Emmanuel Inyang Foundation: Akwa Ibom is pregnant with sound Entrepreneurs:
Engineer Emmanuel Inyang is the CEO of Emmanuel Inyang Foundation. He is a Chemical Engineer with eight years experience in the Oil and Gas Industry. As an Entrepreneurial minded fellow, he talks in the interview about the Foundation and how it has been structured to solve numerous problems affecting young entrepreneurs in Akwa Ibom State.
Excerpts:
I will like you to speak about Emmanuel Inyang Foundation.
Emmanuel Inyang Foundation is basically a foundation that is out to help Akwa People in Areas of Entrepreneurship. The focus is mostly on the youth; the younger generation. The foundation is to help this category of persons see reason to take after skills and trade. Gone are those days that people say I am a graduate and should be given white-collar jobs. Currently, entrepreneurs across the world are doing exploit.
So, the foundation wants to make it known to the young people of Akwa Ibom state that they should take after skills and trade. This is basically good in the sense that being a graduate does not stop one from taking after skills and trade rather, it complement your educational qualification and it helps one to move even in the face of scarcity of white-collar jobs. Also, it helps put food on the your table as well contribute to the economy of the state.
What spurs you up to start Emmanuel Inyang Foundation in Akwa Ibom?
The inspiration came from a number of sources. First, as a young person, I was bless early in life. To me, this blessing was not through recommendation. It was entirely God’s blessing to me. Why am saying this is that, I was in the polytechnic but as God will have it, I got into Mobil Training School; I got trained.
Fortunately for me, I was among the people that were picked. So, this is evidence of God’s blessing to me at a very young age; I see it that way. Currently, I have worked for about eight years in the oil and gas industry. So, I believe if I was bless at a young age, I should give other young people the opportunity and platform to also excel.
This is how the inspiration came about. Although, it is biting financial but you have to prioritise what you want. For me to host the Conference in Akwa Ibom State for Akwa Ibom people exhibiting Akwa Ibom product; from the dinks, Champ Malt was used, also zobo made in Akwa Ibom.
Everything that was used in that event were made in Akwa Ibom product. For me to do that course was to give Akwa Ibom people the platform for them to exhibit themselves.
I want to believe that for you to start this Foundation a lot of factors actually propel you to do so. What are those observable features you notice about businesses across the state and you want your foundation to address them?
As a young person, I have seen fellow young Akwa Ibomites who have graduated from the Universities and other tertiary institutions but they are without work. I was opportune to have a work that is good for me but other young people are not that opportune. I mean they do not have the opportunity I had years back. Well, it is only a few that can boast of this fortunate the rest are of the less opportune category.
Most people have Degrees: some first-class, some second class but they do not have work; I knows good number of them. Some of them have gone into skill acquisition. So, on my own part I said, I can provide a platform for them to come and tell their story to the Akwa Ibom people and the world at large on what they can do because actually, they are complementing themselves.
The academic qualifications they have, they are struggling to complement it. So, having realised that these people do not have platform to excel, I chose to offer the platform for them to come and exhibit their Entrepreneurial worth.
Who are the shareholders in Emmanuel Inyang Foundation?
Concerning the Emmanuel Inyang Foundation, this is the first event the foundation hosted and as the progenitor of that foundation I can tell you it is self sponsored. The foundation is a platform that we used to organise Akwa Ibom Entrepreneurial Conference and we hope to use that same platform to liaise with Akwa Ibom entrepreneurs.
I can attest to the fact that there are aspiring entrepreneurs in Akwa Ibom State. Like, I said in my opening speech that during the ‘Meet and Greet Entrepreneurs’ session, some challenges were spotted out by our young entrepreneurs. Emmanuel Inyang as a person hopes to meet these challenges although I may not be able to meet all. Not in a year, not in two years but gradually the some total of effort I am going to put in as individual will meet those needs.
However, I can assure you that every dime kobo that was used to host this conference is from my pocket. The meet and Greet session we did, I did not collect a dime from the young entrepreneurs we met. We took pictures, made videos and help circulate those pictures and videos online. We helped publicised their products without charging them for the services.
For somebody to come and advertise your business place, you have to pay a huge amount of money, but I did that selflessly without collecting money from these persons. Because I want their voices to be heard. I want the product and services made in Akwa Ibom State to be heard that is my goal. So, Emmanuel Inyang Foundation does not have a stakeholders or shareholders, personally, I am self-sponsored.
You said during the ‘Meet and Greet Entrepreneurs’ session people outlined a number of factors posing threats to their businesses. What are those challenges?
The challenges are similar to the challenges every other entrepreneurs in Nigeria face. They are all similar. First, they talk of lack of capital. With capital you can buy equipment, buy machinery and the rest. Like the agriculturist we met, with capital they can secure human resources by means of acquiring labour in their farm.
We all know that when you go into commercial farming, you will need people to weed, and if you cannot afford this then you know what weed will do to your crops. Equally, if you get labour and you can not pay them for the services then you are creating problem for yourself. Another factor militating against the growth of businesses in Akwa Ibom State is poor infrastructure. For instance for a person that uses electricity as a major source of power supply like fashion designers.
Some of them have industrial machines which are powered by electricity. They will always buy fuel because there is no constant light in Akwa Ibom State and considering the cost of fuel per litre in the country, it is safe to conclude that their profits at the end of every service they render is always meager. Also, during the cost of interaction we discovered that some entrepreneurs, their mindset towards business is not the mindset that will enable them thrive in their business carrier.
Hence, we brought them to the conference for them to hear from the business specialist and industry owners so has to develop the correct mindset because if the are able to adjust their mindset due to reorientation, they will be able to do well in whatever field they are.
So how have you positioned this Foundation in other to address these numerous challenges confronting young entrepreneurs in the state?
Due to the fact that the Foundation is a self-sponsored and individual effort, we are working with timeline. The timeline we are working, we are looking at third quarter of next year if we can we will procure one to three machines. This is because when we got back we played the video and we are able to know what machines were needed most.
We visited a number of places from fashion designers to those dealing with food consumables, even those into farming and woodwork they need machines to operate at a larger scale. As an individual, I will see the ones I can afford. I will like to state that this is nongovernmental organisation.
So, as an individual running the foundation, I also have financial obligations so, when I fulfill my obligations, whatever is left will be wheeled to this project. Like I made mention of priority at the outset of this interview, I will strive to a accomplish this task before the foundation within the time frame.
On a final note, what is your dream for Emmanuel Inyang Foundation in the next few years?
When I see great Foundations like the Bill Gate and Melinda Foundation and other great Foundations, what they do; like they export help to other countries. Bill Gate Foundation do come to Nigeria and help in Polio eradication. Dangote foundation does great jobs too. I will like to take a out UBA foundation who gives scholarship to students annually. So, this are the same directions we are going.
Our focus is our to build young people on Entrepreneurship and help them stand tall in the Entrepreneurial world. Similarly, the next step will be to go into our university system, do capacity building for the university students so that before they leave school, they will start making money for themselves.
Like one of the winners of the Emmanuel Inyang Essay competition rightly said that the money I gave to her will help her pay part of her school fees and part of her accommodation bills. So, you see that will help her start first semester already without any problem.