By Oluchi Chibuzor
Wennovation hub, one of the premier hubs in Nigeria has opened its accelerator space in Lagos for entrepreneurs looking for opportunity to showcase their businesses.
Speaking to journalists in Lagos, the Executive Director and co-founder, Wole Odetayo, said the company as a tech incubator and accelerator program, was set up in 2010 to tackle three major challenges- unemployment, underdevelopment and poverty.
According to him, these are issues plaguing Nigerian society which they believe as an organisation can help the nation by creating value faster than they grow.
According to him: “We currently have four locations across Nigeria and have the advantage of being the only hub in Nigeria with the widest reach cutting across the two extremes of the country. We focus on social impact sectors including agriculture, healthcare, education, clean energy and social infrastructure.
“As a hub, we are committed to help the nation by creating value through the various ideas that will crystallise to viable business ventures through our parent organisation, Lofty Incorporated Allied Partners.
“We are open for people to come into our finishing hubs and our incubation training at our branches in Ibadan, Kaduna, Abuja and Lagos.
“We do not charge money for our accelerator program, except for the equity we invest into their businesses,” he explained
Responding to questions from tech start-ups, former Head of the Bureau for Public Sector Reform, Dr. Joe Abah, expressed displeasure over how some youths spend their time on issues that are not productive, while encouraging them to engage in find something beyond government as the structures of the nation does not favour young people.
“The youth should focus on the constraints that have brought pain to them as the economy is not favourable to them, especially in a system where there is no accountability, over-reliance on a single product, increase in population and limited development over the last thirty years.”
On the way-forward especially as the entrepreneurship hubs are currently gaining international acceptance and attracting funds, the lawyer admonished youths to expand their skills gaps as only this would make them relevant.
“Youths cannot make headway in the traditional political structures we have now, they need to have a wide range of skills by finding something that can be done outside the government establishment and even private thereby changing the narratives, especially through what the Wennovation is doing,” he noted categorically.
