REPORT ON INTERFACE

By Ben Ezeamalu


July 26, 2010 02:31AM
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There is a creative economy in Nigeria that needs to be developed, and there is a need to harness the different potentials, abilities, talents, skills, and bring them on a common platform for expression. This was the purpose of a gathering tagged ‘Nigeria and the Creative Economy,' a forum where young and prospective entrepreneurs from all walks of lives met to network and exchange ideas.



According to The Interface, the organizers of the forum which held on Saturday in Lagos, there is a gap in creativity in the country and so creative minds need a lot of encouragement in this part of the world. "We need a platform where we can collectively build capacity, where we can collectively find mentors that can mentor people in different areas, where we can share our stories, learn our lessons, make our mistakes, correct ourselves, and grow our businesses," said Ferdinand Adimefe, one of the organizers. Some of the speakers at the gathering included Pai Gamde, HiTV's Head of Human Resource and Administration; Uche Nworah, a writer; Tosin Otitoju, poet and lecturer at the Systems Engineering Department, University of Lagos; Uche Eze of Bella Naija, an Entertainment, Fashion, and Lifestyle website.

Youth and excellence

In her presentation titled ‘A Life of Excellence - Duck or Eagle,' Ms. Gamde encouraged the gathering to imbibe excellence as a way of life in all their endeavours. "Excellence is a way of life, it is not a destination," she said. "The difference between excellence and mediocre is the willingness to go beyond your limitation and operate your comfort zone." She enjoined the youth to celebrate their accomplishments and at the same time raise their bar a bit higher. Mr. Nworah also advised the youth to be independent while striving for excellence. "You really have to make a lot of effort for yourself," he said. "As a creative person, you have to make a drive for yourself. Whatever you decide to do, there is a space for you. There is a lot of opportunity in this country."

Motivated youth

Some of the participants at the forum expressed satisfaction at being a part of the gathering. Adewale Oreshade, final year Law student of the University of Lagos, said he had been motivated by the presentations he had witnessed. "I think all of them have been able to simplify and demystify phenomenon and philosophies we've always had in our hearts and have been afraid of all our lives in the entrepreneur world, in the leadership world, in a managerial society and realm," said Mr. Oreshade.

Another participant, Taiwo Fapohunda, said the knowledge gained from the forum would be invested in his recently established cleaning business in Ketu. "When Uche (Eze) said something about structure and strategy. Strategy has always been a big deal for me. Setting up a company, what's the strategy? What's the plan? What are the research and goals behind it? But now I've learnt that it is basically careful planning for future forecast. It's been wonderful being here," he said.


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