In furtherance of the company’s commitment to enrich our communities by empowering the Youth, Nigerian Bottling Company Limited (NBC), non-alcoholic beverage giant has taken the campus edition of its Youth Empowered initiative to the premier university in Nigeria, University of Ibadan. The two-day workshop, which attracted no fewer than 700 participants, exposed the students to Entrepreneurship, Life and Networking skills to prepare them to start their own businesses or for meaningful employment.
Speaking during the workshop held at the Large Lecture Theatre (LLT) of the institution between November 20 and November 21, 2019, the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Research, Innovation, and Strategic Partnerships, Professor Olanike Adeyemo commended the company for creating such a novel initiative to assist the students in preparing for life outside the school environment while also helping them harness their potentials. She urged participants to take advantage of the unique opportunity by applying themselves to further learning throughout the duration of the workshop.
“This is a big opportunity which you must take advantage of. It is an opportunity of a lifetime, which may be difficult to come by later in the future. You have to make use of these two-day workshop and apply the principles learned to your life. I am confident if you look back in five years’ time, you would appreciate the decision you have taken to be part of this program considering the impact it would have had on your career or business”, she said while speaking to the students.
In her opening remarks, the Sustainability and Community Affairs Manager, Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) Limited, Ifeoma Okoye described the initiative as one of the channels that NBC employs to empower young Nigerians to succeed in life.
Okoye stated that the campus version of the Youth Empowered Initiative is tailored to help undergraduates achieve their career or lifelong ambitions by providing guidance, support and mentorship as they transit from school into meaningful employment or self-employment. The modules covered in the intensive 2-day training range from project and time management to business planning, negotiation, financial literacy skills, communication and sales skills.
She stated that NBC took the decision to introduce the campus version of the Youth Empowered Programme to undergraduates in order to bridge the gap some intending program participants faced in accessing the 3-day version of trainings which held in various states across the country.
“We noticed that most of the students in tertiary institutions found it difficult to attend the live workshops being held across different states. Now, we are bringing this programme to their doorsteps. We are optimistic that this would mark a life-changing experience for them given that it would enable them learn new things outside the school’s curricula.”, she said.
Also speaking during the two-day workshop, the Dean, Faculty of Arts, University of Ibadan, Professor Afis Oladosu expressed a profound appreciation to Nigerian Bottling Company for choosing University of Ibadan for the workshop. He described the initiative as a very commendable one as it has a great chance of helping the students discover themselves and be creative in their approach to learning. He also urged the students to make good use of the opportunity noting that he is convinced it would have great impact in their lives.
The campus edition of the Youth Empowered initiative has so far been held in six tertiary institutions across the country including Obafemi Awolowo University, Technical University (Ogun State), Technical University (Lagos State), Bowen University, Lead City University and Mountain Top University.
To participate in the free online version of the program, students are open to register on the Youth Empowered digital hub platform, www.youthempowered.ng
