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FOOD FOR THOUGHT

5 Reasons Why You Need A Mentor

Have you ever wondered how some of the top
entrepreneurs got to where they are today – making
tens of thousands of dollars a month and sometimes
even more? They're strong on the basic entrepreneurial skills such as negotiation and marketing.

There’s a reason for that, and it’s one that rarely gets mentioned by so-called business trainers.

All successful entrepreneurs have great mentors in relevant areas of their careers.

That’s right, having a mentor or coach can be the indispensable catalyst you need to break through the sales barrier and start achieving results,
fast. These are just a few ways a mentor can fast-track your marketing success:

#1. EXPERIENCE: A mentor has already experienced
numerous successes and
failures, so they can pass all their juicy knowledge on to you in far less time. They take you through the path they've travelled before and show you how to learn the ropes.

#2. MOTIVATION: Sometimes, it can be hard to stay motivated when you’re working alone. Having a mentor can help you stay on track and set realistic goals. Motivation is like taking your bath every day. Once you stop, you stink. A mentor helps you stay motivated all the time.

#3. SAVED TIME: When you’re just starting out,
making easy mistakes is all too common. A mentor
will notice these before they happen and save you countless weeks and months of time you
would have otherwise wasted. Time is your most valuable asset, don't waste it.

#4. CONNECTIONS: If you show commitment and dedication as a mentee, your mentor will subsequently introduce you to other high-flying and prosperous entrepreneurs and contacts with strong skills. That alone would save you time of painful years marketing and networking.

#5. GUIDANCE: With so many different ways to make money online and offline, it can be hard to decide on a profitable direction to follow in your business career.
A mentor can help you realize your skills and passions, and guide you down the best path for you.

Did you know you’re 500% more likely to make money easily if you have a mentor, than if you decide to go as  a lone-ranger?

And when you look at it that way, why WOULDN’T
you have a mentor?
                                                                                                                                         From: Beam Magazine

The Plan to End Evil

 by Jeremy Lallier

Many people hate evil, decry it and want to see it eradicated. But no one has been able to truly do that—yet it will be done. There’s a plan that shows how!

The world is a mess. It has been for quite some time, and, despite mankind’s best efforts, it’s not getting any better. In fact, we’ve discovered the incredible and invented the impossible, and yet we’re still plagued with the fundamental problem of evil.
It’s everywhere. Across the globe, there are evil people doing evil things, whether that’s a third-world warlord sending children onto the battlefield with guns and explosives or a first-world CFO embezzling away the pensions of thousands of employees. Evil exists, and while we’ve found ways to suppress it, dilute it and discourage it, we’ve yet to find a way to truly end it.

What’s the solution? Is there even a solution? Or is evil just such a fundamental part of human nature that we’ll never be truly rid of it?

Thankfully, there is a solution—and not only that, but the plan to enact that solution is already in motion. Evil can be stopped, and it will be stopped—and what’s more, you can be part of the solution.

Interested? Then it’s time to discover the Feasts of the Lord.

Jeremy Lallier is a writer/editor for Life, Hope & Truth. He and his wife, Mary, live in the Dallas, Texas, area.

Destination: Heaven? by Leon Leonard

by Leon Leonard

I was recently at a funeral where the preacher boldly declared the dead person was going home to heaven. But is heaven really our destination after death?

 

Based on a false premise

One of the most important questions we can ask in life is, What happens after death? The belief in the immortality of the soul is a concept found in almost all religions, cultures and societies. But it is not a biblical concept.
The Creator God proclaims, “The soul who sins shall die” (Ezekiel 18:4). The soul is not immortal because God clearly said it can die!
Furthermore, 1 Timothy 6:16 declares that only God inherently has immortality. We’re told that Adam became a soul; he didn’t have one (Genesis 2:7). To learn more, read “Did God Give Adam an Immortal Soul?”

Human beings not in heaven

Are the souls of good people in heaven? For the answer, we should go to the words of the One who dwells in heaven.

Jesus Christ said this: “No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven” (John 3:13). I realize that this may be a startling statement. It may contradict a sincerely held belief that has been in your family for generations. But what is more precious? Sincerely held beliefs or the words of Jesus Christ?

