By Hope Ikwe, Jos
A non- governmental organization known as New Identity, in a bid to empower investors with necessary skills, boost economic activities and reduce poverty, has decided to offer free business seminars in Jos.
Funmi Adefeko, founder of New Identity, a Havard Business School trainee who has worked with the Coca-Cola company for 24 years, rising to the rank of general manager in the Jos, Maiduguri and Portharcourt plants, said the monthly free business seminar is her way of ” giving back to society” .
Adefeko who maintained that over 30 million Nigerian youths are unemployed said there is “a lot of unoccupied business space in Nigeria”, noting that “28% of Forbes 40 richest African entrepreneurs are Nigerians, 33% of Nigeria’s territory is arable land, Nigeria is the third largest English speaking country, third largest movie industry and 8th most populous country in the world”.
She therefore emphasized that “strong work ethics, self discipline, creating values, carving one’s niche and creating opportunities” will earn entrepreneurs a place in Nigeria’s unoccupied business space and sustain them there.
Kanu Eliezer a participant and a miner who has attended the two editions of the seminar said he now understands how better to do business as he stated that he would have been a better business man if he had know this all along. “I realise there is so much I have left in the wood, I would have been a much successful business man” he said.
He therefore solicited that government should make the social investment program more effective by giving beneficiary of stipend opportunity to have knowledge  instead of just handing down money to them.
Dorcas Bentu another beneficiary of the program and a business owner said the New Identity training ” is quite simple, I will organize my staff to benefit from the next editions so that we can achieve the desired growth and expansion”
