DIAMOND Bank Plc said it has committed N105 million in seven years in grants to support budding entrepreneurs in the country through its Building Entrepreneurs Today, BET, programme.
The Diamond Bank’s BET programme is a six month intensive entrepreneurial training of 50 budding entrepreneurs every year from select sectors of the economy. The top five entrepreneurs from each season are awarded a grant of N3 million each as start-up capital for their businesses.
Speaking at the BET season seven award ceremony in Lagos, Chief Executive Officer, Diamond Bank, Uzoma Dozie, said the intention is to help more Nigerians start and own their own businesses in order to reduce unemployment in the country. He stated that the bank has supported over 150 businesses and given grants to over 20 entrepreneurs in the last six years through the initiative.
Dozie explained that one of the objectives of BET 7 was to leverage technology to share the experience of the participants to millions of Nigerians to let them know that they too can be successful entrepreneurs and employers of labour. According to him, “Every great entrepreneur you see today started small; I don’t know of any entrepreneur who started big but they all had one thing in common.
They were determined; they had a challenge and that challenge is how to solve a problem.”