Jesus Christ said this: “No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.”King David was “a man after [God’s] own heart” (Acts 13:22). He was a faithful and loyal servant. Surely such a godly man would be in heaven! Yet the apostle Peter, in his sermon to the Jews on Pentecost, said: “Brothers, I may confidently and freely say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day” (Acts 2:29, Amplified Bible). A few verses later, Peter states what he had learned from his teacher, Jesus Christ: “For David did not ascend into the heavens” (verse 34).

Notice these statements in the book of Psalms (a book largely written by King David):

• Psalm 6:5: “For in death there is no remembrance of You; in the grave who will give You thanks?”
• Psalm 146:4: “His spirit departs, he returns to his earth; in that very day his plans perish.”

King Solomon, David’s son and the wisest man who ever lived (other than Jesus Christ), understood the state of the dead. In Ecclesiastes 9:10, Solomon wrote, “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.”

 Arise to what?

Though the Bible doesn’t talk about people going to heaven at death, it does talk a lot about rising from the dead later. The apostle Paul explains when the righteous will rise: “Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52).

At the sound of the seventh trumpet, when Jesus Christ returns to earth, the saints will be resurrected and transformed into immortal spirit beings. They will be endowed with amazing and awesome intellect and powers far beyond even that of angels! Matthew 13:43 boldly declares, “Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.”

Revelation 5:10 tells us that the risen saints will be made kings (rulers) and priests (teachers) and they will reign on earth, not in heaven. Jesus Christ, assisted by the saints, will rule from Jerusalem (Isaiah 2:3-4).

The subject of life after death is a big topic, and this blog post just covered a small sampling of the many scriptures that give us a full picture of what happens after we die. To learn more about this important subject, download our free booklet The Last Enemy: What Really Happens After Death?

Militancy won’t stop us from developing Niger Delta – Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday said the renewed violence in the Niger Delta would not stop his administration from engaging with interest groups from the region in finding solutions to the challenges facing the area.
Buhari spoke during the breaking of Ramadan fast with members of the diplomatic corps at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

“No amount of militancy shall distract us from engaging with the region,” the President told his guests.
While regretting the renewed militancy, Buharj assured his guests that his administration was doing everything possible to address their concerns.
He identified some of the critical areas receiving his government’s attention to include the issue of unemployment, poor infrastructure and ecological problems.
Buhari again called on the international community to assist his government repatriate looted funds stashed in their countries.
This, he added, would also assist his administration to successfully prosecute the looters.
The President also said that the Federal Government was not relenting in its efforts to ensure the release of the over 200 schoolgirls abducted in their school in Chibok, Borno States in 2014.
He said, “I assure you that we will remain firm in our determination to completely eliminate the terrorist group and shall continue to count on the support of the international community as clearly demonstrated during the recently held Regional Security Summit.
“We are not letting off our efforts to secure the release of the remaining Chibok schoolgirls.
“We are living daily with the pains of the forcible abduction of these schoolgirls.
‎
The Dean of the Diplomatic Corps who is also the High Commissioner of Cameroon to Nigeria‎, Salaheddine Abbas Ibrahima, ‎thanked the President for hosting the diplomatic corps, the second time in the year.
He pledged his support and that of his colleagues to Nigeria.
He said, “We wish for eternal peace for Nigeria and may your efforts in the shortest time bring prosperity to our people.
“Be reassured that the international community will continue to provide the necessary support.”

Nigerians top list of foreign graduates at Jomo Kenyatta University

Nineteen Nigerians have graduated with PhDs from the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT).

