By Ephraim Oseji

The professional Heritage Cell seminar, a business empowerment programme by the Christ Embassy, Admiralty-Lekki, Lagos, has held its maiden edition over the weekend, with participants drawn from aspiring entrepreneurs and other business communities, to an impactful session.

The programme, a business training and empowerment seminar, in line with the Church’s vision to address the societal challenges of underemployment, was created to sensitize aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners with ideas on how to unlock potentials, build powerful skills and turn vision into profitable impact.

The seminar held at Christ Embassy Centre, Admiralty-Lekki, with the theme: “From Ideas to Impact: Faith, skills and profitable actions,” saw an impactful engagement with participants in an interactive session that focused on digital proficiency and influencer marketing; critical thinking and problem solving skills; communication skills with focus on personal branding and public speaking techniques and lastly, growth, leveraging social media and marketing strategies.

The programme Director, Sister Victoria Uwadoka-Anyianuka, said the seminar is a faith-based empowerment programme for professionals, creatives and entrepreneurs.

She said: “This is a maiden edition, organised by the Professional Heritage Cell, a business empowerment arm of Christ Embassy Admiralty-Lekki kick starting with what will be a monthly programme. We created the idea to help people gain knowledge of how to start new businesses as a side gig or improve on their existing establishments. It is also, to reshape people’s focus in creating new business ideas, have solid plans that can be executed for profitable activity, and how to bring the plan into reality. That is the inspiration behind it. Participants are mainly entrepreneurs and professionals including some who are already in employed job.

“We are excited at the level of attendance in this first edition and would love to have more people on the programme. From this group of people here today, we look forward to see more business ideas develop, put into practice and see the ideas grow from it. I am happy we shared the ideas. What is more satisfying for me is seeing the excitement and passion of the participants,” she said.
The vision and mission

“Nigerians are full of ideas but there is absolute gap in knowledge. This, we understand is caused by fear which sometimes, is as a result of knowledge gap and how to do it. What we try to do is to close the knowledge gap that would enable people start their businesses. Sometimes people also complain of lack of money. But in some case, people have the money but fail because they lack business building processes and systems. In the course of the programme we will show them how to build processes and systems that would help sustain their businesses in the long term.

“In addition to knowledge impartation, the Cell also accommodates financial support in form of seed funding to help aspiring entrepreneurs. Once their business ideas are detailed and plans done,we will also see their trajectory and actions on the business plan before the funds are released. We will not only give seed funding, but we will mentor, support and coach the person to grow,” she added.

Uwadoka-Anyianuka said the Cell business seminar comes every last Saturday of the month, noting that, in-person participation is more effective for interactions, while encouraging others to join through distance connections.

“Currently, we are concentrating on our catchment areas within Lekki Phase 1, and environs, but we will expand the programme to accommodate other locations in the cause of time,” she added.