A business and economy expert, Felix Nnamdi Unachukwu, has said that developing a strong Small and Medium Enterprises culture was one of the best ways of mitigating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Nigeria’s economy.
The outbreak of the pandemic had forced the shutting down of several businesses in many parts of the world including in Nigeria where individuals and families continue to witness a drastic drop in income as a result of the situation.
In a statement on Tuesday, Unachukwu, a Lagos-based coach and Chief Executive and founder of Dax Tech Ltd, said that all stakeholders across the country must rise in unison to strengthen SMEs to help the economy fully recover and benefit all citizens.
He said, “SMEs are the only hope of every society and if the growth is not proportional to the rising number of school graduates, then there will be a big gap that is dangerous.
“Small businesses are the livewire of the nation. They are critical to economic breakthrough and can prevent the slide to recession.
“Regrettably, the university system is designed to produce employable graduates without an option B that prepares them to create jobs for themselves and others. Interested young businesses can sign up at https://linktr.ee/biznessmatterscoach for some help on how to go about this.”
Speaking further, Unachukwu said that the intervention became necessary as African countries continued to struggle with the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their economies.
He added, “Each year, many young people are being churned out from universities without any hope of getting a decent job and with little knowledge of setting up a business for themselves, which has made many resort to crimes and fraudulent means of making money.
“My non-governmental initiative which I titled Bizness Matters was born out of my concern for African youth and it is one of the ways I want to give back to society.”
In Nigeria, thousands of persons have lost their jobs since March when the government introduced a lockdown to curb the spread of Coronavirus in the country.
There are fears that the number of persons in this category could swell in the coming weeks as companies continue to grapple with the economic effect of the crisis.