They were part of 75 doctorate students who graduated during the institution’s 27th graduation ceremony yesterday. A total of 4,086 students graduated with diplomas and degrees in different disciplines offered by the institution. Apart from the Nigerian students, 14 other foreign students earned their doctorates at the university. This year’s graduation ceremony recorded two firsts for JKUAT since inception. One, it had the largest number of PhD students. Two, it had the most number of foreign students – especially Nigerians. CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE Catherine Uloko, the vice rector at Kaduna Polytechnic, was one of them. Her doctorate, like that of many of her fellow countrymen who graduated, is in entrepreneurship. Dr Uloko said she came to study in Kenya after being referred by the University of Illinois when a partnership was formed to build the capacity of institutional leadership, especially on entrepreneurship. “The polytechnic management in conjunction with the Federal Government decided to introduce entrepreneurship and decided to go to Illinois but we were told that JKUAT could offer what we were looking for without us necessarily going to the US,” she said. She added that one of their reasons for coming to Kenya was the testimony by University of Illinois that JKUAT is a centre of excellence. Ten other Nigerians are still studying for their doctorates at the institution. “Our prayer is that when we talk to the vice chancellor, we shall be allowed to start these programmes back home in Nigeria,” Uloko said. But it was not only the Nigerians who stole the show, local politicians and leaders also sought to get more powers to read. Gichugu MP Njogu Barua, Tharaka Nithi Deputy Governor Eliud Muriithi and Chai Trading Company Limited Managing Director Charles Mbui graduated with doctorate degrees.

 

Nineteen Nigerians have graduated with PhDs from the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT).
Read more at: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000207165/nigerians-top-list-of-foreign-graduates-at-jomo-kenyatta-university

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Devotion message by Joyce Meyer

Power from Heaven
by Joyce Meyer 
But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria and to the ends (the very bounds) of the earth.
—Acts 1:8
It is possible to fill a glass with water without filling it to full capacity. Likewise, when you are born again you have the Holy Spirit in you, but you may not yet be totally filled with the Spirit. Many Christians are very busy doing things for God but don't have enough power in their lives to be what God wants us to be.
Going through the motions and following religious formulas is a waste of time. You must have the revelation that Jesus is alive within you and allow Him to change you and make you a new creature in Christ. Don't tuck God away for emergencies and Sunday mornings. Allow Him to work freely in every area of your life through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Four Keys to Better Prayers

by Tom Clark

Is regular prayer difficult for you? Do you frequently neglect prayer? This post shares practical keys to help you strengthen your communication with God.

 The pace of life today can be described as frenetic. Time is a limited resource and the demands on it and on our attention are constant and overwhelming. But, regardless of the limits on our time, Christians are expected to pray. Prayer is an essential part of having a relationship with God. But for some, prayer can be difficult, awkward and stilted. They want to have effective prayers—but they are not sure how.

How can you develop a fulfilling and meaningful prayer life? What can you do to improve this vital link with your Creator?

Let me share four lessons I’ve learned about prayer that may help you have better, more heartfelt communication with God.

1. Set aside time every day for prayer.

I find that if I don’t deliberately make time for the most important things, they will not happen. How many times did I intend to take the kids fishing “when we can,” or take them to the swimming pool “a little later”? It isn’t for lack of desire or good intentions, but if time isn’t set aside for those things, they often just never happen. And it can be the same with prayer.

King David said he prayed to God three times a day: morning, noon and night (Psalm 55:16-17). It was his habit to set aside these times of the day for talking with God.

The prophet Daniel, another faithful servant of God, had a similar prayer life: “He knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days” (Daniel 6:10, emphasis added). He had set aside those times to pray and made it a priority, even in times of trial and stress.

Evaluate what time of day works best for you and then block out that time every day. And when that time comes, don’t let anything—not Facebook, a text, television or any other distraction—get in the way. This is an appointment you have with God, and you must keep it!

 

2. Focus on gratitude first. 

Many people feel they just don’t know what to say to God. This barrier can be overcome by first focusing on all we have to be grateful for. Every parent appreciates a genuine thank you from a child. With all God has done for us, doesn’t He deserve the same?

In Daniel 6:10, we saw that Daniel spent time thanking God for the blessings he had. At that time, Daniel’s enemies were setting him up for a death sentence because of his worship of the true God. Yet, in the face of death, we are told his focus was on thankfulness.
If we would take a few moments to consider our lives, we could all compile quite a list of things we are thankful for. Since we know every good and precious gift comes from God (James 1:17), we should show our gratitude to our Father for them.
Paul wrote that we should be “giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:20). Gratitude alone will probably provide each of us with enough to talk with God about for quite some time every day.

3. Express your concerns, needs and desires in detail.

There is an old story about a man who wrote down his needs and others’ needs on scraps of paper and put them in a bag. When he prayed he simply asked God to take care of “what is in the bag.”

