LBS entrepreneurship fair addresses youth empowerment, poverty

 

The fair themed, ‘Transforming Society through Profitable Businesses’ was put together to showcase profitable businesses with the aim of attracting investors, encouraging replication and accelerating social transformation and inclusive growth.

 

The entrepreneurs present at the event had created businesses across various sectors of the economy such as health, Information technology, construction, vocational skills acquisition and transport amongst others.

 

Speaking during the event, Henrietta Onwuegbuzie, academic director, Owner-Manager Programme, observed that the gap between the rich and the poor in the society today is such that 69 percent of Nigerians live in poverty, leading to an increase in terrorism, armed robbery and kidnapping.

 

Onwuegbuzie observed that it is impossible for businesses to thrive when the society is overwhelmed by vices and almost every country in the world is threatened by the menace of terrorism, causing business leaders to begin to rethink business as usual.

 

“There is a strong global trend towards fostering for-profit businesses with a social mission. These businesses seek to solve social problems beyond achieving financial returns,” she said.

 

She buttressed that business can therefore become a tool for transforming society, when problems around us are conceived as a potential profitable business opportunity, adding that through businesses many can actively contribute to improving the society.

 

“At LBS, we have made perspective of business as a tool for societal transformation, a significant aspect of training received by participants, especially MBAs”.

 

Fela Durotoye, a motivational speaker, in his keynote address, stressed that in creating any business that will remain sustainable, beyond making profit, such business must create value.

 

Durotoye further explained that every time a solution is found to a problem, value is created, resulting in wealth creation, which eventually leads to prosperity. He said when the value is not created, poverty may become the end result.

 

He advised entrepreneurs present at the occasion to think global, institutional and generational for their businesses to excel.

 

Enase Okonedo, dean, Lagos Business School, said the new approach is to raise entrepreneurs who look out for ways to create value by identifying the needs of the society and innovate ways to meet the needs.

 

“These entrepreneurs create businesses that solve social problems and are making the society a better place with every profit they make, taking the society gradually from where it is to where it should be while contributing their quota to humanity,” Okonedo said.