Digital skills for young entrepreneurs

This solution is designed to equip 100 young entrepreneurs in Bassa LGA of Plateau State-North Central Nigeria with relevant digital entrepreneurial skills to enhance market access and create employment. It will also improve young people’s participation towards a market driven digital sector which will support in addressing the socio-economic challenges caused by armed conflicts, poverty and food insecurity and exacerbated by COVID-19 pandemic.

To effectively achieve the above, the solution will engage young people especially young women through community engagement, digital-literacy training for improved digital inclusiveness and capacity building on entrepreneurship. This will also enhance beneficiaries’ access to digital infrastructure and strengthen the links to Job trainers and/or extension workers for improved access to vocational skills, extension services and last-mile while enhancing e-commerce. It will further improve access to sustainable credit and agricultural financing through linkages to financial service providers (mobile banking services) and community based saving schemes.

The digitization of micro-enterprises and agriculture is an emerging opportunity in Nigeria yet the opportunity has not been fully optimized, in 2020 Nigerian had 99.05 million internet users with 46.6% penetration rate projected to grow to 131.7 million users by 2023 with 65.2% penetration in 2025. (Joseph Johnson, 2021), thereby creating opportunity for gainful employment. However, data from NBS reported high rate of unemployment and underemployment among young people ages 15-34 with women reported to be most affected.

Majority of the young people in Nigeria do not possess job-relevant digital skills due to limited technological know-how and near absence of digital infrastructure thereby creating digital gap for human capital development. Despite its significant contribution of 17.83% to the national GDP, Nigeria is yet to fully optimize the potential of this sector (ITU, 2019 & Brand Press, 2021).  Though in Nigeria, the human capital potential in this sector is 49% when compared to the continental average of 55% yet there is need to expand the reach and increase young people’s participation towards a market driven digital sector that will contribute significantly to the GDP of the nation estimated to be $88 billion and 3 million jobs by 2027 (Brand Press, 2021). 

The solution is designed to equip young entrepreneurs with relevant digital entrepreneurial skills to enhance market access and create employment through improved access to digital infrastructure and micro enterprise fundamental training for the period of one year. To this end, the solution will strengthen human capital development especially among youths as they will be equipped with the relevant skills (basic digital skills) to participate more effectively in the digital economy and improve productivity and income.

To increase youth’s participation in the digital economy, beneficiaries will be trained on digital financial management using mobile banking services and community base savings and loan schemes respectively for improve savings, investments and sustainable access to credits for micro enterprises and agricultural financing. These platforms will also serve as an economic safety net for young people to grow their income. To this end, beneficiaries will be supported with Laptop computers and internet base facilities to increase their participation in the digital economy. 

In recent times, communities of Bassa LGA of Plateau State North Central Nigeria have been faced with several upheavals (COVID-19 and armed conflicts) which have continuously led to significant disruptions of the socio-economic systems in these areas causing unprecedented shocks affecting economic activities, and food security of this region leading to unparalleled shudders affecting market dynamics, labor, and agricultural productivities of these localities (WFP, 2020; Cinjel et al 2019). It has also led to the displacement of youths, children and women as most youths can be seen displaced from their ancestral homes. When faced with events like these, young people in these areas are faced with two options: Migrate or defile the odds and face the economic consequences (Azariah Lawal, 2020) i.e. abandon their sources of livelihood or stay resilient in the midst of the daunting challenges (Stamoulis, 2018; FAO, 2017). Poor availability of digital infrastructure to access other market have also worsened the situation as youths now have increasing level of unemployment and poverty making them less able to compete favorably with other entrepreneurs in the country (ITU, 2019 & Brand Press, 2021).

To support in addressing the above identified challenges, Mashiah Foundation through its need assessment engaged 105 young entrepreneurs through focus group discussion (FGD) and town hall meetings in five conflict affected communities to identify best possible solutions to youths’ digital access for employment and asset creation. The result of this FGD reveals that meaningful engagement of young people through digital literacy will increase internet penetration and infrastructure while expanding entrepreneurship and market opportunities. To this end, Mashiah Foundation solution will focus on equipping young entrepreneurs with digital literacy skills for increased participation in the digital economy thereby increasing their access to improved market opportunities.

The following strategies will be employed to achieve the above:

• Advocacy to key stakeholders and community mobilization
• Enrollment and engagement of young entrepreneurs
• Capacity building on digital literacy and entrepreneurship
• Provision of digital infrastructure for improved digital access
• Financial education and linkages to Financial Service Providers including mobile banking services for improved financial literacy and access to credit facilities

The solution will work towards achieving the following

 Goal: To equip 30 youths (10 Male; 20 Female) in rural/or conflicted affected community of Bassa LGA of Plateau State-Nigeria with digital and entrepreneurial skills to become self-sustained by June 2022.