But that doesn’t describe effective prayer! Imagine putting your opinions on scraps of paper in a bag and referring your friends to the bag in lieu of conversation. That would be no way to build relationships!

In the temple, priests burned incense before God. The incense was to be “beaten fine” (Leviticus 16:12) so it could release its full aroma.

Revelation 8:3-4 connects our prayers to the incense of the temple. But rather than ascending to the ceiling, as does smoke, our prayers ascend directly to God Himself. As the incense was “beaten fine,” so we should take the time to pray to God in fine detail.

For example, if we know someone who is sick, instead of just generally asking God to heal that person, there are probably many details we can add in our prayers to God. We could pray for relief from the stress and hardship on the person’s family, from the pain or from the loss of wages. This shows much deeper thought and care, and God sees and honors that depth of concern.

To learn more about praying for others, read “Intercessory Prayer: How Does God Want Us to Pray for Others?”

4. Don’t rush your prayers.

Imagine if you only spoke with a friend for one or two minutes a day, how close would you ever become? Likewise, how close will we be to God if we only pray to Him one or two minutes a day?

I’ve heard it suggested that we shoot for at least a half hour of prayer every day. There is no scripture that states a length of time we should pray, but there are indications that faithful men and women would sometimes pray for lengthy periods, in extreme cases, all night (Luke 6:12).

Don’t shortchange your prayer life! You can talk with the God of all creation, so plan your schedule so that you have adequate time and don’t feel rushed.

Prayer is an essential part of our relationship with God. Use these points to make your time in prayer more meaningful and fulfilling. Getting into this habit will make a day without praying feel empty and incomplete. And your growing relationship with God will be one more thing for which you can be thankful!

 

                                          

 

Hitz FM thrills fans at special edition of ‘Hitz High Table’

Ghana's leading entertainment radio station, Hitz 103.9 FM thrilled its loyal patrons with the special edition of ‘Hitz High Table’. 
The event, hosted by Dr Pounds, host of Cruse Control, took place at the premises of Multimedia last Friday, June 24, 2016.
The Hitz High Table show is designed to have a one-on-one interaction with Ghanaian celebrities.
The show saw the likes of Jupitar, Choirmaster, DKB, Nhyiraba Kojo, Yaa Pono, Opanka and many others in attendance with some of them performing at the event.
Exhilarated Opanka after his performance said, "It is a great feeling to be in the company of other artiste entertaining our fans. There should be more of these."
Hundreds of listeners of the station were on hand to have fun with their favorite celebrities. There was a lot to eat and drink and it was a cheerful evening.
Some enthusiastic fans could not hide their excitement at the end of the night.
"I have never been up close and very personal with some of the artiste," one fan said after shaking hands with some of the artistes.
"These celebrities really lit the night and I was very excited," another said.
Hitz High Table was sponsored by Kasapreko Alomo Silver and supported by Champion Dishes, Pork Office and Club Beer.

Benny Hinn sermons 2016 | Benny Hinn & Paula White | Benny Hinn Wiki | Benny Hinn 2016

Click on this link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NZG5tXQp9I

MzVee I achieved what I wanted at BET Awards

The event held at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, United States of America on Sunday, June 26 saw Black Coffee from South Africa emerge winner of the Best International Act: Africa category.

Lynx Entertainment act, MzVee, has expressed happiness for being at the 2016 Black Entertainment Television (BET) Awards.

The event held at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, United States of America on Sunday, June 26 saw Black Coffee from South Africa emerge winner of the Best International Act: Africa category.

Black Coffee beat competition from Yemi Alade, Wizkid, AKA, Cassper Nyovest, Diamond Platnumz, Serge Beynaud and MzVee.

Speaking on Pluzz FM’s Am Pluzz, MzVee said her nomination opened doors for her, adding that it was exciting representing Ghana at the event.

“I am excited about my nomination and I went out there to connect and also have fun and I achieved that,” she said.

MzVee will not disclose whether or not she has made efforts to get international collaborations but promised her fans she has something great for them.

“I don’t think I can speak on that now but my fans should expect something big from me this year. This year is going to be a good year for me and my fans,” she noted.

