E-Business
#WorldSavingsDay: Why Nigerian Small Businesses Should Care
By Magnus Nmonwu
World Savings Day (31 October 2017) is coming up, a day generally not noted in Nigeria, which has one of the lowest savings cultures in the world. Yet, as one of the biggest contributors to the country’s GDP – at 47% – having savings in the bank is crucial if Small & Medium Businesses want to remain cashflow-positive and have some kind of safety net to cushion them during tough times.
There are many ways that small businesses can save money. You’ve probably heard most of them before: telecommuting, reduced business travel, flexible working arrangements and negotiating with suppliers. While this is all great advice, it also suggests a fragmented approach to saving money.
While saving a little here and a little there certainly adds up, I would like to recommend that you focus on just one thing – your culture. When you instil a savings culture within your business, everything else comes naturally, resulting in bigger, compounded and sustainable savings.
One thing to remember is that a savings culture is not just about saving money. It’s also about being frugal with resources and smart about time management, all of which impact the bottom-line in some way
Healthy Habits
Encouraging a culture of savings in your business starts with getting your team into certain habits, many of which are not money related but still have positive financial consequences.
Although the jury is still out on this one, they say that it takes 21 days to form a habit so, for three weeks, leave notes by light switches, reminding people to turn them off, or use pop-ups on their PCs, asking if they really need to print that document, or if they can work off a digital version.
Habits tend to stick when they’re rewarded. Think of non-monetary ways to acknowledge savings in your business.
Encouraging reduced consumption across the business automatically lowers operating expenses with little effort.
Personal Empowerment
Every team member who manages a budget – from procurement to marketing – should be given the tools, trust and authority to allocate their budget in a way that saves money while still meeting their business objectives.
If, for example, the marketing department can save time and money by outsourcing the social media advertising function, empower them to make that decision.
Financial empowerment and a savings mindset should extend into your team’s personal lives, too. If you are unable to offer incentives like provident fund or retirement annuity, bring in consultants to educate your team on the benefits of savings and easy ways for them to save. You can’t expect your team to be smart with your business’ money if they don’t have the knowledge and tools to be smart with their own money.
Make It A Game
Research has found that games improve employee engagement, motivation and learning – and what better use for gaming than to encourage savings in your business?
People are naturally competitive and competing against colleagues to fill up their money banks faster will quickly become addictive – especially if it earns them Friday off.
Use the game to drop personal and business money-saving tips as your players move through the levels.
Time Is Money
Automate as much as possible – especially the mundane tasks that your team is probably procrastinating on anyway. Again, reward your team for finding innovative ways to save time or to do things quicker or more efficiently.
There are many unconventional ways to save money, time and resources. Think beyond the obvious and get your teams involved – you might be pleasantly surprised.
Magnus Nmonwu, is the regional director for Sage in West Africa
The United States Supreme Court has upheld a law seeking to ban TikTok in the United States.
The court ruled that the law does not infringe upon free speech rights, citing the US government’s legitimate national security concerns about the Chinese ownership of the app.
Last week, the Supreme Court listened to the arguments from ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, claiming the law violated free speech.
“There is no doubt that TikTok provides a unique platform for expression, engagement, and community to over 170 million Americans,” the justices stated.
With this decision, the ban set for Sunday remains in place, despite calls from lawmakers and officials across the political spectrum for a delay.
Last year, Congress passed a law requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok or shut it down in the US by January 19, reflecting widespread concerns in Washington that the app could be exploited by China for espionage or propaganda.
On Friday, White House officials informed the media that the ban would not be enforced, leaving the final decision to President-elect Donald Trump, who assumes office the next day.
In December 2024, TikTok asked the US Supreme Court to temporarily block a law that would force its Chinese owner to sell the popular video-sharing platform or shut it down by January 19.
The appeal came the same day TikTok, Shou Zi Chew, CEO, met with US President-elect Donald Trump.
Federal government has plans to expand the national social register to 18.1 million names and to reach at least 70 million poor households across the country by the end of this year, according to Prof Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda, minister, Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development (FMHADMSD).
Federal government has been distributing cash assistance to poor citizens through a program that requires verification using the National Identification Number (NIN).
