The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria(SMEDAN) has urged participants in the Abuja Centre for Entrepreneurship (ACE) Project’s Training of Trainers programme to become catalysts for producing a new generation of innovative, technology-driven and globally competitive Nigerian entrepreneurs.
The charge was delivered by a Director, Mr. Onesi Lawani, who represented the Director General and Chief Executive Officer of SMEDAN, Mr. Charles Odii, at the opening of the two-week intensive training programme in Abuja.
Addressing the participants, he congratulated them on their selection, revealing that the programme attracted more than 1,100 applications.
He said the Project Management Consortium shortlisted 80 candidates across the Business Management and Artificial Intelligence tracks before conducting further interviews that produced the final 30 participants.
According to him, the trainees are expected to emerge as ACE-certified trainers equipped to mentor young Nigerians in leveraging technology, innovation and creativity to establish and scale investment-ready businesses.
He noted that while significant funding opportunities are available for startups in Nigeria, the country continues to face a shortage of investment-ready enterprises capable of attracting available capital.
He therefore urged participants to focus on nurturing entrepreneurs who can build scalable businesses with global competitiveness.
The DG identified fintech, agritech, healthtech, logistics and mobility, as well as the creative economy including digital media, fashion, gaming, animation and film as priority sectors with strong growth potential under the ACE Project.
Highlighting Nigeria’s position as Africa’s leading startup ecosystem and home to five of the continent’s eight unicorns, he challenged the participants to help develop young entrepreneurs capable of building billion-dollar enterprises and contributing to Nigeria’s ambition of becoming one of the world’s top ten economies.
He expressed confidence that the two-week training would strengthen participants’ commitment to the objectives of the ACE Project while enhancing Nigeria’s entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem.
The Abuja Centre for Entrepreneurship (ACE) is a flagship entrepreneurship and innovation initiative of SMEDAN, implemented in partnership with the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).
The project is designed to strengthen Nigeria’s entrepreneurship ecosystem through entrepreneurship education, digital innovation, business incubation and acceleration, institutional capacity development and policy support.
The initiative aims to identify and support young Nigerians with innovative ideas and high growth potential by providing them with the knowledge, skills, mentorship and networks needed to build scalable, globally competitive enterprises.
