Fidelity bank trains youths on entrepreneurial skills

To eradicate the scourge of unemployment, Fidelity Bank Plc, in collaboration with Gazelle Academy and University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), have empowered 300 youths with entrepreneurial skills.

The programme, which is part of the Bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives, is targeted at creating a new breed of entrepreneurs among Nigeria’s youth population.

Speaking at the launch of the five-day programme held at the University of Nigeria Nsukka, the Bank’s Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Nnamdi Okonkwo, said the programme seeks to empower the university community, especially students with business skills.

Reiterating the bank’s commitment to making youths self-reliant, Okonkwo said unemployment persists because young people have been denied opportunities to grow their passions into thriving business ventures.

“In a national survey jointly sponsored by the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the Education Trust Fund (ETF), about 61 percent of 20 organisations rated graduates poor in skills needed in the work environment such as literacy, entrepreneurship, analytical, problem-solving and decision-making skills,” he explained.

On the scope of the programme, Okonkwo said that the students were trained on tailoring and make-up, explaining that the exercise provided them with knowledge and first-hand experience in developing the skills.

Okonkwo, who was represented by Head, Anambra-Enugu-Ebonyi Regional Bank, Fidelity Bank Plc, Leonard Ezugwu, said, “Nigerian youths are only exposed to theoretical education without…practical entrepreneurship, vocational and skill acquisition training.” He added, “We want to create a positive mind-set among them, shifting them ‘from paid-labour mentality to business owners and employers.”