The Nation Newspaper

Tag: OUR

  • Our paper mills

    It’s in the country’s interest to revive them

    One sector that best illustrates the wide hiatus between visionary plans and their actualisation in post-colonial Nigeria is the pulp and paper industry. Obviously in realisation of the critical role that the printing industry plays in economic development, the Nigeria Paper Mill, Jebba, was established in the 1960s and in the following decade, the Nigerian Newsprint Manufacturing Company (NNMC), Oku Iboku, and the Nigerian National Paper Manufacturing Company (NNPMC), Iwopin, were set up.

    While the Jebba paper mill was to produce corrugated cartons, sack craft, kraft paper, linear and chip board as well as fluting media, the NNMC was conceived to produce 100,000 tonnes of newsprint per annum. On its part, the NNPMC with a combined annual production capacity of 170,000 tonnes was designed to meet the country’s needs in writing and printing paper.

    Unfortunately, these lofty objectives remain unrealised over four decades after the establishment of these industries. Although the Jebba paper mill took off on a bright and hopeful note, providing jobs, directly and indirectly, for hundreds of Nigerians, it soon closed down due to lack of investment and chronic mismanagement. Ever since its privatisation in the late 1980s, the mill has operated in fits and starts but never regained its initial vigour.

    Perennially unable to source sufficient foreign exchange to import a crucial input, long fibre, and with domestic substitutes for the product like Kenaf left dormant and untapped, the NNMC was never able to operate at full capacity. The company’s challenges were compounded by the resistance of the printing industry to its products, which were considered inferior to foreign ones, thus forcing it to stop operations in 1993 until it was subsequently sold.

    In its case, the Iwopin Paper Mill has remained largely stalled despite several efforts to privatise and make it functional. The company has been plagued with diverse challenges, including raw materials availability, poor electricity supply and obsolete machinery, making it unviable for investors.

    Against this background, the call on the Federal Government by a group of critical stakeholders in the country’s printing industry (representing private and public sector professional printers as well as academics), to convene a summit of professional printers to chart a path towards revamping the moribund paper mills could not have been more timely. It is certainly inexcusable as the group lamented that the country is currently losing about $1 trillion annually through the importation of over one million metric tonnes of paper at a cost of $1,000 per tonne.

    The professional printers’ spokesman, Mr. Olugbemi Malomo, gave an insight into the severe damage suffered by the economy as a result of the unhealthy state of the printing industry utilising the education sector as an example. According to him, over 100 million books are required annually in the country for the 20 million students in schools who, going by the National Book Policy, need five books per pupil. Unfortunately, in the words of Malomo, “75 percent of these books are printed outside the country because the duty on importation of published books is zero percent while (that on) importation of paper, as raw materials into the country is up to 30 percent”.

    These are certainly critical issues that the proposed summit can deliberate upon and proffer solutions. This is one sector that the President Muhammadu Buhari administration cannot overlook in its drive towards enhanced self-reliance and less import dependency in Nigeria. In the same vein, we urge the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, to urgently look into allegations that the rather uninspiring Chartered Institute of Professional Printers of Nigeria (CIPPON) has been operating in violation of the law establishing it. Surely, a viable and proactive CIPPON is necessary to actualise the immense but untapped potentials of the printing industry in Nigeria.

  • The men in our lives (IV)

    The men in our lives (IV)

    In the last two weeks, I’ve been writing on what makes a good father and the very important role he plays in bringing out the best in his daughter. Now, what about girls defiled by their fathers? This ugly situation is rampant these days and it is called INCEST. We often hear stories of uncles who raped their nieces but I was shocked to discover a young girl so close to me whose waywardness was caused by her father. She came to spend her long vacation with my family and I realised she liked to wear revealing clothes and pushed her chest forward around males.

    Rumours of her dalliances with the males in the neighbourhood were rife and before long, she was nick-named “cheap.” One of the domestic staff members “caught her” with the security guard barely a week into her holiday. She could do the sexiest and craziest dance steps so much that you would think she went to a dancing school. Many times, she got missing for long hours and came back with funny tales. Some other times, she said she was spending the weekend with her uncle or going for a vigil only to end up in her boyfriend’s house. Yet, she was only 15.

    The amazing thing was that no matter how much you reprimanded her, even lovingly, she never changed. No matter the leverage of insults hurled at her, she just could not be bothered and never showed any form of remorse. It was already her way of life and we assumed a spiritual angle to it. She always came back home with tales of her classmates’ escapades with boys. This is a girl who never had any sober moments. But one day, after a weekend at her uncle’s house, she came back looking dejected and tired. When asked what the problem was, she burst into tears and narrated how he slept with her thrice before she could collect her stipend of N 1,500 for the week. This was the same uncle we had invited over to discuss his niece’s waywardness who had castigated her to no end. She said it had been going on for a long time but could not tell anyone because he was the only one fending for her since her ailing father had no job. She said each time she told him she feared becoming pregnant, he would tell her to ask her mates about abortion and have sex with her till she became sore.

