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Strategies For Empowerment Of Unemployed Graduates

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It is regrettable that after ten years of uninterrupted democracy and during which Nigeria earned enormous billions of dollars from oil export, the statistics issued from national and international agencies confirm that unemployment amongst youth and graduates in particular has been alarmingly on the increase. The present state of youth unemployment has given rise to increased crimes that now threaten the peace, socio-economic and political stability of the nation. Terrorist crimes are increasing across Nigeria.

The VEEP strategy was created specifically for Africa by the USA Project Team to assist “DUTY” – Determined-Unemployed Talented Youth with the USA-SBA model of entrepreneurship empowerment which focuses on training, mentoring, coaching, funding with SBDC’s – Small Business Development Centres and ICT VBI/4SM Virtual Business Incubator. The African Revolutionary Entrepreneurship Empowerment Project is specially designed for the socio-economic and cultural values of Nigerian youth to ensure maximisation of the talents of the unemployed.

The USA-SBA model Project Team will be led by a global leader in entrepreneurship. It will be presented at an International Forum to be attended by distinguished USA Entrepreneurship and Funding Consultants.

As an interim measure, the USA founder of the African Entrepreneurship Empowerment Institute, has also called for the Federal Government to urgently strategise with the National and States Assemblies, to enact laws introducing the payment of unemployment benefits in Nigeria.

The Innovative USA entrepreneurship empowerment system will feature the establishment of SBDCs – Small Business Development Centres across the country for beneficiaries of the special project. A total of over 50,000 DUTY members will be mobilised – motivated for talent maximisation from the 774 local government areas in the first phase.

The current state of high youth and graduate unemployment in Africa at large and in Nigeria in particular is indeed a symptomatic Time Bomb that must be strategically detonated before it derails our nascent democracy; To stem the tide of rising frustrations amongst over 25 million disgruntled and distressed youth and unemployed graduates, Nigerian government at all levels must declare urgently a state of emergency in youth and graduate unemployment with scientific programmes that will have immediate impact on the lives of millions of “Duty” Determined­Unemployed-Talented Youth. The tragedy that the nation must confront before the time bomb explodes is to rescue our youth from joblessness, as they now offer themselves in desperation, to ‘Drug Barons, Political godfathers and godmothers as thugs,  robbers and assassins, international traffickers in human beings for sex trade in several foreign countries. The latest sector that is recruiting these youth for socio-economic and political terrorism is the ‘kidnapl industry. The frustration of the millions of unemployed graduates and talented youth can be unleashed on the society in unpatriotic counter productive activities.

The rise in youth unemployment has a strong correlation to rising crimes, corruption and political, socio-economic terrorism in all segments of the society by youth.

In the Punch Editorial, Sunday May 2, P.10, 2010 the former Labour Minister, Adetokunbo Kayode, in February 2009, remarked that 40 million Nigerians were unemployed. Quoting World Bank figurel he said “80 per cent of the country/s graduates were unemployable lacking skills and basic-entrepreneurial abilities; The Guardian of November 3, 2009, P. 67 stated, “Bail out the poor, not the fact cats.” World Bank – Unemployment of 13-25, 70 per cent million youth, urremployed.

The CBN Governor, Mallam Lamido Sanusi at a forum recently in Lagos stated that over 49 per cent of Nigerian youth was unemployed. The terrible scourge of youth and graduate unemployment in Nigeria was the theme of a 2009 National Unemployment Summit by Nigerian government and ILO. The World Bank Chief Economist in Nigeri,a Volker Trekhel, authored the report that revealed that 4.5 million enter the overstretched job market including 300,000 graduates. Much more disgusting was the reports’ projection that there would be 13.5 million unemployed youth by 2011 aged between 15 and 44.

The critical problem of youth and graduate unemployment in Nigeria has necessitated the establishment of various youth empowerment projects by the states and federal government agencies NDE; NAPEP; SMEDA, etc. The private sector has also intensified efforts to create employment generation programmes. The universities have also been advised to incorporate entrepreneurship courses in their curricula so as to equip the undergraduates with skills and knowledge to face the world in an increasingly competitive environment requiring ingenuity and self motivation for success.

The Nigerian situation is particularly pathetic because of the rising crime wave over the past ten years, now terribly exacerbated by the economic crisis in the industrial, agricultural and banking sectors.

