has actually provided a lot of job opportunities for youths in his community.

    He also said, “I like to see young people being innovative, they prove that they can create something for themselves without depending on the government. Young people should be the ones creating innovations in this country. Bakeries in the country have to start reducing the level of sugar in their products, it should be put into consideration to avoid an epidemic in the country.”

    In an interview with The Nation, Samira Jibril explained that entrepreneurs in the suburbs and area councils have better opportunities because it is easier for them to have the location and farms than those in the city.

  • Expert urges entrepreneurs to boost skills set

    There is need for old and aspiring entrepreneurs to boost their skills and capacity in key areas of business, in order to succeed.

    Giving this charge at the weekend was Obinna Nwatu, Head of Operation of Neco Electrical and Lightings Limited.

    Specifically, he impressed on the federal government and donor agencies to focus on training and mentorship for small and medium scale enterprises owners to grow sustainable businesses.

    Nwatu who spoke in an interview, noted that the opportunities for small businesses offered possibilities for growth but also requires immeasurable for such to be achieved.

    He noted that Nigerian youths are very intelligent and creative and do not need money to grow their businesses but training and mentorship that can accelerate growth in business.

    Mentoring entrepreneurs, he stressed, is the function of nurturing and supporting entrepreneurs by providing them with professional skills development and moral support in an attempt to positively impact on the business sustainability

    He stressed that entrepreneurship is one of the most important elements for a growing economy as they contribute meaningfully to the economy through management, innovation, creativity, research and creation of new trade.

  • Entrepreneurs to watch

    Entrepreneurs to watch

    To the government, entrepreneurship should drive transformation, economic development and business growth at a period like this. Here is the profile of entrepreneurs who are building businesses, brands and social enterprises to put the country on the global map, DANIEL ESSIET reports.

    A LOOK at some entrepreneurs shows those set for entrepreneurial stardom

    this year.Their stories attest to how they are contributing to transforming economy through their products and services. They are role models who can inspire others.

    According to startup advisor and investor Edward Esene, a lot is going to happen to support the growth of entrepreneurship nationwide. The emerging entrepreneurs include:

     

    Founder/CEO, WeCyclers

    Bilikiss Adebiyi is founder and CEO of WeCyclers. The Lagos-based company is focused on giving low-income communities in developing countries a chance to capture value from waste and clean up their neighborhoods through an incentive-based recycling programme.

    She holds an MBA from MIT and a Masters from Vanderbilt University. She is a 2013 Echoing Green Fellow and WeCyclers Sustainia100 Company Award winner in 2014. As a part of the process, residents are offered an incentive for collecting their household waste which is picked up for free by Wecyclers using specially adapted bicycles. To create incentives among low-income households to participate, rewards are given to them for every kilogramme recycled, via points sent by text message. These points are  redeemable against goods they value, such as cell phone minutes or basic food items. The rewards have been funded in partnership with big brands such as Coca Cola and GlaxoSmithKline.

     

    Founder  ORÍKÌ

    ORÍKÌ, founded by Joycee Awojoodu, is not only creating a range of products that truly celebrate Africa’s natural resources, but it also positively touches the lives of those who harvest those raw materials. ORÍKÌ is a leading luxury personal grooming brand that fuses natural ingredients and scientific research to create extra-ordinary personal care products. The brand creates effective and luxurious beauty and grooming products utilising raw materials and all natural resources discovered around the world. The range of 32 products is for the ORÍKÌ woman and man, and covers the full spectrum of serums, moisturisers, body wash, moisturisers, exfoliates, toners, treatments, masks and more. Botanically based, the brand uses potent plants, organic ingredients and 100 per cent natural essential oils.

    With a flagship store located in  Lagos and an e-commerce site built to serve the modern, smart, tech-savvy and health-conscious consumer, ORÍKÌ’s retail spaces are conceived to express a unique blend of vibrancy, style and education.

     

     Kereksuk Rice Farm

    A  former reporter, Rotimi Williams is an ambitious 35-year-old entrepreneur.

