₦airaland Forum

YOUNG AFRICAN ENTREPRENEURS WILL CHANGE NARRATIVE ABOUT THE CONTINENT – OSINBAJO


* VP adds: This generation of Africans is the smartest ever

REMARKS BY HIS EXCELLENCY PROF. YEMI OSINBAJO, SAN, GCON, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA, AT THE FOUNDER’S PRESIDENTIAL DIALOGUE, 2019 TONY ELUMELU FOUNDATION (TEF) FORUM, AT THE TRANSCORP HILTON, SATURDAY, JULY 27, 2019.

Protocol.

No matter how young or old we might be, our lives are essentially stories that are being written and revised every day. And those stories range from what is, to what could be, from the reality we are born into, to the ambitions and dreams that we create, desire and those we strive to achieve.

As I prepared for this event, I encountered a few of the many stories of the businesses and lives transformed by the Tony Elumelu Foundation and its various initiatives.

We have Mavis Nduchwa, who trained for the hospitality industry, and went on to a career as a TV presenter, and is today a successful farmer with the goal of feeding her native country, Botswana.

A decade ago, a Nigerian, Zion Oshiobugie, looked ahead at life as a domestic servant for a family member. Today, he is the proud CEO of a consulting company based in the same city where he started out as a domestic servant.

There is Mohammed Daoufhi of Morocco, founder of a 3-D printing company that produces affordable artificial limbs. Every day, he makes it happen for someone, he gives life to someone who had thought all life was lost when they lost their limb.

Cameroon’s Michel Nkuindija actually tells, and retells stories for a living through his company, Noohkema Game Studios, which develops video games that are based on traditional Africa myths and legends. His goal is to change the way Africa is perceived globally, and to give young Africans a reason to be proud of their cultural identities.

Across the continent in Uganda, Joel Cherop is a farmer, pushing the boundaries of agriculture using irrigation technologies, through the Atari River Integrated Irrigation Initiative Limited (ARII). Every day, he makes a difference in farming in his country.

From the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Lino Alain Muniono, used seed capital to start an architectural firm, and Jose Kimoalou founded Wapimed, a health tech company providing quality healthcare across communities in the DRC.

Benin Republic’s Vital Sounouvou is promoting trade across Africa with his fintech start-up, Exportunity, a virtual market that is now directly supported by a leading African banking institution, UBA. In the age of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), there is perhaps no bigger or better opportunity to be exploring right now.

There are the hundreds who are also here and these stories are just a few of the thousands told and experienced by entrepreneurs, whose lives have been touched and transformed by the Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme (TEEP).

And even all of those thousands of inspirational TEEP stories are themselves, just a representation, a fraction, of what is out there across the continent. A landscape emboldened by multitudes of young people who are refusing to wallow in self-pity or frustration; who have realized that conquering the challenges of their environments are the milestones for outstanding success. Young men and women who have come to fully understand the transformational power of technology in the 21st century.

Here in this room is a great representation of what the private sector can accomplish. It is also hugely inspiring to us, as governments, and I am glad that a number of African governments are represented here, we are challenged to create the enabling environment for all of these young entrepreneurs to thrive.

Our continent continues to be defined by unsavoury and unwholesome stories, which do not often accurately represent the reality of life and opportunity. The people in this room are the perfect and long-awaited counterpoints to those one-dimensional narratives of Africa that have sadly gained ground over the years.

Outside on the streets of every village, town and city in Africa, are many more individual embodiments of the potentials of this great continent. But we can change some of the false and some of the true but unfortunate narratives of Africa. We must find young entrepreneurs and provide opportunities for capacity building. Our school curriculums must emphasize, not just Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics which we are doing now, but Critical Thinking and Entrepreneurship. And the promises that we have made of establishing Entrepreneurship Banks must be kept.

By birthing this particular intervention, TEEP, Tony Elumelu has compelled us to focus on what really matters, our youth and their dreams. The message to Africa’s emerging business giants is a clear one, how and what can you contribute, like Tony Elumelu, to empowering the next generation, helping them to realize their own dreams? And you gathered here in this room, helping you write, rewrite and revise the next chapter of your continent-changing stories.

