Paul Osuyi, Asaba
Youths in Nigeria have been urged to take advantage of the Youth Export Development Programme (YEXDEP) to advance their potentials in non-oil export business.
YEXDEP was created by the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), as a special platform for mainstreaming youths in the non-oil sector.
Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of NEPC, Olusegun Awolowo explained that YEXDEP was designed to take interested Nigerian youths through a whole process of non-oil export procedures and documentations in practical terms.
Awolowo spoke in Asaba, Delta State while delivering a keynote address at a Non-Oil Export Technical Session organised for youths in the state.
Represented by Olu Ikulojolu, Awolowo said NEPC could have done better in the past four decades when it was established if Nigerian youths were engaged under a special platform.
“In over four decades of our existence, we have made significant progress on the core mandate. We are however aware that we could have done better in major areas like product and market development if we had engaged the Nigerian youths under a special platform,” he said.
Awolowo listed major challenges inhibiting youth business initiatives to include limited access to finance; limited access to network; limited access to trade information; limited access to export related skills; limited access to youth specific trade supports; and lack of favourable administration and regulatory framework.