Nigeria’s biggest problem is that most of the citizens have not been fundamentally educated to a level which will make it possible for them to be effectively governed. Indeed, from election to monetary policy, we are faced with issues which to a large extent are systemic. And until we fix those paralyzes, the economic ascension we expect will not come. I am very sorry to write that.

China has 99% primary education enrollment with less than 10% university attainment. They put all the best money in basic education (primary and secondary school levels), making sure that it is really great. For the university, they don’t really care that much. The US follows a similar pattern where basis education is largely free; take a loan if you want to go to college.

For China and the US, with a strong literate base, it is easier for the government to implement most policies. Yes, people can read ballot papers and vote. People can read and follow government enactments.

But when it comes to Nigeria, with a double digit illiterate rate, it is extremely tough for the government to implement most policies, contributing to most policy failures. Consider this: “According to multiple reports, the newly designed naira notes which are gradually going into circulation have been surrounded by tales of widespread rejection. Some reports reveal that several businessmen and women are reluctant to accept the new notes as legal tender, as they have decided to stick with the old notes pending the deadline given by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to phase out the old notes. Some have expressed concerns about the authenticity of the new notes, stating that it will be very difficult to identify fake ones.”

I sympathize with these citizens since most use colors to model the value of currency notes, and when the color-scheme is confusing, problems are expected. Yes, this CBN policy is noble even though  the design  was poorly executed. Nonetheless, the government should stay the course and provide support through education and awareness via churches, markets, mosques, etc. As that happens, Nigeria must invest to deal with its #1 development problem – mass illiteracy in many communities – if the nation hopes to move to the next level.

Comment on Feed

Comment 1: Illiteracy in Nigeria doesn’t have to deal with school attendance but seriously our belief system, I got a message via WhatsApp that I should not accept the new notes because of it might be fake and some will go with the conspiracy theory not because they didn’t go to school but because they tend to believe anything that comes from anywhere, I then heard a government hospital is not accepting the new notes just on the basis of this conspiracy theory.

Prof. here in Nigeria not all who are educated are literate, the minds of Nigerians needs to develop into the evolving world before we can really get rid of illiteracy

Comment 2: I once rented a house that had bad water. When I grumbled to the Landlord. His response were ” i promised water but not clean water”. Did you not see water? Is this Landlord not a Nigerian? The CBN promised new notes, there it is. I think the issue is not education but mistrust of the political class by the citizens. Any of the social contracts with the political class been met? Tell me any of the political parties that has kept to her manifestos? Country that tells her citizens that, there is no money but the citizens see how monies are wasted. Our legislatures are among the highest paid in the World while other civil servants are still fighting for implementation of 30,000 NGN minimum wage . The political class children lives in affluence in midst of poverty of other citizens. Is this not a country that hides palliatives meant for the citizens? How then do you expect the citizens to believe in the new notes?

Comment 3: As someone who had been in the education space, I feel so bad about what our primary and secondary schools have become. I’m sorry but I have to say this, our leaders and government are terribly irresponsible, from the presidency to the local council.

Nothing worthwhile is going on in our primary and post primary public schools yet the government does nothing. Many profit-focused terrible private schools are being opened here and there yet the same government cannot effectively regulate them to see that they are meeting up with the required standards.

Apart from making primary and secondary school compulsory for every child, the government have to invest in these schools and show genuine seriousness in seeing that our children are receiving the right education.

These things are not rocket science.

I used to tell my students “if you feel you aren’t receiving the right education in any school you find yourself SCREAM.

Comment 4: Perhaps it was the fault of the national government for not educating the masses about the new notes before being released into circulation. Months should have been spent showing pictures/images of the new notes before they were released – in Canada when one and two dollar paper notes were replaced with equivalent coins we were told many months in advance. Also when new faces are added to existing notes we are similarly informed months, if not longer, in advance.

Nevertheless, primary education needs to be free for all, relevant in modernity, and compulsory at least to the age of sixteen. Many nations go further and provide post secondary education for free – I wish I got mine for free!

There are so many brilliant people in Nigeria – it should be way more prosperous than it currently is…..but you are trying hard to change the narrative Ndubuisi- all the more power to you Professor.

Newly Designed Naira Notes Faced With Widespread Rejections as Many Seem Unaware

What is going on in Onitsha Main Market these days: “At about 1.02 a.m. on Saturday [Dec 17, 2022], the Anambra State Fire Service received a distress call of a fire outbreak at No 4 Ajasa Street, Ose Main Market, Onitsha, where they sell chemicals”?

There is hardly a month that we do not have a fire outbreak in Africa’s largest open market. Just before the pandemic, I was with His Imperial Majesty, Ezeuzu of Awka, and we discussed extensively how to deepen knowledge in this market along with traders in Awka. It was on that strength that Tekedia Institute signed the strategic partnership we have with Nnamdi Azikiwe University.

In that market, many proudly wear our Tekedia Mini-MBA t-shirts because they come here to take a course we specifically created with them in mind – “Personal Finance and Wealth Management”. Yes, we want that paralysis where Eze Ego (the king of money) becomes a beggar, just years after retirement, because he did not plan ahead, to end. We also went ahead and developed the Igba BOI (Igbo apprenticeship system) course to deepen best practices and strengthen operations.

I like containers, trading and I am calling the federal and state governments to find a lasting solution to these incessant fire outbreaks in this market. Help these open markets; Kano is also having its dose of fire outbreaks.