    He is the owner of Kereksuk Rice Farm, the second largest commercial rice farm in Nigeria by land size. His farm is situated in Nasarawa State. It sits on 45,000 hectares and employs more than 600 indigenes of Nasarawa State. His farm produces 8000 metric tons of rice every year. He produces quality paddy that is sold to major milling companies.  An MSc in Finance and Development Studies holder from School of Oriental and African Studies, London, he is optimistic that he will increase his land holding to 55,000 hectares.

     

    Founder of Simply Green

    Shola Ladoja is the founder of Simply Green Limited and Managing Director of Real Livestock Limited.

    Simply Green Juices is Nigeria’s first farm to bottle raw cold-pressed juice company with a high percentage of produce coming from its farms.

    With a focus to stop the importation of most vegetables and produce that can be easily grown by mixing organic and technically- advanced farming practices, the firm understands the importance of high quality and well-packaged produces especially vegetables and herbs.

    His passion for agriculture saw him depart from his profession as an engineer to follow his dreams as a farmer. He started the business with N250, 000 in  May 2014. Little by little, the business began to grow and turnover increased. The company is one of the fastest growing fruit juice companies in a competitive environment.

    Ladoja started the firm primarily because he wanted to drink juice not knowing it was going to be a successful business.

     

    Founder, Gamsole

    Abiola Olaniran is the founder and CEO of Gamsole, a Nigerian gaming company. He  founded the company in 2012, and it has venture backing from 88mph, a Kenyan seed fund and Microsoft. Gamsole has been developing  games solely for the Windows Phone store since April, 2013.

    The company’s games now have more than 9 million downloads both locally and internationally on the Windows Phone store.

     

     Co-founder  OmoAlata

    OmoAlata, a firm co-founded by Kasope Ladipo-Ajai,  produces Nigeria’s first National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) approved 100 per cent organic packaged blended peppermix.

    The food service brand, launched in 2012, is focused on the production and sale of hygienically processed and packaged local soup, spices and peppers. It aims to promote healthy eating and to make cooking easier for busy people.

    Kasope won first prize in She Leads Africa’s (SLA’s) 2015 Entrepreneur Showcase. She won $10,000, a mobile device from Etisalat, international media coverage and a host of other prizes.

  • Lagos Chamber trains 800 entrepreneurs in three years

    Lagos Chamber trains 800 entrepreneurs in three years

    The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI)  has trained no fewer than 800 entrepreneurs in the last three years, its Director, Research, Advocacy and Entrepreneurial Development, Dr. Vincent Nwani, has said.

    Speaking at the workshop on “Practical Writing Business Plan and Feasibility Study”, organised by the LCCI, in Lagos, Nwani said they were trained under its entrepreneurship development programme

    He noted that the focus of the workshop was to teach businessmen how to develop and write good business plans that would promote their successes.

    He added that it was a platform to give to the society and promote commerce and industry, while shrtening the skill gap in the industrial and corporate environments.

    His words: “It’s a programme where people who love skill come to acquire it by attending training programmes free. Within the last three years, the German Government has been funding this, and it’s going to terminate by the end of 2017, where LCCI should be able to take up from there. And in the last years, we have trained almost 800 entrepreneur graduates who are doing well in their various businesses.”

    Nwani explained that the motive was to address the lack of finance or capital. “The last aspect of the programme was monitoring business clinic. They are writing their ebusiness to us and we will follow them up and help them write their business plan – give them suggestion, data, and help them do market survey free, so that they can  put down this business plan, and also defend it,” he said.

    One of the trainers, Mrs. Fayo Williams, stressed that one of the challenges faced by young entrepreneurs was lack of proper documentation of data. She attributed this to some cultural practices.

    Williams noted that another challenge was lack of good packaging for their business plans to access funds from investors. She added that most entrepreneurs don’t understand how to craft their business plans in such a way that it will gain the interest of an investor.

    “We have a culture that tells you that everything is in the hands of God, which is true. But in the space of entrepreneurship, there is a procedure for finding out information, conducting market research, and then being able to make a good forecast,” he added.

