Don’t give up on your vision, entrepreneur urges youths

Founder of Team Eagle’s Global Network, Faith Oriowo, has stressed the need to always see to the end any project one starts, adding that this is the secret of success. 

Oriowo stated this during the launching of the Co-hubNg, an extension of Volunteer with Eryn (Vowen Africa) on Sunday, October 30.

Oriowo, who was a guest speaker at the event, explained that failing is part of the journey towards success, adding that there’s something to learn from failure which will then drive one towards success.

He said, “What you’re doing now, believe in it. If you have faith, in the thing that you’re doing, the world will know.”

In her welcome address, the founder of the Co-hubNg and Vowen Africa, Olaitan Taiwo, said Vowen Africa came out of love to give something not regular and explained that theres a kind of peace that comes with showing up and volunteering. 

Speaking on the vision and goals of the Co-hubNg, Taiwo said, “it is to be a globally-recognised hub for Africa creatives and support the ideas aimed to fix social issues by providing space and encouraging collaborations among social entrepreneurs. 

She added the passion of the hub is to be “a social innovator, who identifies and fixes a social problem in Africa towards achieving the United Nations Social Development Goals (SDGs).

“The idea of the Co-hubNg is to give everyone a space where we will see ourselves as one, not competitors; where we can always leverage on each other’s ideas.

“It is to ensure maximisation of collaboration, including non-governmental organisations (NGOs), such that people can come together to work with other to achieve maximum effects.”

On how Vowen Africa started, Olaitan said it started four years ago, October 31, and that it evolved from just an individual to push people to discover themselves and do well in business. 

“The goal of Vowen Africa is to bring individuals up to give something that have, no matter how small; discover themselves via service selflessly, not eye service,” she said.

On their role with nation building, she said the essence is building one Africa to solve the social problem of unskilled youth and to incorporate social inclusion, prioritizing sustainability and gaining economic empowerment as an individual so that unemployed youth can be reduced. 

The founder also mentioned that volunteering has paved way for her and encouraged other volunteers and NGOs present to position themselves to get the better of it whenever they go out to volunteer. 

She added that Vowen Africa is taking it a bit further this year, so it won’t be the usual volunteering, but strategic volunteering to evolve other private organisations that have fantastic ideas they are solving, not just NGOs, hence the creation of the hub. 

She said the Co-hubNg space is to give the volunteers a platform to deliver and maximise the skills they have to help them deliver the best. 

Speaking on the organisations Vowen Africa has collaborated with in the past four years, she mentioned that they’ve worked with 13 SDGs for the UN in two states majorly (Ibadan and Lagos) and over 27 organisations, which include SplashFm, ABC Foundation, Zonta CLUB international, Nimbiz, among others.

Others present at the event were the founder of Hopehub Africa, Fiyinfoluwa Olajolo; founder of May Coutures, Temitayo Oluyede; Founder of Entrepreneurs Motivation Award (EMA), Mr Abiodun; National Coordinator of good deeds day, Nigeria, Mr Bamidele Adetola; Founder of Sam Kayode Foundation, Samuel Kayode, among others.