By Lucy Ogalue

The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has intensified efforts to promote youth entrepreneurship through the Students Entrepreneurship Activity Hub (SEA-HUB) initiative in secondary schools.

Mrs Maureen Achonu, Assistant Director at SMEDAN, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the agency was doing this in partnership with the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ).

Achonu spoke on the sideline of the sensitisation programme, held at Government Girls Science College (GGSC), Sabon Wuse, in Tafa Local Government Area of Niger State.

According to her, the initiative aims to redirect students from white-collar job expectations to becoming self-reliant job creators.

Achonu said that the initiative was an integration of SMEDAN’s National Schools Entrepreneurship Programme (NSEP) and GIZ’s SEA-HUB model.

She said it was tailored to train students on how to start a businesses with little or no capital by using available resources within their school environments

“They are taught to think critically, identify opportunities, and add value wherever they find themselves.

“We start by catching them young, so by the time they leave school, they are already equipped with the skills to run a business and even employ others,” she said.

Achonu said that the programme would be stepped down to selected teachers and students who would return to their schools as SEA-HUB ambassadors.

She said that they would form entrepreneurship clubs and sustain the learning through peer engagement and competitions.

Also speaking, Mr Daniel Loguma, Deputy Director, School Clubs and Societies, Niger State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, expressed the commitment of his office to the initiative.

Loguma was represented by Mr Yakubu Badamasi, Desk Officer for the School Farm Programme at the Niger State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education.

According to him, the ministry is fully backing the initiative and sees it as key to grooming a generation of self-reliant youths.

He said the programme was designed to teach students the fundamentals of entrepreneurship, including innovation, risk-taking and business management.

“We want to give these children the knowledge and skills that will make them future employers.

“The aim is for them to explore business opportunities in their environment and replicate what they have learned through SEA-HUB clubs in their respective schools,” Loguma said.

He said that a total of 40 participants, 24 students and 16 teachers were drawn from eight secondary schools in Tafa Local Government Area for the training.

Sharing his experience, Solomon David, a student from Government Day Secondary School (GDSS), Ija Gwari, expressed delight at the initiative.

“By the knowledge we have learnt here, we can make money for ourselves. I want to say thank you to the organisers of this programme,” he said.

Also, Miss Agatha Monday, a student from Government Day Secondary School (GDSS), Gauraka, said that she had learnt so much about SEA-HUB.

“It teaches us how to educate ourselves and learn more.

“As a student, you should not wait for someone to employ you. This programme has shown us how to be self-employed,” she said.

With students eager to apply what they have learned, both SMEDAN and GIZ are committed to expanding the SEA-HUB initiative across more states, building a stronger line of young Nigerian entrepreneurs. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Kadiri Abdulrahman