  • Heritage Bank empowers entrepreneurs

    Heritage Bank empowers entrepreneurs

    In continuation of its commitment to creating jobs, wealth, as well as deepen financial inclusion, Heritage Bank Plc has empowered 100 aspiring young micro-entrepreneurs in Ajegunle, Lagos State with a grant of about N8.5million.
    This is being executed in partnership with the Center for Value Leadership (CVL), as part of the Heritage Bank’s various impact-driven programmes to empower the youths and women, particularly in the under-developed communities of Lagos State and one of these is the Young Entrepreneurship Business Training Programme (YEBTP).
    Specifically, the programme involves grooming, mentoring and financing up to 100 aspiring and start-up entrepreneurs in Ajegunle, Lagos State. The business lines of focus for the programme are majorly: hair dressing, footwear cobbling, tailoring, and catering services.
    A statement made available by the bank’s Group Head, Corporate Communications, Fela Ibidapo, disclosed that the funds would be used to purchase the equipment needed by the entrepreneurs to start their businesses.
    He explained that under the grooming aspect of the programme, the entrepreneurs went through a 3-month intensive capacity building programme in the areas of keeping accounting records, financial discipline, sales and marketing in order to equip them with the knowledge needed to succeed as entrepreneurs.
    To further drive financial inclusion, he hinted that the business mentors on the programme opted to be part of the Heritage Bank’s Agent Banking Network in order to extend banking services to the people of Ajegunle community, essentially make banking easily accessible for the people.
    According to him, the management of Heritage Bank believed that the essence of financial inclusion is not only about opening accounts for the unbanked and under-banked (low-income) people, but it is also significantly centred on financially and socially emancipating them for the common good of the community. This is the ultimate objective of the programme.
    Ibidapo further explained that the entrepreneurs underwent a month hands-on internship/mentoring experience with the business mentors to understand and be acquainted with the technical skills needed for each specific business lines, under existing and experienced business owners in Ajegunle.

    “Also the business mentors, will provide further support to the aspiring entrepreneurs when they start their business in the terms of gaining access to market.
    “In line with the strategic focus of the scheme to aid ease of finance, HBL is collaborating with CVL to set up a grant fund. This was in form of an equity finance to release to the entrepreneurs to fund the setting up of their business by purchasing start-up kits and work tools, as well as provision of working capital,” he explained.
    At a graduation ceremony in Ajegunle, one of the graduates of the scheme, Miss Chinyere Kwuneme, who was presented with a generator and hair dryer, expressed appreciation to Heritage Bank and CVL and said the gesture would relive her of further expenses in the future.
    Mrs. Chikereuba Nkechi, a graduate of Fashion Design, who was also a beneficiary, and presented with an ‘over locking machine and a mannequin’ said she was surprised when invited to come and collect the equipment. “I felt overwhelmed and surprised. I didn’t know they would go through with it, but I am indeed grateful to Heritage Bank and CVL for their support,” she said.
    Aminu Khadijat, another beneficiary of the programme, expressed her satisfaction and lauded Heritage Bank for supporting the initiative which she said would add value to her life.

  • Providing financial lifeline to entrepreneurs

    Providing financial lifeline to entrepreneurs

    Startups and entrepreneurs are starved of funding. Kinetic Consulting Founder Edward Esene is helping early stage companies to get backers and grants.

    Founder, Kinetic Consulting, Mr Edward Esene  trained and practised  geology. He   delved into management consulting  after some years in a leading venture capital firm in Lagos and School for Startups(S4S), the United Kingdom (UK). He observed a pattern among young entrepreneurs who were trying to launch a business and  discovered  that many  were struggling to raise funding to start. Even if they demonstrated strong business plans or great potential for growth, funding remained a major challenge. His goal  is to raise seed fund for  start-ups.

    A co-founder, www.Crowd fund Africa.com, said finding seed money to get ideas off the ground remained a sore spot for many entrepreneurs.

