The Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has called on Nigerian youths to be more enterprising and desist from getting desperate for white-collar jobs.Accordingly, she urged students of secondary and tertiary institutions to focus their minds on how they could become employers of labour, stressing that with meticulous planning they could grow small businesses into competitive ventures.Speaking in Lagos at the annual Essay Competition for Secondary Schools and Tertiary Institutions, organised by the Nigerian Stock Exchange on Monday, Okonjo-Iweala, who is also the Coordinating Minister for the economy, noted that the government was working hard to address the high level of unemployment in the country. She was represented by the Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Yerima Ngama.It is a shame to see a first-class graduate of Agriculture searching for employment for years, when he has been equipped with beneficial farming skills, she said.If the first-class is truly what it is, then he should look for a farmland and practice what he had learnt while in school. The reason is that he has better productive ideas that, when judiciously implemented, would generate good income for himself and his family, Okonjo-Iweala added.The minister stressed that it was high time youths started thinking of being their own bosses, adding that most economies of the world were driven by indigenous companies established by shrewd entrepreneurs.In his address,the Chief Executive Officer, NSE, Mr. Oscar Onyema, who commented on the initiative, said one of the major challenges that had faced the stock exchange since inception was the need to expand individual shareholders base through sustained public enlightenment programme.He noted that the essay competition was to address the abysmal low level of individual shareholders in Nigeria, which was just over four million.He said, In addressing this challenge, the NSE evolved a mix of initiatives aimed at creating awareness on the benefits of investment in stocks and bonds, and this competition was instituted to integrate youths into capital market operations.Essentially, the programme aims at producing a well-rounded student, who in spite of his academic attainment appreciates the benefits of medium and long-term investment at a tender age.The NSE boss noted that through the initiative, the Exchange would expose Nigerian students to career choice in securities market and related profession, adding that it would also fill the gaps between school curriculum and practical approach to investment in securities market.A total of 100 students from secondary schools and tertiary institutions were awarded with prizes in the form of shares quoted on the Exchange.
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