The PAC Foundation, the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) arm of Pan-African Capital Holdings, has conducted training for young entrepreneurs on financial advisory, creating a market for businesses, and finance management.
The three-day training, held recently in Lagos, included facilitators from digital marketing and business analysis, among others.
Mr Chris Oshiafi, the Group MD/CEO of Pan African Capital Holdings, emphasised the need to train young entrepreneurs at an early stage.
He highlighted that many lack mentorship amidst the challenges faced by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria.
He emphasised that nowadays, a lot of small businesses lack a strong foundation in finance, management, and market creation for their businesses.
“The idea behind the PAC Foundation is to provide opportunities and training to young entrepreneurs on the basic concepts necessary to start, build, and establish strong corporate governance in a business.
The Foundation’s primary objective is to engage them early and act as financial advisors when the need arises,” he stated.
Oshiafi noted that this training was just the initial step, indicating that the PAC Foundation aims to extend its reach to more young entrepreneurs across the country.
He stressed the importance of fostering SMEs to tackle youth unemployment and bolster the economy’s self-reliance, ultimately stimulating domestic consumption and attracting foreign exchange earnings.
Agbons Igiewe, the Chief Operating Officer of Ziza Digital and one of the facilitators pointed out the challenges faced by young entrepreneurs in Nigeria, such as acquiring the right customers and effective product marketing due to network limitations and inadequate branding compared to larger organisations.
Looking ahead, she emphasised the significance of planning and marketing strategies for young entrepreneurs.
Understanding the target audience and delivering value with excellent customer service and efficient turnaround time were highlighted as crucial aspects that can set small businesses apart from larger organisations.
She praised the organisers of the training, highlighting the importance of preparing individuals for entrepreneurship from an early stage, giving them a competitive edge even before leaving university.
Temitope Ekundayo, Co-CEO of Printivo Limited and another facilitator emphasised the lengthy process of building a business and encouraged young entrepreneurs to be prepared for the challenges ahead.
He also urged undergraduates to start considering alternative paths while in school.
“It’s a commendable initiative by the PAC Foundation. Young entrepreneurs must be prepared for the challenges ahead.
They need to critically analyse their ideas, business growth, revenue generation, operational models, hiring strategies, and target customers.
These considerations should guide these young entrepreneurs into the market,” he shared.
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