Objectives:

• To train 30 youths on soft digital skills for improve digital literacy and participation in the digital economy
• To increase rural youths’ participation in the digital economy through the provision of digital infrastructures (Laptops with internet base facilities)
• To increase30 youths’ financial literacy and access to credit facilities of through micro enterprise fundamental trainings and linkages to mobile banking services and/or community base saving groups

Through this, beneficiaries will create job opportunities and participate more effectively in the digital economy as a result of improve knowledge and skills acquired from this solution. They will also be able to access more market opportunities, through the internet and access the needed credit facilities to sustain and grow their businesses while also updating and learning new skills from other entrepreneurs around the world.

This solution will be scalable and sustainable as beneficiaries will be able to support themselves and also train other young entrepreneurs on digital skills hence reducing the unemployment and poverty level within their communities. More so, digital infrastructure provided will continue to provide access to digital services for other young entrepreneurs within the communities while the establish community base savings group will continue to serve as a safety net for this young entrepreneurs and additional avenue to access credit.

To support young entrepreneurs in accessing digital infrastructure and safe affordable internet, towards the reduction of unemployment, Mashiah Foundation solution is designed to equip young entrepreneurs from conflict affected and/or rural communities with the relevant digital literacy skills to increase their participation in the digital economy and create employments opportunities. This is in alignment with the challenge dimension of providing low income, remote and refugee communities access to digital infrastructure and affordable internet for increase digital participation. Furtherance to this, it will contribute to the peace and economic stability of this LGAs as young people will be meaningfully engaged.

Mashiah Foundation has in recent past through the support of the US Embassy empowered 50 young people including women from conflict affected communities to build their capacity to become self-sustained through entrepreneurial training and digital literacy skills for improved livelihood opportunities. As a result of this intervention, these young people became self-employed with capacity to create employment and support other young people to build their digital skills while living on a minimum of $2 per day. On this project, the solution is designed to focus primarily on young entrepreneurs towards strengthening their digital literacy skills while improving digital participation for improved market access in conflict and/or rural communities.  

Mashiah Foundation solution is aimed at strengthening the capacity of young entrepreneurs for improved access to livelihood opportunities and digital literacy skills. This solution would be focused on young entrepreneurs in conflict affected and/or rural communities to build digital literacy skills and market access thereby increasing competitiveness in both the digital and economic space. The catalytic response of this solution would serve as a means of sustainability where by other young entrepreneurs whom are not primary beneficiaries of the project will be able to access both knowledge and skill from established structures in the communities. One of the strategic structure on which the sustainability of this solution is hinged is the community savings and loan association where young entrepreneurs will be clustered into small groups to share ideas while promoting the cultures of saving. Through this, other young entrepreneurs will be able access the same services and replicate the same outcome. this will further promote the peace and economic stability of the affected communities as the solution will promote inclusiveness and economic recovery of the communities.

Mashiah Foundation solution is currently being deployed to serve 50 young entrepreneurs in Jos North Plateau State Nigeria to strengthen digital literacy skills while carrying out entrepreneurial activities. These 50 young entrepreneurs are contributing positively to their communities as they are seen creating jobs and enhancing digital access among their peers. Through this solution, in one year Mashiah Foundation project effective coverage of 100 young entrepreneurs across ten communities in two LGAs and five hundred more in five years with expected ripple effect on two thousand households in Plateau State alone. 

• Number of young entrepreneurs engaged on the project
• Number of young entrepreneurs trained on digital literacy and entrepreneurship
• Number of young entrepreneurs provided with digital infrastructures
• Number of communities provided with digital infrastructure
• Number of young entrepreneurs trained on community savings and loan schemes and linked to financial service providers

Full time staff: 261

Part Time: 23

Volunteers: 56

Contractors: 33

Mashiah Foundation team is made up of seasoned professionals who are skilled and are passionate at working with young people in conflict and/or resource poor settings in Nigeria.  The teams community engagement and empowerment strategies has enabled them to effectively work with young people towards building asset  and strengthening livelihood opportunities this they have done for the past 2 decades. Most of the strategies include community mobilization and engagement, focused group discussion and town hall meetings all designed at meeting the needs of young people.

Over the past two decades, the team has support the empowerment of 3000 young people through different skills acquisition and education schemes that have led to increased sustainability and income generation among people towards poverty reduction and sustainability in businesses. The team has also supported young people's access to credit facilities through linkages to financial service providers and community based savings and loan schemes for enhanced micro enterprise financing. 

Mashiah Foundation is an equal opportunity organization that do not engaged in practices that discriminate against any persons based on race, religion, sex, ethnicity, gender identity, national, marital status, disability or any other status or characteristics protected under applicable law. Based on the foregoing, the leadership of the organization is strategically designed such that only competent individuals irrespective of any social or cultural differences are given the opportunity to serve in leadership role per time.

Mashiah Foundation is applying to the MIT Solve initiative to reduce the impact of armed conflict and youth unemployment, create platforms for digital literacy and enhance knowledge sharing for young entrepreneurs.

Mashiah Foundation solution currently cuts across conflict affected communities and other internally displaced communities. The Andan Prize for innovation in Refugee inclusion will enable Mashiah Foundation to expand its reach towards reducing the impact of conflict on young people and their households. It will also enable Mashiah Foundation to empower these young people through digital literacy and empowerment programs.