African Youth Leader Urges Creation Of Afro-Arab Business Fund To Empower Young Entrepreneurs

According to Ireporter Online, a youth parliamentarian, Onisoman Kos-Ikah, has decried the inadequate financial and institutional support available to young entrepreneurs across Africa and the Arab world.

Kos-Ikah, who represented Bayelsa Central in the Nigerian Youth Parliament and served as a delegate at the Afro-Arab Youth Congress in Kampala, Uganda, made the remarks during an interview in Yenagoa. He emphasized that although several governments and development agencies have introduced youth empowerment programmes, such initiatives fall short of addressing the vast needs of the region’s youth population.

He noted that the Afro-Arab Youth Council should urgently establish an “Afro-Arab Youth Business Fund” as a sustainable mechanism to assist young innovators and entrepreneurs in actualizing their business ideas.

“The youths of Africa and the Arab nations are not lacking in ideas, creativity, or innovation; what they lack is the necessary support,” he said, stressing that many promising ventures have failed due to lack of adequate funding.

Kos-Ikah proposed that the proposed business fund could be financed through donor agencies or direct contributions from member nations. According to him, selected youths with credible business proposals could receive annual grants during the Afro-Arab Youth Congress to help them develop enterprises that would, in turn, boost their local economies.

He reiterated that investing in youth-driven businesses would not only promote innovation but also contribute to economic growth across Africa and the Arab region. The Afro-Arab Youth Council, he added, remains a vital platform for mobilizing young leaders from both regions to collaborate on developmental initiatives.