ABUJA – The Ambassador Emmanuel Oseimiegha Otiotio Foundation, an Abuja faith-based NGO, planned to empower 160 students both at the secondary schools and tertiary institutions with small-scale businesses of their choice.
The President of the Foundation, Amb. Emmanuel Otiotio, stated this on Saturday at a one-day Youth Summit tagged “ASPIRE 2014.’’
He said the ASPIRE 2014 summit for undergraduates was born out of a desire to ensure that Nigerian youths took their destiny in their hands.
The Foundation boss said the summit was equally aimed at encouraging the youth to become a solution to the current challenges facing the present generation.
“We as a foundation; we will work in partnership with the students. We need to wake up and start doing something now,’’ he stressed.
Otiotio lamented the increasing rate of unemployment in the country, saying the foundation offered scholarship to some graduates still seeking for employment.
He said “with this development, we discovered that there is a missing link. So, we decided to organise this summit to enlighten undergraduates on the need to start small-scale businesses of their choice.”
He urged the students to make God their reference point, saying there was nothing you want to do that was devoid of God that would succeed.
Mr Julius Okojie, the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), in a goodwill message, said small-scale businesses were the engine of development in any nation.
Okojie, who was represented by Malam Ibrahim Dan’iya, the Director, Student Support Services at NUC, urged the students to get detailed information of the businesses they planned to embark on.
He said NUC had earlier organised a similar programme entitled “Network for African Students Entrepreneur.’’
He added that the Commission planned to organise more programmes for undergraduate students to broaden their business ideas.
Mrs Folashade Adebayo, a business woman, urged the students to know that they were created to solve problems and to meet the needs of the society.
Adebayo, who stated in her paper at the summit entitled “You Are Made For A Mission’’ said what spur people to greatness was their understanding of the purpose which they were created for. [eap_ad_1] “If the purpose of a thing is not known, abuse is inevitable. Out of billions on earth, dead or alive no one share your finger print or voice pitch.’’
She advised them to have other sources of income through their gifts, adding that having a career is not enough.
Adebayo urged the youth to manage their time well, saying that time wasted was life despised.
She advised the students to be hard-working, noting that “there is no great man that is lazy and the shortest route to success is service.”
She urged them to seek knowledge to what they aspire to become in life; saying that “ every man’s ignorance is his mountain, start small little water makes an ocean.”
The foundation was established in 2005 aimed at catering for the welfare of the needy, as well as educating, training and a platform for youth transformation.(NAN)
[eap_ad_4]
