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2017: Employment, Business Start-Up Top Priority for Nigerians- Survey

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Latest public opinion poll results released by NOIPolls  have revealed some of the personal goals and aspirations that Nigerians have for 2017, such as the desire to secure employment or change existing jobs (37 percent), starting up new businesses (16 percent) and getting closer to God (14 percent) amongst others.

This finding further corroborates several media reports on unemployment and under-employment being one of the major problems that the government needs to tackle.

Furthermore, the efforts of the present administration to tackle the security issues in Nigeria has no doubt influenced the perception of Nigerians towards the security of the nation, as  87 percent asserted that they are hopeful that the security situation in the country will be better than it was in 2016.

The huge achievement by the security forces in recapturing the Boko Haram stronghold of Sambisa Forest may have played a role in the current perception on the state of security in Nigeria.

Also, 82 percent are optimistic that the economic situation of the country will improve; with 79 percent optimistic that more jobs will be created in 2017.

According to NOIPolls, this may not be unconnected with the Federal Government’s social investment program aimed at creating jobs for youths, tagged N-Power. Besides, the recent passage of the bill recognizing the National Peace Corps as a Federal Government Parastatal, under the Ministry of Interior, has become a veritable channel for job creation.

“Lastly, when Nigerians were asked what they would do to move the country forward, some  said they will be more law abiding (29 percent), create employment through their various businesses (18 percent), become patriotic (11 percent) amongst others.

“Therefore, the federal government of Nigeria should uphold its tempo at reviving the economy of the country while its citizens should take the right steps towards the advancement of Nigeria. These were some of the key findings from the New Year special poll conducted in the week of January 9th, 2017”.

Every New Year brings a lot of excitement, hopefulness and aspiration, and as 2017 beckons, majority of people all over the world are full of expectations, so also are Nigerians.

NOIPolls writes: “There is hopefulness of a new dawn of possibilities since the nation has been faced with multitudes of challenges characterised by various issues in the preceding years such as the activities of Boko Haram insurgents in the North-East, recent Southern Kaduna killings in the North-West, activities of the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB) in the South-East as well as the Niger Delta Avengers in the South-South, and the herdsmen menace in the North Central, just to mention a few.

“Business activities have been grounded by these happenings in all those troubled spots and were also complemented by irregular power supply, unemployment, poor exchange rate against the dollar, kidnappings, economic recessions and other crimes which are capable of undermining the development and progress of Nigeria.

“The Federal government of Nigeria (FGN), during the presentation of its 2017 Appropriation Bill, nicknamed the budget of recovery and growth, to a joint session of the National Assembly had promised that it has taken necessary steps to stimulate the economy and gave assurances of various investments in key sectors and that those steps were taken to restore business confidence that will guarantee the country’s speedy recovery from recession in 2017.[4] In view of this, NOIPolls conducted its Annual New Year Special Edition Snap Poll survey to ascertain the personal aspirations of Nigerians in the New Year, as well as their optimism about the country and the necessary actions they would take for the purpose of developing the country”.

Survey Results
The survey results revealed that some Nigerians are either unemployed or are not satisfied with their current employment status as 37 percent, which formed the majority, mentioned that they are aiming at getting a job or to have a change of job as their personal goal for 2017.

Unemployment is one of the most serious problems facing developing nations today and Nigeria is no different. Being the most populous country in Africa with a population of over 170 million people, Nigeria is blessed with diverse human and material resources.

However, her resources have been left under-utilized leading to mass unemployment and abject poverty.

Poll findings also revealed that 16 percent of the respondents disclosed that they aspire to start a business and this could have been triggered by the theories by some economic experts that the year 2017 will be good for businesses to thrive in Nigeria.

Also, 14 percent asserted that they would be more religious and this supports a research that ascribed Nigerians as one of the most religious people on earth.

The current economic hardship that Nigerians are faced with also played out as 12 percent indicated that they would cut down their expenses, additionally, there is the quest to seek for added knowledge and qualifications as another 12 percent indicated that they would further their education. Some other mentions include ‘improving my business’ (8 percent), ‘get married this year’ (8 percent) and ‘build my own house and buy a car’ (7 percent) among others.

The poll also sought to find out the expectations of Nigerians for 2017 with regards to some issues that affect the wellbeing of the citizens including the economy, security and employment and findings revealed high expectation and optimism around these issues.

The larger proportion (87 percent) is optimistic that security will be better this year; similarly, 82 percent of the respondents are hopeful that the economy will be better than last year, while 79 percent stated that they look forward to the employment situation in Nigeria becoming better than it was in 2016.

Furthermore, to determine what Nigerians could do as individuals to contribute in moving the nation forward, the survey revealed some Nigerians (29 percent) especially respondents from the North-West (38 percent) and South-East (35 percent) zones aim to be more law abiding in 2017.

