Tunde Ekpekurede, chief executive, Learning4living Business School, Warri, Delta State, is a trained civil engineer. He practiced briefly, after which he went to Lagos Business School for a course. Since then he never seemed to have enough of business education, not even after obtaining an MBA from Michael Smurfit Graduate School of Business, University College, Dublin. With the support of a few others, he has embarked on initiative that engages the unemployed youths, graduate as well as teenagers on entrepreneurship development. He spoke toGEOFF IYATSE on the initiative.How come the idea of a business school'I first experienced the transforming power of the type of education provided by business school in the Lagos Business School in 2001. Then I had worked as a civil engineer for nearly 12 years. I earned my first degree in civil engineering in 1989 from the University of Benin. I was the best graduating student in structural engineering that year.One day, my friend, Sam Egube, told me about the Lagos Business School and why I should be there. Based on my work history, he recommended I took the Advance Management Programme (AMP), which cost N440,000 as at 2001. With a wife and four kids to take care, I could not figure out where the money would come from. But my friend persisted, and went on to issue me a cheque for N220,000 ' the 50 per cent deposit required.I went on with the programme. The impact was unbelievable. I was so amazed with the method used by business schools to deliver lecture that the four months I spent at the Lagos business school was just the beginning of my hunger for business education.I went online to search more information about business education. In 2003, I headed for the Michael Smurfit Graduate School of Business, University College, Dublin, to run a full-time MBA programme. Like the Lagos Business School's experience, I just did not seem to get enough. By then I had accumulated a large debt that I needed to pay. So I got a job in Dublin as a general manager with a Precast Concrete Manufacturing Company. I was transferred to England two years after as pioneer chief executive of the UK operations.I returned to Nigeria in 2008 and was appointed Chief Operating Officer of ABB Powerlines Limited. In 2010, I moved to Warri for a management contract with another company, which didn't work out. I was not keen in getting a new job. It was an opportunity to seek how to fulfill my long dream.I learnt a concept back in the UK called social mobilisation. By this, the government and private institutions try to help the less privileged to navigate jobs that they ordinary would not have been able to access. I knew a lot of persons in Nigeria needed such help but I didn't know how to sell it to any organisation or the government. So, I decided to use my personal funds to establish a business school that will educate disadvantaged people and help them get jobs. We started fully in January 2011. By December 22, 2011 over 400 persons, 90 per cent of whom are graduates, had gone through one of our programmes.A number of companies in Warri have engaged our products with many others asking for recommendations. We seem to be struggling to cope with the demand right now.Do you have other people working with you on the initiative'One person alone could not have done all the trainings. We got financial help from a few persons. But we still do not have right mix of financing. At current level of operations, we will need roughly N85m to run the centre in the next one year. We have very committed staff. Some of them are not on salaries while others are only paid allowances to help impact on the lives the general public.Seventy per cent of the N30m spent in running the centre in 2011 came from sales of my personal belongings. My friend, Egube, who is one of the trustees, has put in over N2m. Another, Joseph Otejere, has put in about one million Naira, while Alex Ighoro, another trustee and an executive of the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM), has pledged free hours of service and management expertise. Staff, some of whom are master's degree holders, makes personal sacrifices to keep the vision going.Are there plans to expand the training to other parts of Niger Delta'We have received numerous requests. A parish of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Asaba, has requested that we come to Asaba, offering to give us a venue and learning facilities. We have not responded to the request yet because it is difficult to explain to a church other costs that go into running a business school. We spend a huge amount of money in buying business cases. We use the same case studies Harvard and the Lagos Business schools use. We also got invitation from a company in Port Harcourt, which we have not responded to yet as well.In 2012, we are hoping to make representation to companies like Shell, Chevron, Mobil, NDDC, DESOPADEC, state governments and other stakeholders to help us in developing the much-needed talent in the Niger Delta. This is the most reliable poverty alleviation strategy we can adopt.Could you speak more on the entrepreneurial programme you run'The programme, which is under the directorate of Joseph Otejere has recorded huge success. It is about nurturing homegrown ideas. The economy of this nation cannot rest solely on oil just as the government alone cannot solve the problem of the country. We are presently talking with the Fate Foundation, Lagos and the African Leadership Academy in South Africa. Otejere, who directs the entrepreneurship programme, will be at the African Leadership Academy in April on invitation.Have you thought of charging companies that hire your products'In the UK companies get some form of tax rebates for hiring long-term unemployed. We have no influence on taxes, so the much we can do to encourage them and help them build their businesses is to provide this service for free. That reflects our mission statement ' we exist for the success of others.You also run entrepreneurial programme for teenagers'If you give the teenagers proper orientation, you will get a better society. Government alone cannot deal with the problem of unemployment. Bill Gates started Microsoft at the age of 19. Michael Dell of started Dell Computers at 19 years. There are many teenagers on Forbes list who are millionaires before they reached 20. Today, organisations like the African Leadership Forum are focusing more on grooming teenage entrepreneurs.
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