Permit me a word to you, young entrepreneurs, I want to say to you that you live in the best of times. Always be suspicious of those who remind us of the “good old days.” They are probably suffering from a bit of memory loss.

Fareed Zakaria our moderator today, made a fascinating statement to the 2012 graduating Harvard class, where he made the commencement speech. He said that the smart phones that the young men and women in the room had in their hands, had more computing power than all the computing power in the Apollo aircraft that landed the first men on the moon.

Today, as we waited out here, I reminded him of that statement and his reply was, “Yes that was 2012. Today the smart phones these young men and women have, has 100 times more power, than all of the computing power of the Apollo aircraft that landed men on the moon.”

Today is the most advanced moment in human history and your generation is the smartest that has ever lived. We are holding our breaths for the incredible achievements you will make.
God bless Africa.

Thank you.

Released by
Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity
Office of the Vice President
27 July, 2019

Brilliant Speech as usual by Prof!

sholatech:
Brilliant Speech as usual by Prof!

speech that was mixed and mastered on a cow farm in Aso Rock for gullible Nigerians such as you!

He is speaking of me you know !!!!! Afamed come and see Osinbanjo speaking of me .. I am coming

FarahAideed:
He is speaking of me you know !!!!! Afamed come and see Osinbanjo speaking of me .. I am coming

That's the spirit. Our Government is for the young entrepreneurs and Nigerians at large. Unlike the previous Government that looted the Nigerian Treasury and even looted PDP supporters brain too.
Nigeria and Nigerians shall be great again

Afamed:
That's the spirit. Our Government is for the young entrepreneurs and Nigerians at large. Unlike the previous Government that looted the Nigerian Treasury and even looted PDP supporters brain too.

I didnt say you should come here and start twisting facts as usual . When will you accept that this is the worst govt in Nigerias history ? When?

simonlee:
speech that was mixed and mastered on a cow farm in Aso Rock for gullible Nigerians such as you!

Wailing without boarder

FarahAideed:
I didnt say you should come here and start twisting facts as usual . When will you accept that this is the worst govt in Nigerias history ? When?

I will accept the fact that this government is the worse if you can show me the genuine and legal billion you made under the previous Government and how this present government has been the reason why your billion vanished within 4years in power. Don't tell me TSA blocked your means of rubbing Peter to pay Paul. Because I have plenty of Una in NNPC whom government have not stopped their salary, whom government have not stopped their allowances and other benefits. But they are the real wailers in the street because their dubious weekly/ daily means of enrichment is no more

Afamed:
I will accept the fact that this government is the worse if you can show me the genuine and legal billion you made under the previous Government and how this present government has been the reason why your billion vanished under their adminstration.

I never made billion under the previous govt but Iade millions of Naira from a service I ran for A Major Telco till Buhari extortionally fined them and they dropped such service , I also ran a popular online store which had to fold up when our sales dropped under your useless govt .

FarahAideed:
I didnt say you should come here and start twisting facts as usual . When will you accept that this is the worst govt in Nigerias history ? When?

And don't tell me you are importer of Tramadol whose licence has been revoked

FarahAideed:
I never made billion under the previous govt but Iade millions of Naira from a service I ran for A Major Telco till Buhari extortionally fined them and they dropped such service , I also ran a popular online store which had to fold up when our sales dropped under your useless govt .

Don't be clever by half, why were they fined? Your popular online sales definitely must drop because those patronising you are those benefitting from the dubious deals of rubbing Peter to patronise you.

FarahAideed:
I never made billion under the previous govt but Iade millions of Naira from a service I ran for A Major Telco till Buhari extortionally fined them and they dropped such service , I also ran a popular online store which had to fold up when our sales dropped under your useless govt .

Why were they fined?

Afamed:
Don't be clever by half, why were they fined?