The rate of poverty in the country is alarming, the minister said in an interview with Arise News, reason why the federal government plans to extend the humanitarian outreach program to target more homes. Each household receives the sum of N75,000 ($45).
Giving update on the payments, the minister said the first tranche of the conditional cash transfers were paid to five million households between October and December 2024, while the second and third tranches were paid to 2.8 million households.
“The president has directed, based on CBN’s new regulations, that before any payment is made to an individual or household, they must have a digital identity we can trace. That is the NIN number,” the Yilwatda told Arise News.
The cash transfer enabled by digital ID was launched in 2023, and last year, the federal government said around 25 million Nigerians had already benefitted from the scheme.
National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has granted licence for the Nigerian Correctional Service, (NCoS) to register inmates in the over 252 custodial centres across the country for National Identity Numbers, (NIN).
The approval followed the request made by Sylvester Nwakuche, acting controller general of the NCoS, who paid a visit to Engr Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director general/chief executive Officer of NIMC, in her office.
The acting controller-general, said the licence to carry out registration of inmates for NIN would eliminate exclusion of inmates from the country’s National Development plans, ensure their safety and security and facilitate their smooth recapture in times of jailbreaks.
The NCoS boss said the visit to the headquarters of NIMC was in search of collaboration that would enable the Service carry out its mandate seamlessly following on going reforms of the Correctional Service system.
According to Nwakuche, there are lots of socio-economic developments within the Correctional Service systems which had led to a number of inmates obtaining University degrees, Masters Degrees and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in various fields.
He said such inmates should not be excluded from the national development plans of the country as they should be integrated into the society to become useful for their families and the country.
Nwakuche said inside the Correctional centres are those awaiting trials whose innocence and otherwise has to be decided by the Courts, but argued that in times of National planning, census and other critical national development issues, they should not be disallowed from participating.
Coker-Odusote who granted the licence said NIN has become critical and essential to the country’s national development plans, stressing that NIMC has gone far with the private sector, especially the banks and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as all banks accounts are now linked with the NIN.
Coker-Odusote said the Eight points Agenda of President Bola Tinubu are also anchored on the Country’s digital identity or National identity Number, stressing that for instance NIN was tied to students loans to eradicate duplicity and prevent ghost beneficiaries.
Coker-Odusote expressed delight in the partnership with the NCoS, saying that the Commission had already entered into partnership with the Nigeria Immigration Service, NIS and other agencies in order to facilitate the smooth delivery of their constitutional mandates.
She commended Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, minister of Interior, for his dynamic leadership and role in ensuring the delivery of dividends of democracy to Nigeria through various reforms.
Telecom Tariffs Set to Rise by 50 Percent as NCC Approves Adjustments
Subscribers Reject Tariff Hike, Say FG Cannot Speak for Them
Nigeria’s Electricity Exports Hit $112m amid Persistent Power Outage
Over 562m People Own Cryptocurrency Globally
SERAP Petitions Trump, Urges Recovery of Stolen Nigerian Assets, Barring Corrupt Officials from US
FG Says NINs will Facilitate Cash Transfers to 18.1m People
NERC Discloses $5.7 Million Debt Owed by International Customers for Q3 2024 Electricity Supply
MTN Nigeria Renews Spectrum Lease Agreement with NTEL
A beginner’s guide to Temu: Your ultimate shopping companion
CBN, SEC Approve FCMB Group’s N147bn Rights Offer
News2 days agoSERAP Petitions Trump, Urges Recovery of Stolen Nigerian Assets, Barring Corrupt Officials from US
News2 days agoNigeria’s Electricity Exports Hit $112m amid Persistent Power Outage
Telecom2 days agoSubscribers Reject Tariff Hike, Say FG Cannot Speak for Them
E-Financial2 days agoOver 562m People Own Cryptocurrency Globally
Telecom2 days agoMTNN Raises N42.20Bn through Commercial Paper
General News2 days agoNIS Announces Maintenance on Passport Portal
General News2 days agoNITDA, NFIU Collaborate on AML/CFT Data Management System Upgrade
E-Financial2 days agoSEC Sets January 31 Deadline for CMOs Registration Renewals