FinGreen, QNET’s pioneering financial literacy initiative, has empowered scores of individuals since its launch in 2022. And now, with the Fingreen Business Mentorship Programme, we aim to spur a select number of young Nigerians even further towards realising their dreams.
The best part? These young visionaries have the opportunity to be guided and mentored in their business journeys for an entire year.
Effecting Transformative Change
QNET’s FinGreen programme is, essentially, focused on imparting critical financial literacy skills and knowledge to people from all walks of life to help them better manage their finances.
It is also designed to transform individuals into confident and financially savvy champions who are able to share their knowledge with others and thereby, lift their families and communities, and society at large.
This is why, building on the success of our first FinGreen initiative in Nigeria, which saw the participation of some 600 people, we launched the second phase of the programme in mid-2023.
Targeting 25 individuals who then trained an additional 800 individuals, the aim of FinGreen Phase 2 was to help transform participants into financial literacy youth champions who would spread financial awareness, promote responsible money management and effect positive transformative change in Nigeria’s economy
Now, months on, following that collaborative effort by QNET, Transblue Limited, Financial Literacy for All (FLFA), and the Consumer Advocacy and Empowerment Foundation (CADEF), we are proud to announce that the top three graduates of FinGreen Phase 2 have marked a significant milestone in their financial literacy journeys with their first face-to-face mentoring session with FLFA.
Aiding Financial Inclusion and Stability
According to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s National Financial Literacy Framework, financial literacy is crucial to a community, country or region’s quest to achieve financial inclusion, financial stability, economic growth and development.
The report, however, notes that for that to happen, it is essential for individuals to know, understand and develop the ability to evaluate financial products and services and participate in financial markets.
All QNET’s FinGreen programmes to date, as such, have sought to address the existing gaps in financial education by enlightening participants on a wide array of finance-related topics via a unique three-pronged approach that combines financial education with comprehensive training and advocacy.
It is also the reason the FinGreen Business Mentorship Programme has focused on helping individuals build businesses of their own and draw sustainable earnings by doing so.
Empowering Business Ownership
As part of the FinGreen Business Mentorship Programme, our top three FinGreen Phase 2 graduates were all provided with seed money to get their businesses off the ground. And all three individuals report not only to have invested their capital wisely in profit-generating businesses, but also that they have grown as entrepreneurs thanks to the financial education and mentorship received via FinGreen.
For instance, student Olayinka Olanweraju Ogunenika used the initial capital provided to establish two distinct business ventures — a remote business selling small rechargeable fans and reading lamps, and a physical store offering a diverse range of products, such as perfumes and candles. And the University of Lagos undergraduate says that the experience has seen her amass invaluable hands-on experience in regard to managing inventory and engaging customers.
It should come as no surprise, thus, that Olayinka’s fellow participants — budding music producer Sylvester Chikwere Nwosu and culinary business entrepreneur Glory Temitope Adesemowo — admit to having equally benefited from the programme, which has been vital in guiding them concerning key business principles, such as the importance of developing business plans, understanding marketing, budgeting and financial forecasting, and adapting and responding to opportunities for collaboration and growth.
Yet, the best part of the FinGreen Business Mentorship Programme, all three graduates note, is that it fosters honest interaction between participants and facilitators and encourages continuous learning and growth over the course of an entire year.
Essentially, many financial education programmes leave budding entrepreneurs to their own devices, to either sink or swim. Where the FinGreen Business Mentorship Programme differs from the norm is that participants are guided every step of the way. They also constantly have the opportunity to touch base with facilitators who are experts in their fields.
Growth and Development
Make no mistake, both phases of QNET’s FinGreen initiative have played significant roles in the financial empowerment of Nigerian youth. Nevertheless, the FinGreen Business Mentorship Programme, with its focus on sustainable growth and development, marks a momentous milestone in helping young persons take charge of their future and lead better lives.