    Her next revelation was most shocking. She said her father deflowered her against her will at age 13. She said he simply told her that she constantly reminded him of her mother, his late wife who died at her birth, and wanted her to fill the vacuum she created. Unbelievable it seems, but it’s happening to so many other girls. He continued sleeping with her every now and then while she lived with him.

    One can only wonder what would become of the girl because he not only defiled her physically, but mentally and emotionally. At her tender age, she saw sex as an in-door game and a means to get phone cards, snacks, money to buy hair extensions, fix her nails…and so on. Obviously, such a girl would grow up unable to handle relationships with the opposite sex.  She’s likely to be very suspicious of men and see them as mean and callous. If her father could do the worst to her, then all men could as well be as beastly as they seem. However, that depends on how she’s taken care of by those around her if she spoke out. She may get over it on time and who knows, the experience may not have a long-lasting effect on her. But you will agree with me that it is not only a breach of trust but a very evil thing to do.

    Our relationship with our fathers goes a long way in determining our personality and shaping our destiny. Those with responsible and caring fathers are very lucky. And those without responsible and caring fathers can still get on with the support of their mothers or siblings.

    A Few Tips on How A Father Can Play His Role Effectively

    1.  He must have a good and respectful relationship with the child’s mother. Children are affected by the environment in which they grow and by what they see. That forms their personality and way of life.

    2. Parents are role models for children. A girl who grows up with a loving father knows she deserves respect from the man she marries. If a father comes home drunk every day or gets involved in shady deals or flirts with the opposite sex, his son would do the same and his daughter would feel she can’t marry a better man. What the children see mould their principles and morals.

    3. It is important that the family bonds by sitting together at dinner, praying together etc. This relaxes the child and gives her the opportunity to express feelings, ideas and experiences.

    4. There must be a good level of discipline in the family. If wrongs are punishable, good behaviour must be rewarded and emphasised.

    5. Fathers MUST give exclusive attention to each child as often as possible. During       their time together, they should not allow distractions to interfere. As a result, their children would feel noticed and special!

  • Our politics of money

    How can there be free and fair election in a system where all processes of political power acquisition is heavily monetised? Politics in Nigeria is a huge commercial enterprise that yields the highest profit.

    Godfathers install their surrogates as governors in their ‘captured’ territories and governors in turn impose their surrogates as local government chairmen and councillors.

    It has happened and will continue to happen across parties except political office is made less attractive and service to the people is the motivation, not looting. So, e get as e be when armed robbers fight another set of armed robbers. Social Revolution is the answer.

    By Adeola Soetan, Lagos

    adeolasoetan@gmail.com

  • OUR Women… Now, You WIN

    OUR Women… Now, You WIN

    THIS week’s piece is a combination of news dissemination and informed analysis, structured to specifically connect with a special target audience – our young women for their information, awareness and call to action. To be more precise, we are talking to WOMEN (female) YOUTH with innovative ideas and entrepreneurial drive, ready to bring about progressive change for a better Nigeria, based on productivity, industry and employment generation, through their readiness to take advantage of a rare but once-in-a-lifetime opportunity offered by the Federal Government’s youth empowerment and employment generation program, known as YouWIN designed for women.

    SO, THE NEWS: the President, leading the Federal Government team, has just launched the second edition of the YouWIN (Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria) program for women.

    The first time we wrote an article on YouWIN was October 9, 2011. It was shortly after the Federal Government launched the YouWIN program for the first time. We did, in that writ-up, identify with the plusses of the program, driving home the benefits inherent for our youths and the nation. The attraction remains the strategic focus for which the program was designed: to enable aggressive growth in employment, by engaging and supporting the youths. It involves the Federal Government’s massive financial investment in form of grant, training and mentoring of participants. Specifically, however, the second edition of YouWIN is designed and focused for WOMEN.

    Essentially, YouWIN is an expression of the Federal Government’s determination to create employment for our youths, drawing on their creativity, industry, determination to excel, through constructive engagement. On the government’s part, it has committed to providing grants up to N10, 000, 000 per person for investment

    Specific Objectives of the Program include to:

    • Attract ideas and innovations from young entrepreneurial aspirants from Universities, Polytechnics, Technical colleges, and other post-Secondary institutions in Nigeria;

    • Provide a onetime Equity grant for 1,200 selected aspiring entrepreneurs to start or expand their business concepts and mitigate start up risks;

    • Generate 80,000 to 110,000 new jobs for currently unemployed Nigerian youth over the three years during which the three cycles will be implemented;

    • Provide business training for up to 6,000 aspiring youth entrepreneurs spread across all geo-political zones in Nigeria;

    • Encourage expansion, specialization and spin-offs of existing businesses in Nigeria; and,

    • Enable young entrepreneurs to access a wide business professional network and improve their visibility.

    PLEASE NOTE!!!

    • YouWiN is an equity contribution to your business. It is therefore NOT A LOAN but a grant.

    • Award recipients will be paid according to the needs of the business and specific mile-stones stated in the business plan.

