Kasim Sumaina in Abuja
The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM) has empowered about 2000 Nigerian youths to become entrepreneurs and run successful business ventures, as part of efforts to trim unemployment rate in the country.
The Senior pastor TREM vision house, Max Gbinije, disclosed this at the seventh edition of the Church’s Business summit in Abuja recently.
Gbinije, stressed that skill acquisition was important to enable people understand the business world and that’s why the church embarked on the programme last year.
The senior pastor noted that over the years, the church had empowered youths with start-up capital but such money were not effectively utilised because the youths do not have the required skills.
He observed that people needed to be able to do things for themselves, “if we don’t train them, how do they get to know what to do. Before now, what we’ve done is that we give out start-ups to people from 200,000 or 300,000 for people to start, but there has always been the challenge of utilisation.
“So, we decided that as against giving starts ups to empower them with the skills they need to be able to do their business. The very best among them are then giving start-ups.”
He added, “last year, we started this skills acquisition programme and trained over 600 people, and this year the number is over as well. I think that’s a lot of empowerment. We have empowered close to 2000 people in the last couple of years.
Gbinije, noted that the training has eleven specialties to include; tailoring, soap making, paint making, disinfectants production, catering, make-up, phone repair, computer repairs, photography, event management amongst others.
Speaking in same vein, the Chief Executive Officer of coscharis, Cosmas Maduka motors, while addressing the youths at the summit, advised them to be self- reliant and not wait for white collar jobs adding that getting the right skills is a good start.
He narrated that he started his business with just N200 after acquiring skills for seven years. He said he built on his vision with integrity, courage, patience and the fear of God while urging youths to emulate same.
Maduka, however regretted that the Nigerian environment was not right for investment or business due to the insecurity problems and called on the federal government to immediately address the problem so that real investment can come into the country.
According to him, “The current investment in the country is exploitative. Government has a lot to do, there is no need for us to fool ourselves.
“Those investing are capitalist they have made money already but nobody loves money more than his life. When you are coming from the airport and someone with two AK47 is escorting you, you know you are going to the war front and you can’t make investment in a war front, so we need to fix this country and get a level of confidence where true investors will come.
“People who are coming now, have something to take out they are not coming for plan not five years or ten years Investment,” Maduka noted.