The ‘Natural Girl’ hit maker is the first female Ghanaian artiste to be nominated in the category. Male acts who earned nominations for Best International Act: Africa in previous years are Kojo Antwi (2010), D Black (2011), Sarkodie (2012, 2014, 2015), R2Bees (2013) and Stonebwoy (2015).

Exclusive: Oghenekaro Etebo Ruled Out Of Nigeria U23s Trip To United States

cording to information gathered by allnigeriasoccer.com’s editorial staff, CD Feirense midfielder Oghenekaro Etebo will not travel together with the Nigeria U23s squad to the United States, where they will hold a get-together ahead of the Olympics.

The first batch of players and officials will leave for Atlanta on Tuesday before the remaining batch joins them the following day, but the former Warri Wolves star will not be part of the traveling party.

Prior to his trip to Portugal to link up with CD Feirense in April, Etebo was issued a double-entry visa to the Schengen Area and it became invalid after his trip to France for the international friendlies with Mali and Luxembourg.

Thinking ahead, the 20-year-old has applied for another visa in Abuja instead of returning with the Dream Team VI squad to Nigeria at the end of the Olympic Games, as he is expected to return to Portugal immediately after the competition.
A United States visa has already been issued to Oghenekaro Etebo.

Free boarding: 120K students to benefit in 1st term

About 120,000 students in senior high schools across the country will benefit from the free boarding programme introduced by the government of Ghana for the first term, beginning August this year.
Last week, President John Mahama announced that the free SHS boarding policy would commence this year to cover the 2016/17 academic year.
Throwing more light on the programme in an interview with Prince Minkah, host of the Executive Breakfast Show (EBS) on Class91.3FM on Tuesday June 28, Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, a Deputy Minister of Education (Tertiary) explained that the free boarding programme was an expanded phase of the progressively free SHS programme of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration.
“The progressively free SHS enters an expanded phase from August this year, the 2016/17 academic year. We began absorbing 10 items on the bill for some 340,000 day students and we began with absorbing examination fees, library fees, entertainment fees, SRC dues, science development fees, mathematics and science quiz fees, sports fees, culture fees, Internet fees, and co-curricular activity fees.
“The new frontier we are entering is to cover boarders in deprived districts and boarders, who are really struggling to pay their fees. It’s a targeted intervention. We have projected 120,000 students to enjoy this intervention beginning from August this year, so we are talking about 120,000 out of the current 504,882 boarders… we are looking at some 24 per cent of this figure that we are beginning with,” he said.
Mr Ablakwa said the programme will target “poor households and very deprived students in deprived communities, so this is the framework within which we are operating.”
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Ghana National Education Campaign Coalition (GNECC), Bright Appiah, has called for clarity in the definition of free SHS for students. He told Prince Minkah that: “If you also look at the free SHS that this administration wants to give, [it] also points to the fact that there are certain elements that they are taking. But as we speak, we are not clear as to the various elements that they are taking in order to describe it as free, but if you look at the fees of the boarding schools and that of those who are not in the boarding schools, then it gives you some points as to what they will consider to be free”.
“So far as we are concerned, the issue of free will need to be clearly defined and when government introduces the policy of making SHS free, one of the things that we asked is to know what exactly government is absorbing to say that it is free for us to also do further analysis to see whether those things that the government is taking will indeed give that free nature that we are all talking about.”
He added: “So there is a lot of things that we need to consider, but if you say free, I don’t think to the layman we are doing justice to the subject matter, because in the past we have had a lot of things that also come with it, but at the end of the day it was classified as free. So, the context is very important and if those contexts have been defined, then any government at all can also tell us what exactly they want to do as free.”