The inspiration to establish the African unemployment project was from the impact of SMEs in the U.S.A. economy. Entrepreneurs and leaders globally are concerned about the massive socio-economic and political quagmire in Africa due to decades of corruption and underdevelopment. As a result, Nigeria, a unique country enormously endowed with human and natural resources, has become one of the richest oil exporting nations in the world but ironically one of the poorest and most underdeveloped and corrupt with decayed infrastructure. The tragedy of decades of massive corruption and underdevelopment is the deindustrialisation leading to staggering unemployment, especially of youth and graduates. Contemporary statistics report that the unemployed graduates population is estimated at about 20 million and youth as much (49.9%) youth – CBN Governor.

The USA-SBA Entrepreneurship Model has transformed the most powerful economy in the world into the centre of entrepreneurial capitalism and excellence. The most successful global models of innovative entrepreneurs have their roots in the countries and cities of the sprawling USA with support from both local, state and federal agencies. 60 per cent of the US economy is powered by the ubiquitous SBEs – Small Business Entrepreneurs. In USA, millions of innovations are nurtured by talented youth in high schools, colleges and universities and private sectors.

The innovation received tremendous support in cash and kind to drive their dreams from grants, attractive loans and from millions of US philanthropists, foundations, religious and academic organisations and SBA consultants and agencies in the 50 USA states. The USA slogan I can – yes you can is true of business and in politics. Any wonder, USA is fondly referred to as God’s own country?

The Reeps initiatives – the USA-SBA-model project is conceived for Africa as a Revolutionary Entrepreneurship Empowerment for productivity, socio-economic security. Nigerian youth, as the ex­militants in the Niger-Delta, continue to forge, intensely lament that there has been too much talk and little impactive action to alleviate their agonies. Why, the youths ask in consternation, have all the billions of naira announced spent by Federal and states’ agencies in poverty alleviation not yielded any appreciable impact? Instead the more billions are spent year in year out the increase in youth unemployment, crimes; sophisticated armed robbers, fraud, 419, and now kidnapping!

Fejokwu is the founder of USA-based African Entrepreneurship Empowerment Institute.

 

Larry Fejokwu

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Eazipay  Offers Zero-Interest Loans To  150,000 SMEs, Employees

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With a mission to ignite growth, encourage business continuity and help businesses and employees thrive, Eazipay is gearing up to propel the dreams of 150,000 SMEs and employees to new heights through her relief fund.
Gone are the days of financial constraints and stifled dreams. With Eazipay’s support, SMEs and employees alike can bid farewell to limitations and embrace a world of endless possibilities.
Whether it’s start up,  business expansion or personal development, Eazipay is here to make dreams come true.
The mind-blowing initiative, which  kicked off this month, would end in December, and will also offer a range of perks and benefits designed to put a smile on the faces of SMEs and employees alike.
From exclusive discounts to various advisory services and beyond, Eazipay is committed to spreading happiness and creating lasting impact in people’s lives and to the growth of businesses.
The technology company which offers products and services that range from payroll management to IT/Device management and assessments, “Eazipay isn’t just providing financial support but also unleashing a wave of growth and prosperity for SMEs and employees across the nation.
“Interested businesses and individuals can take part in this initiative directly from the Eazipay website: www.myeazipay.com”.

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SMEs Critical For Sustainable Dev – Commissioner

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The Commissioner of Finance, Lagos State, Abayomi Oluyomi, has described Small and medium Enterprises (SMEs) as a critical engine for sustainable development in any economy.
He said this recently at the 10th anniversary of the Alert Group Microfinance Bank and the opening of their new head office in Lagos.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, SMEs accounted for about 50 per cent of Nigeria’s gross.
He commended the positive impact of the Alert MFB as it empowers SMEs in the State.
“Alert MFB in the past 10 years has been at the forefront of empowering SMEs in Lagos State, disbursing over N30bn in loans to over 30,000 individuals having small to medium businesses over that period, which is quite remarkable”, he said.
Speaking, the Group Managing Director of Alert Group, Dr Kazeem Olanrewaju, revealed that the financial institution commenced business in 2013 as a microfinance bank.
“We started this journey in 2013 and it has been expanding. Today, they have about 10 branches across Lagos. They have supported well over 30,000 clients and have disbursed over N30bn.
“The company has been profitable since the second year. Looking at the market and the available opportunity, the Alert MFB board decided to come together to establish a Microfinance Institute (MFI), which is the Auto Bucks Lenders”, Dr. Olanrewaju said.
The GMD further stated that the company was focused more on supporting businesses and small and medium enterprises.
“The loan to support business represents over 98 per cent. The consumer loans you will see are the ones given to entrepreneurs. So, the area of focus of Alert MFB and Auto Bucks Lenders is to support businesses across the country.
“With the establishment of Auto Bucks Lenders, we have the opportunity to also do business outside Lagos. So, presently, we have offices in Ogun State and Oyo State. We intend to go to every part of Nigeria to support what we are doing”, he declared.

