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From Joe Effiong, Uyo
Convener of the Niger Delta Micro Small and Entreprises Summit, Moses Siasia, has claimed that the Niger Delta Youth Professionals (NDYP) has empowered more than 1,600 Micro Small and Medium Scale Businesses in the region with N500,000 grant each to support and increase the capacities of such outfits.
He explained that the organisation created over 4,922 direct and indirect jobs via the beneficiaries of the grant and trained more than 2,304 business owners on various entrepreneurship skills with the NDYP on it’s own empowering more than 200 business owners.
Siasia who made this known at the 3rd edition of the summit held on Saturday in Ikot Ekpene, said the gesture was with support from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and the Niger Delta Developement Commission,NDDC.
He said the Nigerian Young Professionals Forum,NYPF, a larger body incorporating the NDYP has also through it’s advocacy increased its membership to over two million and spread around 15 countries of the world while the summit was also held to communicate the International Youth Day
With focus on “Building the Culture of Entreprenuership Compositeness Beyond” and earlier summits held in Port Harcourt and Asaba, Siasia, who is also the Chairman of the NYPF and the Niger Delta Young Professionals (NDYP),
said the initiative was meant to change the narrative by helping and empowering young people in the region ro achieve their dreams by engaging in productive activities.
“We want our young people who are entrepreneurs to understand that the future is theirs, and that the future is entrepreneurship. The world today is diverting from hydrocarbon. We are talking about Energy Transition, Climate Change. These are where the world interests are driving to, so we must conform to modern realities. This is why we are doing this to reshape the entrepreneurial culture in the region.”
He regretted that youths in the region have been marginalized over the decades with deprivation while the region has nothing to show after decades of contributing marginally to the growth of the economy.
He cautioned young people to consider exploring the Social Media to promote their brands and businesses, rather than jumping on it as a tool to abuse political office holders.