    He said any shortfall in early stage funding was worrisome because of the knock-on effects it will have for startups in years to come.

    Esene said he was determined to cultivate budding entrepreneurs, capable of generating income that could change the economic landscape.

    He is running an incubation centre to help entrepreneurs develop and commercialise their  business ideas.

    He offers an entrepreneur-in-residence programme and local office space, and provides early-stage investment to selected start-ups.

    Esene also provides a range of services including coaching on business management, introduction to new market opportunities, access to finance support, staff coaching among others.

    Following a process, he evaluates the viability and bankability of the business, provides tailored coaching to accelerate and scale up their businesses.

    Since its inception, his business has spawned numerous successful ventures, many  in Lagos.   He trained 1000 youths on different businesses.

    In the last five years, he has successfully raised over N2.1billion for business owners and startup entrepreneurs from institutional lenders and business angels.

    In addition to increased earning power, the youth have found fulfilment and renewed purpose.

    As a Zonal Coordinator in the Federal Government You Win Programme (2010-2014), he incubated and mentored 483 start-up businesses across the nation.

    Despite his success story, Esene started the business with N100, 000.

    Out of this, he  used N60, 000 to buy a laptop and other things.

    He believes it is part of his goal to help ignite the entrepreneurial ecosystem by providing an environment with the potential for starting and developing high-impact and high-growth ventures.

    After working with a venture capital firm and seeing startups fail with loans repayment, Esene said life is  easy if they got grants rather than loans.

    To address this, he started capacity building training to help entrepreneurs succeed in their application to receive grants.

    The programme provides funding information for SMEs and access management advice.

    The training, according to him, is aimed at driving local economic growth through support for entrepreneurs and small businesses.

    The workshop, expert mentoring and networking opportunities, he added, gives them the platform to really kick-start the growth of their business.

  • Ikpeazu to Corps members: learn from Aba entrepreneurs

    Ikpeazu to Corps members: learn from Aba entrepreneurs

    Over 2,200 members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) have been drafted to serve in Abia State but to the state governor Okezie Ikpeazu, it was an irresistible opportunity to market made in Aba products and their famous makers. He did not let the chance slip by; Governor Ikpeazu told the Corps members not just to patronise the local products but also learn some skills from the masters.

    At the Corps’ orientation camp in Bende Local Government Area of the state, Governor Ikpeazu revived his pet campaign, which earned him the title of “chief marketer of made-in-Aba goods”.

    At the Umuahia Township Stadium, on May 29, 2015, Okezie said his government would promote the Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) in the state, paying special attention to garment and shoe makers in Aba. He has also taken the campaign just about everywhere he has visited in the country. Ikpeazu has sold the Aba idea to the Senate President Bukola Saraki, ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo and many others, including the Army which, some months ago, ordered about 50,000 pairs of military boots from Aba shoemakers.

    With the Corps members, and fully kitted in NYSC gear made in you-know-where, Ikpeazu said he was going to take samples of the uniform to the Director General of the Corps, Brigadier General Sule Zakari Kazaure in a bid to persuade the agency to start making the uniforms in Aba.

    The state governor advised the corps members to think of how they were going to use the time of their service to learn and equip themselves with various skills that would enable them to be independent in the face of unemployment and now that the federal government is pushing for diversification of the economy from petroleum.

    The state coordinator of NYSC in the state, Mrs. Francisca Ifon explained that the scheme which was designed to expose the corps members to practical skill acquisitions, leadership, inculcating core values and promoting unity amongst Nigerian youths has gone a long way to affect the lives of the youths positively.

    Ifon equally used the opportunity to draw the attention of the state governor to the area of needs where they would need the assistance of the state government which includes building of more hostels for NYSC staff and corps members, refurbishing of hostels which are already in bad shape and the repair of their borehole which supplies water in the camp.

    The corps members promised to be of good conduct throughout their stay in the state, promising to use the opportunity of their service year to develop skills in other areas of life which they opined will serve as another means of generating income.