    • Award recipients must be registered with CAC before disbursement of funds even though they do not need to be registered to apply. YouWIN will support the registration process.

    • Award recipients will operate accounts using their registered companies with any of the participating commercial banks prior to disbursement.

    • Award recipients must sign a grant agreement with the managers of YouWiN before disbursement of funds.

    Apply Now!

    Competition Timeline

    • Mon. Sep 3, 2012 Launch of 2012/2013 Edition of the YouWiN! Business Plan Competition tagged “YouWiN! Women”.

    • Mon. Sep 3, 2012 First stage business concept submission starts after launch by President Goodluck Jonathan.

    • Sun. Oct 14, 2012 First stage business concept submission closes. No entries accepted after this date.

    • Mon. Oct 15, 2012 Marking of first stage submission by an International Business School.

    • Fri. Nov 30, 2012Notification of successful first stage candidates and invitation for training in each state of the nation.

    • Mon. Dec 10, 2012Training of the 1st set of second stage candidate starts. Trainings will be held in sets on 10 – 21 December 2012 and 2 – 11 January 2013.

    • Mon. Dec 10, 2012 Submission of second stage business plan starts on 10 December 2012 and ends 8 February 2013. Please note that only entries from candidates who attended the training and had their biometrics information collected are eligible and will be reviewed.

    • Fri. Feb 8, 2013 Submission of second stage business plan entries closes. All qualifying candidates must submit their business plans by this date.

    • Mon. Feb 11, 2013 Business plan marking commences with an international business school providing quality assurance.

    To apply, please go www.youwin.org.ng

    To us at MC&A Digest, the exciting thing about this women-directed program is the challenge it brings to our teeming population of educated, creative, focused, entrepreneurial and industrial women. To us, it is great thinking on the part of government for the ingenuity in encouraging the women towards putting their entrepreneurial spirit to work. This program puts a grant (not a loan) of up to N10m at the disposal of at least 1,200 women with demonstrable skills, abilities and creativity to start and run their own businesses and conveniently create employment for many others.

    The roll-call of female-driven businesses comes to mind at this time, across various industries. For instance, we can readily recall the Lady Cobbler (an excellent and ingenious demonstration of artistry, creativity and purposeful engagement). That enterprise has expanded exponentially, giving employment and apprenticeship to a sizeable number of men and women. We also remember the size and scope of businesses in the food vending business such as Tasty Fried Chicken brand. That brand has excelled under the watch of a woman, who has demonstrated plenty of commitment to industry, providing jobs to many across the country.

    Aside from service businesses, we know of women that are excelling in architecture and building industry, landscaping, interior decoration, auto maintenance, manufacturing, beauty products and accessories sales and distribution. With the generous provision of grants by the Federal Government, all our women need to bring to bear is intelligence, creativity, intelligence and entrepreneurship. We should have that in abundance among our women. It is also important to underscore the fact that the primary beneficiary of this program is the individual woman who stands to improve on the basic success measure of personal wealth and income, investment drive and enhanced living standard.

    Our women youth with initiative should hurry to take advantage of this rare opportunity offered by YouWIN for women program to empower themselves. That is the focus of this program. The Federal Government’s determination to empower the nation’s youth (especially the women by this unique program), should be seen as a challenge our women youth should hurry to take advantage of. It is a clarion call for the women.

    Given that the scope of commitment and support for both editions is the same, underscores the efforts towards achieving a penetrable reach-level with this program. The world is changing on all fronts, with regard to nation-building. In a recent interview on the CNN news channel, the President of Chile did capture the changes in the global pillars of development. According to him, the traditional growth pillars, according to world standard, are democracy, growing economy and literacy level. Going by the new world economic order, however, all of that has changed. Today, the new and operating pillars of development are: TECHNOLOGY, INNOVATION, ENTREPRENEURSHIP and EQUALITY. It is also instructive to note that digital and knowledge-based economy is the new development frontier. In realization of this paradigm shift, Nations are structuring their development plans and pattern around the new insight, paying particular attention to the details of change.

    On a broader scale, YouWIN initiative strikes a connect with the ENTREPRENEURSHIP ingredient for growth and nation-building. As we noted in our first article on this program, this initiative by the Federal Government is a call to duty for the youths in this country. They should take advantage of the ample opportunities offered through this program, to actualize that productive personal ambition to work for a prosperous and better Nigeria.

    YouWIN for WOMEN presents our women-youths the opportunity to join hands in building a Nigeria of our dream. Our women are highly creative, patient, innovative and industrious. These are rare qualities we must take advantage of at this time. Between October 2011 and now, the first edition of the YouWIN program has thrown up 1,200 award winners scattered across Nigeria, actualizing the projection of the Federal Government.

    Women, the opportunities have been provided in large measure. If we do not optimize the opportunity inherent, we are to blame. The grants are ready, the entry is open and the process is on. Log on today and start the process of growing into a successful entrepreneur. Empower yourself, grow your wealth, become an employer of labor. Take advantage of YouWIN for women.

    This time, YouWIN is all about you our women!