Women network empowers 65 teenagers with entrepreneurial skills

About 65 teenagers were weekend in Lagos exposed to entrepreneurial skills adapted from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) business training modules by the NECA Network of Entrepreneurial Women (NNEW).

This women network set up in 2005, under the aegis of the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), has been in the forefront of promoting entrepreneurship among women through trainings, mentorship, exhibitions, network meetings, provision of business information, advocacy and so on.

To catch them young and prepare young people for bright future, irrespective of the career they choose, two years ago, the network began entrepreneurial trainings. The training modules include generating business ideas/creating opportunities, leadership, marketing a business, etiquette, recognising and maximising opportunities, calculation of costs and keeping records. These sessions, delivered at the level that the young minds could easily understand, were also spiced with practical sessions on creating a website, fashion/jewellery making, fabric painting, mock-tails, makeup/headgear tying and rug making. The teenagers were allowed to choose the practical skills they enjoy the most. Some of the participants at the forum shared what they had learnt.

Lilian Ezechukwu, an 18-year-old student of mass communication at Babcock University, said after the training, “ I learnt that if one wants to do anything good, just go for it without making excuses but know how to strike the balance between it and other important things.”

Similoluwa Adepoju, a 14-year-old who wants to become a psychologist, said, “I learnt that we should not take no for an answer in terms of starting a business.”

Simisola Opegbemi, another 14-year-old who wants to become a medical practitioner, said, “always seize every good opportunity that comes your way, is one of the things I learnt and the four Ps of marketing – product, price, promotion, planning.”

Oluwatosin Adepoju, an 11-year-old who wants to become a public speaker, said, “I learnt that one should never be afraid to do what he or she wants to do, never to cut corners to get there and then think big and start small.”

Kelechi Ochulo, a 15-year-old who wants to become an eye surgeon, said, “I learnt that I should never be ashamed of any business idea as long as it is legal and it can generate money. I also learnt the basics of designing a website.”

Lola Okanlawon, president of this network called NNEW, said the training was the network’s way of grooming next generation of entrepreneurs. “Gaining entrepreneurial skills would not stop them from the careers of their choice but would help them to be more confident in life and better able to make choices. Entrepreneurial skills are needed in all professions. A medical doctor who owns a hospital needs entrepreneurial skills, likewise a lawyer running a law firm. So, when these ones graduate, they can decide to start a business around their professions before getting a paid job. If they do get paid employment immediately, they can decide after working for some years to start their own business, deliver a value to society, create wealth for themselves and jobs for others,” she said.

OLUYINKA ALAWODE