WHAT MAKES FATE UNIQUE

FATE's approach to wealth creation in Nigeria is innovative for seven primary reasons.

First, while most enterprise development organizations focus on rural dwellers, FATE seeks to cater to the urban youth, a vulnerable and an often-neglected segment of society.

Secondly, historical business development initiatives in Nigeria have either been championed by the government or by international agencies. However, FATE is a private sector led initiative, created and funded by Nigerians who are concerned about the poor state of the nation.

Thirdly, most training programmes offered by organizations in urban Nigeria are cost prohibitive because they rely on "career trainers." In addition, they are often theoretical and sometimes prove ineffective when applied in the nation's harsh economic terrain. However, since FATE relies on volunteer instructors, mentors, and consultants, it is able to minimize it costs structure, while providing "world-class" training to individuals who ordinarily would not be able to afford it. In addition, its primary reliance on local entrepreneurs and mentors as opposed to "full-time trainers" ensures that the instruction and support provided via FATE is realistic, dynamic and relevant.

Fourth, FATE's Mentoring Programme is the first of its kind in Nigeria. In an environment characterized by corruption, the youth have continued to celebrate mediocrity. However, through its mentoring programme, the youth are given the opportunity to interact with entrepreneurs who have achieved success through hard work, innovation, enterprise and strong business ethics. These mentors are expected to devote at least 38 hours over the five-month period to their participants during which they are expected to cover three major topics - personal development, entrepreneurial skills and business etiquette.

Fifth, most microfinance institutions that support the youth use the traditional group-based lending and training approach, which often limits the diversity of the businesses that they are able to support. In addition, many of these efforts are uncoordinated and do not provide their beneficiaries with the breath and depth of support that they require to establish successful businesses. Therefore, by offering a comprehensive set of services to its participants, FATE ensures that these individuals receive the support that they need to establish sustainable businesses. It is also important to recognize that FATE also offers one-on-one support to these entrepreneurs as they attempt to create marketable business plans and tailors its services to fit their unique needs.

Sixth, while most entrepreneurs focus on debt financing as the only major financing alternative, FATE not only provides extensive training on the "equity option," but also creates avenues its participants to raise substantial financial support. By introducing semi-annual investors' forum and business plan competitions, both the 1st of their kind in Nigeria, FATE has been able to successfully link its participants to equity investors.

Finally, FATE seeks to transform the Nigerian business landscape by sharing its world-class training materials, publications and training procedures with microcredit and entrepreneurial development organizations in Nigeria. In addition, by offering training programmes to the staff and beneficiaries of these organizations, FATE can ensure that it has widespread impact.