More findings revealed that 18 percent of the respondents basically from the South-West zone (26 percent) disclosed that that they intend to create employment through their businesses and this could go a long way in reducing unemployment in the country if it could be actualised. It is also worthy to note that this zone houses Lagos state which is the economic hub of the country.

In addition, a section of Nigerians (11 percent) stated they would be patriotic citizens whereas, another proportion (8 percent) believe that prayers will make a positive impact in the country among other positive contributions.

The recent poll results have revealed that 37 percent of adult Nigerians surveyed disclosed that they look forward to getting a job or to have a change of job as one of their personal goals in 2017 while 16 percent aspire to start a business so as to have multiple streams of income.

More findings revealed that most Nigerians are very optimistic of a very good living in 2017 as the vast majority of Nigerians are enthusiastic that the security (87 percent), economic (82 percent) and employment (79 percent) situations in Nigeria will be better than it was last year.

Finally, Nigerians have asserted that they will be more law abiding (29 percent) and that they will create employment through their various businesses (18 percent) as part of their contribution towards moving the nation forward.

Therefore, the federal government of Nigeria should uphold its tempo at reviving the economy of the country while citizens take the right steps towards the advancement of Nigeria.

 


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AXA Mansard Empowers Female SMEs with Financial, Digital Skills

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AXA Mansard, a member of AXA has empowered 200 female Small and Medium Enterprises with financial literacy and digital business skills.

In collaboration with SME 100 Africa, the two-day training, which was held in Lagos, is part of AXA’s lined-up programmes to commemorate this year’s International Women’s Day.

Speaking, Olusesan Ogunyooye, Head of Marketing AXA Mansard, said the training was aimed to empower female SME owners with skills to improve business output and position them for the increasing economic opportunities available in an increasingly digital marketplace.

Ogunyooye noted that the move was in line with AXA Mansard’s sustainability agenda, explaining that the company was convinced that support for women through its inclusive protection programmes was pivotal to its purpose of acting for human progress by protecting what matters and its mission of moving from being a payer to a partner.

He further said that focusing on digital skills was important because the company realised the importance of digital skills to the growth of the SME sector in Nigeria and wants to ensure that women were empowered enough to be a consequential part of that growth.

“It’s almost trite to say that SMEs are the engine for economic growth, especially in developing countries like Nigeria, where over 45 million adults are business owners. What needs to be continually discussed is how Nigeria is going to unlock that potential for economic development and how much of that potential will be unlocked by women and for women.”

“For us at AXA Mansard, we are aware that digital will play a major role in unlocking these current opportunities and Nigeria’s economic future. So, to ensure that women are equally represented in unlocking these future potentials, that’s why we have collaborated with SME 100 Africa to support them in developing the required skills”.

“Our choice of digital and financial literacy skills is deliberate. We understand the power of the duo. We understand that helping these SMEs with the skills to attract more customers will be a faster means to empower them.

“We see that they have amazing products and services, but they need to understand how to attract value for themselves by attracting the right customers, and you will agree with me that virtually all customer segments are online in one way or another today.

“So, if we can empower them with digital business skills, we would have helped them with the heavy lifting of trying to find and attract customers”. Ogunyooye explained.

According to him, AXA Mansard believes that for the world to experience progress truly, there must be an equitable distribution of creation and access to opportunities for men and women. This quest for balance informed the SHE for Shield initiative, a women-centred inclusive protection programme of AXA Mansard.

SHE for Shield is a group of initiatives designed for the Nigerian woman. The goal is to see them grow, add value, and help them mitigate risks at every step.

According to the company, research has found that access to health care is one of the most important things to Nigerian women, regardless of their economic segment. They desire to be financially independent, secure, and respected in the community.

 


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IFC Invests in New 4DX Ventures Fund to Support Tech Startups in Africa

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IFC is investing $10.5 million in a new fund by 4DX Ventures, a New York-based venture capital firm focused on supporting early-stage African technology companies across a broad set of sectors, including fintech, e-commerce, edtech, climate tech, and health tech.

IFC’s investment in 4DX Ventures Fund III will come from IFC’s $225 million venture capital platform, which was launched last year to strengthen emerging VC ecosystems and invest in early-stage companies in Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and Pakistan.

Africa is among the regions least served by venture capital, receiving just 2% of global venture deal volume in the third quarter of 2023. Access to capital on the continent has been further exacerbated by a slowdown in global venture capital investment.

Tech ecosystems are nascent, or even nonexistent, outside of more established markets such as Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, and South Africa.