• The statement reads, ‘’At about 1.02 a.m. on Saturday, the Anambra State Fire Service received a distress call of a fire outbreak at No 4 Ajasa Street, Ose Main Market, Onitsha, where they sell chemicals.
• “We immediately deployed our fire trucks and our ever-ready and fearless firefighters to the fire scene. We swift into action, battling the fire, controlled and fought it to a standstill.
• “The cause of the fire was unknown as nobody was there when it started. Although, the fire destroyed about three shops no life was lost during the heavy fire”, he said.
• ”A lot was saved as we prevented the fire from spreading to other shops around the fire incident scene.
• “It is important to know that we must always switch off of our electrical and electronic appliances especially when it is not in use.
• “We must also know that we are at the peak of the harmattan. Avoid anything which can cause fire outbreak at this season.” 

Director/Fire Chief of Anambra Fire Service, Mr. Martin Agbili

Comment on Feed

Comment 1: Poor electrical maintenance and installation with I don’t care attitude of chops owners are the major causes of fire ? outbreak 

My Response: I do not buy that argument. A market is owned by the state/LGA and there is no reason that the government cannot enforce standards. Do we need regular inspections then?

Comment 2: Most of the chemical traders are not aware of the reactivity of the chemicals when they are put together, they don’t understand it is not all chemicals that should be parked together, they need a good awareness, it breaks my heart anytime they loose money through avoidable fire outbreak. Safety must be put first.

Comment 3: Once we realize that anything can be a fuel, we must then take heed.

Fire needs three conditions

1. Fuel. A burning material (fuel, meaning anything can be a fuel. Some are more better than others. For example a bed mattress with foam is highly flammable more faster than some wood). Sure, in dry season the moist content is less, so easier to burn or get heat up.

2. Oxygen. (mostly in the air, but other material like water can easily or slowly by heat reaction produce more oxygen to add more flame).

3. Ignition/Heat . A single spark. A single increase in temperature. A single collision or pressure.
All of these go together in complex ways cause fire. (If not intentionally caused).

Firstly, periodic electrical systems check are needed, and rules must be complied by all users, from main to consumer point.

Second. A regulation or survey based on the inventories of different shop members is needed to sort the arrangement and organization of possible ignition and easily flammable material.

Thirdly, we don’t only need security guards, but also FIRE GUARDS (constantly to be stationed with technical knowledge of flames and it’s safety). For example, they might be always checking the quality of extinguishers, hose.. etc.?

In most spheres, some businesses become great, some break even, and some that barely manage to survive. Business owners define success. Differently, some describe it as a boom in their revenue while others may look at it more in terms of impact on their community and world. No matter what success means to you, there appears to be something familiar to great startups that others may be lacking.

Most of these things do not come up later in the business. They are applied from the first day the company hits the ground and sustains growth.

Delegating and outsourcing

As you well know, the entrepreneur always has a lot to do. Sometimes even after hiring staff to get the same thing done. It would help if you kept delegating on the front burner to build a great startup. When hiring, remember that you may someday have to trust your CEO duties to those staff, so make sure they are capable.

Outsourcing is the second face of delegating. Expertise and competence are things great startups take seriously. Feel free to outsource the task if you need more staff with the competency required in a particular area. The important thing is that you should have experts handling different functions at every point. This can be difficult for some CEOs and founders as they struggle with guilt over not supervising each task independently. At some point, you will have to step back from the business to scale; you might as well start preparing for it early enough.

They empower staff with precise functions and directions.

For great startups, there is a structure around hiring staff, so they are empowered to deliver the right results right from the resumption. Clear expectations are set, roles are defined, and instructions are given. With this kind of structure, you will hardly have underperforming staff, and when you do, it is pretty easy to spot them and address the issue.

The not-so-great startups hire staff even when they have yet to clearly define the expectation for that role and end up with the team wandering about the office, unsure exactly what they should be doing. They usually would have big titles without clearly spelled out duties and responsibilities. They would also have much underperforming staff, resulting in a bloated budget without corresponding results.

They maintain a two-way communication flow with staff.

As against the one-way communication flow among other businesses, great startups build two-way communication with staff. So, instead of firing staff for not meeting expectations, great startups have a process of finding out why and where they are struggling with their functions and empowering them to succeed. To build a great startup, be ready to teach your staff how your business operates. They may come to your company with their technical skills, but you have to teach them the peculiar operations of your business.

They take data security seriously.

Successful entrepreneurs run a tight ship in data security for their business, and they enforce all the necessary protocols to maintain it. Please be sure to protect the sensitive proprietary data that comes to your employees through their work email inboxes. You don’t want to find out later that data that should have been protected was being compromised, perhaps by employees who save, forward, or text them.

Suppose your employees lose control of their email accounts, forward emails to the wrong person, or intentionally share an attachment against your wishes. In that case, it can tremendously damage you, your customers, and your business partners.

This should be done from the first day because if you fail to define the data security protocols early enough, it gets easier to do so when the firm has scaled. It might require training existing staff on data security protocols and implementing specific security measures.

They maintain a work-life balance.

It is exciting to note that the startups that produce the best results are only sometimes the ones overworking their staff to the bones. A 2014 study by John Pencavel at Stanford University shows that a 55-hour workweek produces the same results as a 70-hour workweek. Overworking yourself and your staff may not result in more productivity, and more hours may translate to less productivity. Maintain a work-life balance and allow your team does the same.