I still insist the fine was extortionist and did more same to the Nigerian economy than good. The fine made the


Telco stop supporting a lot of small Nigerian businesses ,

Stopped Project fame ,

Stopped Who wants to be a millionaire ,

Made many youth ambassadors to be dropped ,

Made many Nigerians in management positions to be sacked and replaced by Indians and south Africans

Caused a stampede if capital flight out of the country

Caused a reduction in Foriegn Investments

And the painful part is that it's Nigerian consumers that ended up paying the fine for MTN not South Africans.

So Mr man can you see how short sighted the govt is

PMB has made it clear in his inaugural speech. That those with genuine business have nothing to fear as they will be encouraged and empowered. It's those with illegal deals like you that need to retrace your steps.

No wonder, I have come to realize those PMB enemies are those whose means of looting the treasury have been blocked.
You definitely have a long way to go. Nigeria shall be great again.
Shame on people like you.

FarahAideed:
I still insist the fine was extortionist and did more same to the Nigerian economy than good. The fine made the


Telco stop supporting a lot of small Nigerian businesses ,

Stopped Project fame ,

Stopped Who wants to be a millionaire ,

Made many youth ambassadors to be dropped ,

Made many Nigerians in management positions to be sacked and replaced by Indians and south Africans

Caused a stampede if capital flight out of the country

Caused a reduction in Foriegn Investments

And the painful part is that it's Nigerian consumers that ended up paying the fine for MTN not South Africans.

So Mr man can you see how short sighted the govt is

Are you not bold enough to tell us what were they fined for?

FarahAideed:
I still insist the fine was extortionist and did more same to the Nigerian economy than good. The fine made the


Telco stop supporting a lot of small Nigerian businesses ,

Stopped Project fame ,

Stopped Who wants to be a millionaire ,

Made many youth ambassadors to be dropped ,

Made many Nigerians in management positions to be sacked and replaced by Indians and south Africans

Caused a stampede if capital flight out of the country

Caused a reduction in Foriegn Investments

And the painful part is that it's Nigerian consumers that ended up paying the fine for MTN not South Africans.

So Mr man can you see how short sighted the govt is

Shame on you for taking your personal gain above 180 million Nigerians

Afamed:
Are you not bold enough to tell us what were they fined for?

They were fined for failure to implement KYC on some subscribers which all other Telcos where also guilty of and the a fine of 5 billion dollars for such was very criminal and extortionist... Nigeria lost more Instead of gaining .

Afamed:
Shame on you for taking your personal gain above 180 million Nigerians

Which personal gain ? I am am saying every Nigerian lost overall due to the shortsightedness of Buhari .. Buhari is a poor leader take it or leave it

FarahAideed:
Which personal gain ? I am am saying every Nigerian lost overall due to the shortsightedness of Buhari .. Buhari is a poor leader take it or leave it

Could any Nigeria business do that in South Africa and go free?

Afamed:
Could any Nigeria business do that in South Africa and go free?

But MTN went Scot free as far as I am concerned ,..It's was 50 million Nigerians that paid for the fine eventually .

FarahAideed:
Which personal gain ? I am am saying every Nigerian lost overall due to the shortsightedness of Buhari .. Buhari is a poor leader take it or leave it

You are one of the problems in Nigeria. A mere one Nigerian man business with South African in their country.South African could not tolerate Nigerians. Big Shame on you for taking your personal gains above 180 million Nigerians

FarahAideed:
But MTN went Scot free as far as I am concerned ,..It's was 50 million Nigerians that paid for the fine eventually .

Keep quiet. Shame on you

FarahAideed:
But MTN went Scot free as far as I am concerned ,..It's was 50 million Nigerians that paid for the fine eventually .

The implication is simple 2 of 10 of your families, friends and neighbors paid for unscrupulous activities and offence committed by foreigners /MTN which it showed you are in support. Shame on you People like you are in pharmaceutical industries. To them PMB don kill their business. Ask them what biz are they into. Tramadol and Codein importation. Shame on you