The Bank of Industry (BoI) has said that it is venturing into entrepreneurial training for Nigerian youths to harness and maximise their potential, and will back them by establishing tech hubs to nurture the ecosystem in the country.
The Managing Director, Mr. Olukayode Pitan, stated this at the BoI-UNILAG Incubation and Co-working Hub opening and commissioning in University of Lagos.
According to Mr. Pitan, the Bank would be supporting the establishment of tech hubs across the country, similar to the one commissioned in UNILAG, in recognition of the talented youths in universities and the need to channel youths to more productive and impactful ends, rather than social vices like internet fraud.
The Managing Director further stated that the bank remained committed to providing funding to support credible and bankable ideas that emerge from the tech hubs to enable them to start operations and scale into viable businesses, stating that embracing technology and infusing it into business processes will make organisations and the country more competitive while adding that the tech industry can be a major pillar of a diversified economy.
“It can create exciting jobs that encourage our young people to stay in Nigeria even as they work and compete globally,” he said. “BoI is happy to support this programme because it aligns with our mission to transform Nigeria’s industrial sector by providing financial and business support services so that new businesses will emerge and existing enterprise will thrive,” he said. He noted that the overall objective is to ensure that the bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) investments generate better benefits for the country, stressing that a hub like this gives young people the opportunity to create legitimate wealth while adding their own quota to economic development of Lagos state.