Over 150 Nigerian Entrepreneurs Get Free Training, 50 Receive $60,000 Grants From Foundation

Emameh Gabriel in Abuja 

Again, the efforts to encourage Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) received boost at the weekend as a non-governmental organisation, CONNAK Foundation Entrepreneurship Initiative, COFEI, concluded the training of about 150 entrepreneurs across Nigeria. 

Out of 150 young entrepreneurs and beneficiaries of the project, who went through verious phases of training for about 12-weeks, at various boot camps in Abuja, Lagos and Abia, and an online intensive training, only 50 could get start-up grants of $5,000 and below given to each of the trainees from an aggregate of $60,000. 

Speaking to newsmen on the sideline of the COFEI grants award ceremony in Abuja at weekend, the Chief Executive Officer, CEO, COFEI, Carole Emeka-Sunday, said that the initiative was targeted at “raising more economically independent youths in the country. 

Carole also disclosed that the foundation had designed a template to checkmate the progress of those that would be receiving the grant award to monitor their progress.

She said: “About 10,000 registered first and we had about 150 to the boot camps. Out of all of them, because they had to read and they had to attend their classes. They had to write their midterm test, they had to write their bi-weekly test, and they had to write their final exams. So, those were the things that dropped a lot of them because some of them were used to money, free money. So, this one wasn’t going to be free money. So after that, we had 150 remaining. 

“Actually, we want to raise more Dangotes. We want to see economically independent youths, economically independent Nigerians basically. It is not just one person, we want to actually replicate more CONNAK Foundations. 

“The entrepreneurs came from fashion, agriculture, to ICT and quite a lot, because under agriculture there are fish farmers, there are other agriculturists. After a year, we want to revisit what they have done and possibly award the best business that has really achieved what our heart desires.”

The CEO therefore appealed to the Federal Government to prioritize and encourage entrepreneurs by ensuring more funding to develop their initiatives.

“We wish that the government can just arise and create things like hubs to create opportunities to help these people, not basically just announcing something dashing some people money, and then they take off wherever they hear government funding, they come because they know that they are not serious”, she said. 

On his part, Dr. Emeka Onachukwu, one of the facilitators of the programme said: “After training, they were actually given an opportunity to defend their business plan and defend their business plan and also relate it to what they were asking for as grants.

“Everybody was given a fair opportunity. Then at the end, the few you see here today, are the ones we chose. The few are 50. The grant will be a maximum of $5,000. So, the minimum is $1000. So, everything depends on the business plan and everything in total is $60, 000.”

One of the beneficiaries, Engr. Chigozie Aka, who spoke at the event, expressed gratitude to the facilitators over the award grant given to him by the foundation.

He said: “My heart is very delighted to be here today. It’s been a long time since I graduated.”

“I am into research and development. One of my products I invented is a headlamp Dimmer. Headlamp Dimmer is a product for every car in Nigeria. What the chip does is that when you’re coming in the night, when you’re driving you see people coming with full light and it disturbs the oncoming one. So, what the chip does is that as soon as you are coming, when you reach like 50 meters apart, it will dim you automatically. So, as soon as you pass it will come on again. I have demonstrated it to the Road Safety and Standard Organisation of Nigeria, SON. I also invented an engine that does not use fuel, it uses the force of gravity.”

Another beneficiary, Happiness Friday, who is into maggot production for feeds and other agro based purposes, said the grant would go a long way to expand her business.