“IFC and 4DX Ventures share the commitment to supporting tech entrepreneurs with innovations that will help Africa leapfrog in critical areas such as climate, health care, fintech, e-commerce, and education,” said Walter Baddoo, Co-Founder and General Partner of 4DX Ventures.

“We look forward to partnering with IFC to help promising tech startups build transformative businesses and realize sustainable development impact on the continent.”

4DX’s new fund will invest in companies with tech solutions that can improve productivity, efficiency and competitiveness across Africa. The firm’s first two funds invested in companies such as Egypt-based e-commerce platform MaxAB, an IFC portfolio company; Ghana-based health tech firm mPharma; and Kenya-based B2B e-commerce platform Wasoko, formerly known as Sokowatch.

“By supporting the development of tech ecosystems in emerging markets, IFC’s venture capital platform aims to improve access to key services, boost business competitiveness, and promote job creation through digital transformation,” said Mohamed Gouled, Vice President of Industries at IFC.

“Our investment in venture funds such as 4DX Ventures will help African entrepreneurs access more financing and resources they need to scale tech innovations and bolster sustainable growth across the continent.

In addition to providing capital, IFC will work with 4DX Ventures to implement their environmental and social management system.


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Climate Action Africa Announces CAAF24

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Climate Action Africa (CAA) has announced the inaugural convening of the Climate Action Africa Forum (CAAF24). This international event brings together stakeholders from across the world who drive thought leadership insights on how to encourage collaboration, catalyse actionable solutions, and urge governments, businesses, and individuals to invest in climate-smart initiatives.

The climate-focused event was announced at last week’s Friday international press conference held at the prestigious Transcorp Hilton Abuja. This marks a significant milestone in Africa’s journey towards a sustainable future. A precursor to the upcoming Climate Action Africa Forum scheduled for June 17-19, 2024, at the Landmark Events Centre in Lagos, Nigeria, this press conference brought together leaders, experts, and stakeholders from across the globe. The gathering’s main goal was to discuss the urgent need for sustainable development plans and climate-smart investments in Africa.

Framed by the theme “Green Economies, Brighter Futures: Innovating and Investing in Africa’s Climate-Smart Development,” the international press conference became a vibrant platform for insightful discussions, strategic collaborations, and impactful engagements. It convened an esteemed gathering of leaders, experts, and stakeholders to explore solutions for Africa’s pressing environmental challenges.

The event kicked off with a welcome address by the Executive Director and Co-founder of Climate Action Africa, Grace Mbah, who having announced the commencement of event registration as April 2nd, 2024, made the call for tech-driven solutions and innovations in the fields of emissions reduction, transportation, agriculture, energy, circularity and building and construction to apply to participate in the deal room.

Providing insights to attendees on how innovative approaches and collaborative action is at the heart of CAAF24, she extended an opportunity to like minded organisations who would like to partner by hosting side events and finally, a call for volunteers from across the continent.

“It’s no news that the world stands at a critical juncture, where decisive action is imperative to mitigate the adverse impacts of climate change. Against this backdrop, CAAF24 serves as a pivotal platform for key stakeholders to engage in meaningful discourse, and forge collaborative pathways towards a greener, more sustainable future.

The essence of CAAF lies in its commitment to shaping a climate-resilient Africa through co-creation, innovation, and sustainable investment. Through this initiative, we aim to catalyse solutions that enhance the sustainability and prosperity of the continent’s natural resources, people, and economies,” Grace stated.

During the International Press Conference, distinguished speakers and thought leaders emphasised the urgent need for collective action in tackling Africa’s climate challenges.

They delved into critical topics like renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, biodiversity conservation, and climate finance, offering practical insights and inspiring initiatives.

Jummai Vandu, representing the National Council on Climate Change, expressed optimism about the initiative’s outcomes. “Today’s discussions,” she said, “underscore the urgency of our collective efforts to combat climate change. The National Council believes working together is key to driving meaningful action and creating a more sustainable future for Africa and beyond.”

With the International Press Conference complete, the stage is set for CAAF24. Stakeholders will converge to translate ideas into action, forge partnerships, and drive progress towards a climate-smart Africa.

Mrs. Taiwo Fashipe, Head of Media for the Presidential CNG Initiative (P-CNGi), echoed similar sentiments, stating: “The theme of this year’s Climate Action Africa Forum aligns with our goals, vision, and mission at the Presidential CNG Initiative.

“We look forward to using this platform to advance interest in and investment in greener and cleaner energy sources like CNG.”

Standing at a crucial juncture in Africa’s quest for sustainable development, CAAF24, convened by Climate Action Africa in partnership with the National Council on Climate Change, Channels Media Group, and Founder Institute, emerges as a beacon.

It brings together the private and public sectors, guiding the continent towards a future marked by resilience, prosperity, and environmental stewardship.

 


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