ECOWAS Court laments non-execution of judgment by member states

he ECOWAS Court has expressed concern over non implementation of its judgment by the members’ states.
The Vice President of the Court, Justice Micah Wright told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja that only three out of 15 member states had put in place mechanism to execute the court’s decision.
“The court has experienced a couple of hardships or impediments as you say in the dispensation of its work, for example, notably in the execution of the judgment of the court.
“The court as you know does not have a police and the court does not execute or implement its own decisions, the court depends upon the goodwill of the member states.
“So, when the court renders a judgment, the court forwards the judgment to the member states and requests the member states to execute or implement that judgment – that is one of the impediments we have.
“Out of the 15 countries, our last information was that only three states had put in place proper mechanisms for the enforcement of judgment by this court, the countries are Nigeria, Guinea and Togo,” he said.
According to him, those are the only three countries that have mechanisms to receive and implement or execute the decision of the court.
Wright said that the court was embarking on efforts to get other member states to see the wisdom in complying with the judgment issued by the court.
The Vice President said that another impediment that the court was facing was insufficient fund for its operation due to non-payment of levy by member states.
“ The court and by extension the entire community is facing financial difficulties where member states are not paying up the community levy and that is the means of finance for all ECOWAS activities.
“The court is always at disadvantage when the funds are being distributed. But we have to take more initiatives to impress it upon the commission the mandate of the court is of such that the court is alone.
“The court cannot source external funding like the commission or like other institutions. We don’t want to compromise our independence and neutrality by going out to seek donor funding.
“Where the donor will have to dictate to the court the kinds of things they want the court to engage in, we want to maintain our independence and autonomy within the ECOWAS infrastructure,” he said.
According to him, the court has been lobbying with the commission to ensure that the fund disbursement will be more favourable to the court’s interest.
He said that another critical challenge the court was facing was inadequate space for office facilities that would give it proper accommodation.
According to him, at the moment the court has two facilities separated because the space in each one of them is not sufficient to host all the staff members of the court.
He said that the facilities Nigeria provided as its obligation as the host community in line with the treaty signed was becoming smaller because of the growth in the number of staff.
“We have observed that over the last 15 years, the staff of the court have outgrown the number of facilities we have already , we are repeating our call to the government of Nigeria to met up to its obligations.
“It is not a favour, it is a treaty obligation undertaken by Nigeria to host the court and that obligation places the responsibility on Nigeria to provide facilities to whichever institution it hosts.
“So I must say that this administration has taken one step because a month ago, the management of the court met with the minister of state ministry of foreign affairs and was kind enough to inform us that she would convey the concern of the court to the president.
“I’m sure that the president will use his good faith to discharge the responsibility of the obligation,” he said.

Nigeria: As Pipeline Breaks Threaten Nigeria's Energy Security

Chineme Okafor writes that the sabotage of critical oil and gas infrastructure by militants is compelling reason for the federal government to accelerate policies to diversify Nigeria's electricity generation sources to ensure energy security

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola recently declared that the renewed militancy in the Niger Delta was taking a great toll on the country's electricity system, and that Nigeria's economy was being made to pay for this acts.

Describing it as an unwholesome act, the minister in a disappointing voice, which sounded quite overwhelmed by the development, stated that the government was being forced to think fast on expanding the country's sources of electricity.

"Repeated acts of vandalism have rendered us vulnerable and we have to proactively move to overcome that one single source of supply," he said.

He explained that developing new and existing sources other than gas could take time but would eventually pay off and guarantee security of energy for her.

"We have seen from events that started around February 14 this year, repeated acts of vandalism of our gas pipelines that render us clearly vulnerable to one source of fuel for our energy development.

"That has challenged us to develop options and alternatives like solar in particular, and of course, hydro power plants in more quantitative response. So, we will be accelerating work on projects like Gurara Hydro Power Plant - phases 1 and 2, work has started on Zungeru Hydro Power Plant.

"We will also be accelerating work on Mambila Power Plant, which will give us the biggest single electrification source over a period of seven years that it is estimated to have it concluded.

"So, for us, this is a journey of diversification, a journey of electricity security for Nigeria and it is a journey that will ensure that in future it will be impossible to hold this country to ransom by controlling any particular source of fuel for electricity" he stated.

He noted when he launched the Building Energy Efficiency Guideline (BEEG) for Nigeria, that sustained sabotage of the country's petroleum pipeline in the Niger Delta by militant groups has rendered the country's public electricity supply system extremely vulnerable.

Meet the young man redefining auto-parts business in Nigeria

23-yrs-old Dairo Damilola Opeyemi who hails from Ibadan, Oyo State is the young Chief Executive Officer of Autofactorng, redefining auto-parts business in Nigeria. 

