Nigerians always think we are rich as a country because we have men who can spend more than they earn only to move back to villages in coming years when the money finishes. They live on visibility and do not like to build things. That is why corruption is high in Nigeria. The mantra is quick money and money now.
Most people think wealth is created in Aso Rock and government houses in our state capitals. They do not understand that entrepreneurs occupy a vital state in any country if they hope to prosper.They serve as the spark plug in the economy’s engine, activating and stimulating all economic activities. The economic success of advanced economies is the result of encouraging and rewarding the entrepreneurial instinct.
A society is prosperous only to the degree to which it rewards and encourages entrepreneurial activities because it is the entrepreneurs and their activities that are the critical determinant of the level of success, prosperity, growth and opportunities in any economy.
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Countries go to great lengths to promote entrepreneurs because they realize that the best way to tell the story of their business environment competitiveness is by using the entrepreneurs themselves to tell the story.
In October 2011, at a meeting of the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, the office of US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a plan to bring a tactical team of business experts from the private sector into the federal government to help streamline the process for letting foreign entrepreneurs into the United States to help ignite a new wave of economic growth.
The Chilean government also put in place a strategy to encourage entrepreneurs irrespective of country of origin. Thus, they came up with a programme where anyone with a compelling start-up idea, gets a $40,000 grant from the Chilean government to move to the country and establish the business. The Chilean embassy will grant the person a one-year visa within days. When you arrive in Chile, you will have free offices, fast Wi-Fi and other necessary infrastructure needed to move an enterprise forward.
Compare that to Nigeria where the leadership rarely acts as if businessmen men are opposition parties.We do not care because we do not have the mindset to build things. We like to enjoy quick success and that is why we are corrupt as a nation. Entrepreneurship means building things over time and it demands commitment and dedication which Nigeria does not have.