DESTINATION 2020 & PROJECT 3I3R (pronounced TRITAR)
The Vision 2020 being touted by the President Umar Yar' Adua's led administration is very laudable and inspiring. It is a vision, big enough to excite, clear enough to motivate and sufficiently specific to be measurable. However, when one considers the current direction of the administration's policy and the general pace of growth and activities within the country, it seems like a very unrealistic agenda; a mere tantalizing mirage to soothe the psyche of Nigerians, perhaps with the intent of diverting our attention away from the present by riveting the imagination on a distant fantastic future.
Be that as it may, the Vision 2020 is not unachievable; Nigeria has the potential to become one of the world's top 20 economies and to become a significant force to reckon with both in international economics and politics. We are endowed with an abundance of resources, natural and human but we lack a decisive and strategic leadership to harness the immense resource within the country and convert potential to possibilities.
The realization of the Vision 2020 will require a radical shift in thinking, leadership, strategic planning and in the general conduct of the Nigerian affair. We would need to embrace a radical approach to sustainable development and re-imagine our path to the desired future. The Vision which is but a dream must now be backed up with a clearly articulated strategy for its actualization. This strategy, amongst other things must be an inclusive strategy that allows a substantial proportion of the population to be integrated into the change process else the required momentum for such gargantuan changes will never be realized; it must also focus on education and knowledge acquisition as the world's economy is now a knowledge based economy; it must remain long term focused, not sacrificing the goal for quick wins or media blowouts; it must effectively harness the inherent entrepreneurial spirit among the average Nigerian, and the passion for self fulfilment. Also, sustainability of the strategy must be ingrained in the design of any programs or initiatives borne out of it.
The Nigerian economy suffers two main ills; the economic activities of the nation are concentrated in a single sector & a few major cities. Petroleum is the main stay of the national economy on one hand, and Lagos alone is responsible for over 70% of the nation's income and a fewer elite group control the wealth of the nation. The second ill is that small businesses are not growing in Nigeria; there exists no framework to encourage small and medium scale enterprises. In the United States for Instance, the SMBs are 99.9% of 25.8 million businesses registered are SMEs. In the EU 99.9% of businesses also fall into this category. Globally SMEs account for 99% of business numbers, 70% of the world’s work force and contribute 60% of the world’s GDP.
One of the most effective ways to ensure the growth of these SMEs is through the use of business incubator programs. The concept of the business incubator is not new. Coordinated apprenticeship and the provision of support mechanisms for start-up businesses officially began in the US, in the Batavia industrial centre started in 1959. There is need to develop such programs, in partnership with the organised private sector in Nigeria and equip them towards stimulating the growth of Nigeria’s SMEs in areas such as agriculture, manufacturing & technology but especially in services. This is in line with the economies of the USA and other developed countries whose major export is services and skills. This will ensure the place of Nigeria within the continent and across the globe.
The forms of business support will cover the following areas:
* Intelligence (All participants are educated on the job on entrepreneurship and management skills acquisition).
* Innovation & Strategy (All participants benefit from highly specialised expertise obtained from administrators and contributors to the program; research can be jointly undertaken by different groups).
* Infrastructure (All participants can benefit from shared infrastructure especially expensive technology such as processing plants, etc).
* Resources (Resources in terms of finance, specialised human resources, etc can be secured as a group and utilised for the benefit of all participants in the program).
* Relationships (All participants will benefit from sharing relationships and connections to grow each others’ businesses).
* Regulation ( Government can better address issues affecting SMEs as a group, and policies will not be made independent of industry players).
The establishment of business incubators for different sectors of the economy is a practical way that both the private and public sector can partner to drive economic development of Nigeria and enhance our position in the committee of nations. It is a clear path to achieving progress and development through an all inclusive approach independent of dynamics of governance in modern day Nigeria.
The path to a buoyant economy and to the realization of the Vision 2020 lies on the road of self actualisation, entrepreneurial awakening and self sustenance through the growth of SMEs in the country. The incubation program is a veritable tool to help bring this about. The complete modality for its implementation will be worked out based on the specific requirements of participants per time and the direction of the national economy, but it must be embraced at a conceptual level and the right framework developed for its implementation.
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