 In a country where buyers culturally show an overwhelming distrust of salesmen in the automotive industry, Dairo’s innovative platform sells genuine auto-parts at affordable prices and delivers it to client’s doorsteps nationwide with warranties on every item sold is no doubt a breath of fresh air to car users. The young CEO’s rise to becoming a nationwide auto-parts supplier in less than a year of establishing his firm is based largely on his passionate ingenuity to provide car users in the country with genuine alternative to both sub-standard and fairly used auto-parts, ‘Tokunbo’ which overtime leaves buyers cheated and unsatisfied. After graduating from Bowen University in 2012 where he studied Physics and Solar Energy , Dairo who said he has always had a flare for cars ventured into the automotive industry in Nigeria by providing solutions in the aspect of car body repairs and painting. “Like every other graduate, the next point of call for me after leaving school is to get engaged in a job but I know there is actually none waiting out there for me. So I went for a three months training session in a work shop on car painting and body repair after which I proceeded to doing the business itself and this noble step is what eventually led to the idea of ‘Autofactorng’. Citing that there are about 3 million cars in Lagos alone, Dairo lamented on how worrisome it is to find quality car parts in Nigeria. He explained that he had an experiential knowledge of this problem faced by car owners when he got into the painting and body works business, “to make things worse, some auto-parts dealers will end up telling you that fairly used parts are better than new ones, how possible can that be?” He queries. Answering himself, he said, “Tokunbo products are not new products, they are sold to users as genuine products which have been used and can never be better than new products.To understand this, just Imagine that you are using a year 2002 Toyota vehicle and you want to change the shock absorber and you purchase it it as a tokunbo, that means the part which was manufactured in 2002 has been used for probably 3 years and you are now purchasing it as a product in 2015 which interprets that the shock absorber is 13 years old, does it mean it is good or will last long? Where the problem lies for me with fairly used products, ‘Tokunbos’ is the fact that they are not safe. The lifespan of fairly used products like that of there sub-standard counterparts can never be compared to getting new products from their genuine manufacturers. This is the reason we are in this business to ensure that people get quality services for all money spent in the auto market in Nigeria. Convinced that he has all the know-how needed to transform the auto-part industry, Dairo revealed that he funded his idea with a start-up capital gotten from his personal savings and by sourcing funds from relatives, “believe me, it was not easy, pushing the dream to reality but overtime the it paid off”, he said. The soft-spoken entrepreneur said his joyous moments ever since he joined the league of business owners comes when clients give inspiring testimonies about the quality of service they enjoy at Autofactorng, “We have had several customers who call to say, they will no longer buy parts anywhere else except from Autofactorng, others say the whole idea is revolutionary and besides some companies are already requesting that we send them business proposals on partnerships.” Reminiscing on the challenges encountered starting the business, he said, “One of the predominant challenges we faced was designing the exact website that best answer our audience needs as well as offer them more services than what is obtainable in the market we find ourselves. Also, getting suppliers who stocks genuine car parts was equally tasking because hardly can you find a one-stop-shop for all car parts, especially when an average car uses over 30,000 parts. Creating awareness about the website and building trust was also an issue, despite the fact that most car users don’t trust their mechanics, they still believes it is better to stay with them than patronize a totally new approach to solving car related problems. But we have been able to win clients overtime by rendering quality services.” Despite his quick success Dairo said he has sustainability plans to keep his business growth. “Apart from taking orders online via very interactive platform we are looking at having a strong presence offline, building a full blown auto-part store where you can walk in and out with all kinds of car accessories/parts- fender,engine block,battery, tyres, etc. Assured that his firm, Autofactorng will in few years actualize the first auto part store in Nigeria, Dairo equally envisions an expansion to Ghana and other parts of Africa, “we are already getting calls outside Nigeria, most especially in Cotonou & Ghana and we have actually delivered products to Cotonou on several cases.” Asked if he has a special business philosophy or formula? “I believe strongly in the acronym, P.O.P, which stands for Perseverance, Optimism and Positivism, this 3 keys will see a start-up through difficult stages which of course are inevitable in starting up any kind of business.”

 

23-yrs-old Dairo Damilola Opeyemi who hails from Ibadan, Oyo State is the young Chief Executive Officer of Autofactorng, redefining auto-parts business in Nigeria.

Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/06/meet-young-man-redefining-auto-parts-business-nigeria/