Nairametrics
The Central Bank of Nigeria has launched the Tertiary Institutions Entrepreneurship Scheme (TIES) designed to grant financial support to undergraduates and graduates with entrepreneurial skills.
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Godwin Emefiele, launched the TIES initiative in Abuja yesterday.
The scheme is another intervention of the CBN aimed at addressing the dual challenge of youth unemployment and underemployment in Nigeria.
What the CBN is saying
Given his speech during the event, Emefiele said that it had become important for governments to put in place policy measures to support entrepreneurial development among our youth, hence the need for the scheme.
He said, “With about 600,000 students graduating yearly from Nigerian tertiary institutions, and without the commensurate employment opportunities in both the public and private sectors, it has become imperative that government, at all levels, puts in place policy measures to support entrepreneurial development among our youth.
“Such measures would create an enabling business ecosystem that supports innovation and enables the youth to unleash their entrepreneurial potential, by redirecting their focus from seeking white-collar jobs to a culture of entrepreneurship development.
“The ecosystem should provide support in re-orientating, training, and providing a financing model apt to the peculiarity of the sector within which the businesses operate.”
The program, which was established in collaboration with Nigerian polytechnics and universities, aims to unlock the potential of graduate entrepreneurs by shifting their focus away from white-collar occupations, towards entrepreneurship as a means of economic development and job creation.
