The Federal Government through the Nigerian Content and Development Monitoring Board on Thursday unveiled an entrepreneurship, empowerment and employment initiative under the Youth Empowerment Strategy of Nigeria for the oil and gas sector.
The initiative, which is being spearheaded by an advisory team from the Annabel Group, is said to be a path to entrepreneurship for youths, women and Small and Medium-scale Enterprises.
Under the initiative, young registered entrepreneurs will be equipped with training and funding to participate in the oil and gas sector, create jobs and expand beyond Nigeria.
Speaking at the event, which was held in Abuja, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Olusegun Aganga, described the initiative as an important step in attracting local participation in the oil and gas sector.
He said his ministry, through the initiative, would assist young Nigerians to become entrepreneurs in the oil and gas sector.
The minister said with the global environment becoming more dynamic, the greatest asset that Nigeria possessed was the vibrancy and resourcefulness of its youths.
With the reforms implemented by the Federal Government in the last four years, Aganga explained that the era when Nigeria exported raw materials and imported finished goods would soon be over.
He said, “The greatest asset you have now is your brain and that is where the future is. The world is more unpredictable and competitive today than it was few years back. The power of the youth in economic development is very important today; so, any country that does not tap the potential of the youth can’t compete globally.
“It is important we reinvent ourselves and position our economy for industrialisation and entrepreneurship.”
Aganga said MSMEs accounted for over 70 per cent of jobs created in the country, noting that the development of the sector was one of the major focus of the current administration.
The Chief Executive Officer, Annabel Group, Mr. Nicholas Okoye, said the initiative was an idea that was born out of the need to empower Nigerians in the oil and gas industry. – Punch.