     

  • BoI disburses N5b to 242 entrepreneurs

    BoI disburses N5b to 242 entrepreneurs

    The Bank of Industry (BoI) said it has so far disbursed over N5billion to support 242 entrepreneurs in different sectors in the Northcentral region.

    Its Acting Managing  Director, Mr. Waheed Olagunju, who disclosed this during the BoI 2016 North Central Region Customer Forum in Abuja, with  Nigeria’s Industrialisation–Our Collective Responsibility as its theme, said the forum was organised to interface with customers in the region.

    Represented by the bank’s  Divisional Head, SMEs-North,  Mr. Omar Shekarau,  the acting MD said:  “The bank has so far disbursed N1.5billion to 62 agro processing Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the Northcentral, while the N5billion loan is supporting the SMEs from other sectors in the same region.

    “So far, BoI has disbursed over N5billion to our customers in the Northcentral region comprising FCT, Nassarawa, Kogi, Benue and Niger states. In the current year, we have funded small businesses in the region.”

    Olagunju commended customers in the region for their effective utilisation of the funds in their care.

    Also speaking at the forum, the representative of the Country Director, United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), Mr. Francis Ukoh, stressed the need to develop the capacity SMEs operators in the country.

  • WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS OFFER MENTORSHIP AT AFRIFF CONFERENCE

    WITH a commitment to showcasing African stories and cinematic achievement, organizers of the just concluded 6th edition of the Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) brought to bear, the need for the promotion of innovation, support and career development aid for the participants of this year’s edition of the festival.

    In doing so, they sought the assistance of leading women in the creative industry who are expected to pave the way for the next generation through mentorship and opportunity creation.

    The session was facilitated by four female panelists; Bolanle Austen-Peters founder of Terra Culture and Producer/Costume Designer for 93 Days, Nollywood Actress and AFRIFF Ambassador Rita Dominic, Biola Alabi of Biola Alabi Media and Nollywood  Actress Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde.

    Speaking about role models, Bolanle Austen-Peters said “I discovered myself through solitude. There should be a personal orientation about what places each person you choose or see as a role model should take you. You have to build a sustainable brand to achieve longevity because you can’t just wake up and run the show however you like. There is a process that takes experience, integrity and credibility in order to make you a name to reckon with and this in essence is what gives you the opportunity to go back to a financier bold enough to ask for something bigger to execute a bigger project.”

    Award-winning actress Omotola Jalade also speaking on the issue, acknowledged Nigerian filmmaker and producer Zeb Ejiro, who represented more of a father-figure to her than an actual role model because he directed her path, put her aright and also got rid of any negativity that could have surrounded her starting at such a young age. “Role models are for different reasons, at every stage in life you have to decide what part of your life you need a mentor and how the chosen individual helps that cause. Consistency and patience is also very important. Not everyone in the entertainment business has to be an actor/actress; there are various areas of the industry that need manpower and professionalism that nobody else seems to be taking advantage of.” She said.

    Giving her own quota on the discourse with additional advice to the participants, Nollywood actress, Rita Dominic said; “We didn’t have the type of opportunities that abound today when we first came in. I wouldn’t say I had a mentor but I had various people guiding me through every stage because as you go through life, you meet people who make certain impacts on your life. Your local content is alright and can still appeal to the international market; it all depends on your drive.”

    Biola Alabi, given advice from a managerial perspective; “Education or background won’t hold you back because connections are what matter, that is, how you relate to those around which goes a long way to determine how far you go. When the terrain is unknown it is better to have an experienced person in that field to guide you.”

    She also reiterated the importance of talent and hard work noting that some people still do not see the efforts people make to succeed but the mistakes; “Get out of your mind. You can’t undersell who you are just to fit in, gender doesn’t matter. Find the right network and then the biggest issue with shooting movies in Nigeria is trying to do more than you can afford. Know your budget and work with it.” She concluded.

    The session came to an end with mentorship forms being filled by participants who were to choose one mentor each out of the panelists, who suited their chosen career or life path and would suit the achievement of their set goals and objectives.