No fewer than 230 widows and orphans were empowered in five vocational skills by the Rose of Sharon Foundation in its second edition of youth empowerment programmes.
Held at the Multipurpose Hall, Yaba College Technology, Lagos, the training, which lasted about two hours, included wig making, fancy slippers making for both males and females, shea butter processing for export, perfume making and processed black soap making for skin improvement.
This was a follow up to the previous editions that focused on employability skills, basic components of Curriculum Vitae writing and how to chase job. This year’s edition was aimed at empowering the youth on vocational skills, which would serve as an alternative to white collar job.
The empowerment is one of the foundation’s efforts towards promoting the welfare of widows and orphans, especially to prepare the youth for entrepreneurship.
According to founder, Rose of Sharon Foundation and business tycoon, Mrs Folorunsho Alakija, entrepreneurship is good for the continent to enable it develop.
She noted that the rest of the world had been saturated with entrepreneurial skills because they have been able to provide what the people need to live while African countries have barely changed their challenges to opportunities due to the inability to face challenges. This, she said, is why most of African countries are still waiting for development.
Mrs Alakija added that Africa is blessed with resources, such as manpower, weather and the population, adding thatthese are good for industrial growth.
She stressed that Africans need to key into opportunities and turn them around to make big changes for individual development and give back to the society.
According to her, millions of graduates are not employed due to their failure to identify opportunities and that tapping into opportunities like the empowerment programme will go a long way in developing the country. “Everything needed for the production is available locally. It’s embellishment and packagingthat are the only things require for theirproduction,” she said.
Mrs Alakija, however, admonished the youth to imbibe the principles of determination, perseverance, being focused and have the ideology of being successful.
“You are advised to be on the look out and see what competition about what you are doing is available so that you will be able to see the area you need to improve and you can begin to take yourself through to the next level. I am not going to tell you that it is easy. By all means, nothing comes easy but don’t run away at the first bus stop of a challenge you come across; forge on and look at the light at the end of the tunnel because that is where you are going and don’t turn back until you get there.
“If you don’t want to remain where you are, you need to put all the ingredients you need in place to be able to get to that location so that you will be able to say at the end of it that I have succeeded and I will continue to take myself to as many levels I can.”
Mrs Alakija noted that the foundation will not stop at empowering the youth alone but will take it as a responsibility to organise a forum to enlighten the participants on how to manage the business and other things to accompany the skill acquisition.
All the products made during the programmes will be exhibited during the 10th anniversary of the foundation in June when more empowerment items will be given.
Speaking on Own your future, be your own boss: the alternative job founder Sheroes Global Mrs Yemi Adenuga charged the youth not to let their circumstances stop them from doing what they want to do.
According to her,Africa is one of the best places to be an entrepreneur and one of the best ways to do that is the desire to solve problems and not let money be the only drive, add-ing that the problem facing the country is the quest to make money without solving a problem.
She noted that as an entrepreneur, there must be a problem in the society, and that solving it would be the major drive to success. She advised against relying on one source of income.
“You should be proud of what you do,whatever you think as an idea you need to start now. Because as you are thinking about that idea, someone somewhere is also thinking about it.Use it to your betterment because if you decide today, no one will stop you. Ask questions around,use whatever you have positively. If it is an idea, throw it out and work towards it. Let people suggest different things to you and you pick best of it because the business you are going to do is for the people, therefore you should find out what people need,” she added.
Project Director National Youth Summit Nigeria Ambassador Utchay Odims, who spoke on youth entrepreneurship as solution to unemployment, stated that waiting for white collar jobs will impoverished the country while entrepreneurship is the best solution to its problem.
He, however, admonished the youth to follow their passion as the master of their life and make their life a valuable asset and not be discouraged achieving their purpose. He also added that self-determination is the key to attain success in life and avoid pride and greed to rule their life.
Dignitaries who attended the occasion included Flourished Africa founder, Mrs Kehide Okoroafor, Yomi Otunbela Foundation founder, Otunba Yemi Otunbela, Toyin Alausa Foundation founder, Mrs Oluwatoyin Alausa, and So Rich International Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mr Yemi Eniola.