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Retailers Explain Price Drop In  Cement Cost

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The cement market, in the last couple of weeks, has seen a significant turnaround with prices tumbling from between N10,000 and N15,000 per 50kg bag to between N7,000 and N8,000.
The sudden rise in the prices of cement and other major building materials in February this year upsets  the construction industry, especially in real estate, where many developers were forced to abandon building sites.
A recent market survey conducted by The Tide’s source in different locations across the country confirmed a price drop, ranging between N7,000 and N7,500 per bag, though BUA cement is selling for N7,500 to N7,800 per 50kg bag, depending on location.
Both entrepreneurs and major distributors who were interviewed,  explained that the price drop is due to low demand and government’s intervention.
At the peak of the price hike, the Federal Government called a meeting with major producers where it was agreed that a bag of cement should be between for N7,000 to N8,000, depending on location.
But the producers did not comply with this agreement immediately, followin which “Nigerians stopped demanding for cement; many project sites were abandoned as developers sat back and waited for the prices to come down.
“So, what has happened is an inter-play of demand and supply with price responding, which is Economics at work”, Collins Okpala, a cement dealer, told the source in Abuja.
In the Nyanya area of the Federal Capital Territory, a 50-kg bag of Dangote cement now sells for between N7,000 and N7,500, while BUA cement sells for between N8,500 and N9,500, down from between N11,000 and N12,000 respectively.
In Lagos, the product has seen significant price drop too. In Ojo area of the state, Sebastin Ovie, a dealer, told our reporter that what has happened is a crash from the January price, attributing the crash to low demand and stronger naira.
“The current price of the product is between N7,000 and N7,500 per 50kg bag, depending on the brand. This is a significant drop from the average of N12,000 which most dealers were selling in February and March”, he said.
A dealer in Agege area of the state who identified himself as Taofik Olateju, told the source that sales are picking up due to the drop in price.
He recalled that Nigerians at a point stopped buying due to the high price of the product at N15,000 per bag.
“I am sure most dealers ran at a loss then because we had mainly old stocks which we wanted to offload quickly”, he said, confirming that the product sells for between N7,500 and N8,000, depending on the brand and the demand for the brand.
Continuing, Olateju noted that “because the naira is now doing well against the dollar, it will be unreasonable for manufacturers to continue to sell the product at the old prices. I also believe that the federal government’s intervention and the threat to license more importers may have worked, leading to the reduction in price”.
In Enugu, the source reports that the product sells for between N7,200 and N7,500 depending on the brand and location.
“This is a city where the price of a 50kg bag went for as high as N12,000 and N13,000 in some cases in February and March”, Samuel Chikwendu said.
He added that the prices of other building materials, especially iron rods, have also dropped considerably which is why, he said, activities are picking up again at construction sites.
The story is slightly different in Owerri, the capital of Imo State, where Innocent Okonkwo told the source that low demand was also driving the price drop, adding that a 50kg bag was selling for N9,000 on the average in the state.
Sundry market observers are optimistic of further price reductions, but they remain cautious as manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers continue to play critical roles in setting prices for end-users.
They lamented, however, that despite Nigeria’s status as one of the largest producers of cement in Africa, the price of the product continues to rise, particularly in the face of high inflation impacting the building materials market generally.
Okpala in Abuja highlighted the variations arising from direct sourcing from manufacturers versus procurement through dealers, with traders holding old stocks selling products at prices ranging from N8,500, N8,300 to N8,000 per bag.
Lucy Nwachukwu, another dealer in Abuja, said the significance of  procurement volume in determining cement costs, noting that stability in prices has been observed over the past month, with the product retailing for between N7,000 and N7,800 depending on the brand.
In Port Harcourt also, a customer, Daniel Etteobong Effiong, said the price goes between N7500 to N8500, depending on the brand and the location one is buying from.

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