Entrepreneurship is mindset of problem solving- Ezekwesili
Every entrepreneur that wants to succeed in a business that would stand the test of time must have the mindset of problem solving and not just money-making.
This is the main point stressed by Obi Ezekwesili, former vice president, Africa region of the World Bank and former federal minister at an entrepreneurship seminar and exhibition by the women’s network under the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA).
The network called NECA Network of Entrepreneurial Women (NNEW) established in 2005 under the aegis of NECA aims to promote entrepreneurship among women. Therefore it regularly organises events which are aimed at helping women to own and run their businesses the right way.
This particular event which held at the conference and exhibition hall of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Ikeja, Lagos recently is one of such.
Ezekwesili, who was the keynote speaker said “An entrepreneur sees the gaps around and seeks to fill those gaps.” She cited the example of people who out of passion organised events for their friends and later became major event planners by turning the passion into a business.
“People who simply want to make money are money makers but the entrepreneurs want to solve problems. It is the mindset that thinks of value creation. They want to build and add something to what already exists. It is the mindset of creativity. It is the mindset that would change something that everybody had been seeing in a particular way, the entrepreneur would decide to move it around in another way.”
This mindset of value creation is vital to succeed in business. Ezekwesili affirmed, “An entrepreneur that is not creative would be out of business very soon. It is a mindset that persistently seeks knowledge. She does not
use her creative moments to chat away or watch African magic. The more she knows, the more she can create.”
This entrepreneurial mindset is also vital to national economic development as stressed by Ezekwesili. She said, “It is the key to Africa, Nigeria’s economic development.” She noted that the GDP of many African countries was not growing in the 1980s. This was during the military rule.
She drew attention to the fact that even if a country’s GDP is growing, it might be as a result of many factors and that if the GDP is growing and there is no economic development, it could be that the sector(s) bringing
the increase in GDP are not growth sectors in the economy, stressing the fact that a country’s GDP might be growing but the sectors bringing the growth might not be creating jobs.
“That is why government spends a lot of time understanding which sectors are growth sectors…The reason policy exists is that it is the instrument through which government can address the challenges of societies,” she said.
She also stressed that there is a strong need for the government to collaborate with the people that can help in bringing impactful growth into the economy. She added that if not, the benefit of that growth in the economy would be going to only a very small number of people. “Identifying the sources of growth is an important way of responding to the problem of what kind of growth…Government needs to have the capacity to do analysis,” she also said.
Segun Oshinowo, director general, NECA, who was also at the event spoke on the importance of entrepreneurship to the economy during his welcome address.
Sola Oworu, the Lagos state commissioner for commerce and industry stated that her ministry would continue to support NNEW because the state government is interested in the growth of economic activities in the state.
NNEW, which also has chapters in the South-south and Abuja, uses this fair called NNEWPRENEURSHIP Fair as part of its efforts at promoting women-owned businesses.
By: OLUYINKA ALAWODE