A Simple Way to Transform the Nigerian Economy
- Sep 5, 2025
- 1 min read
Updated: Sep 6, 2025
Earlier this week, I wrote an article for The Cable reflecting on a very simple but potentially transformative idea: what if every village in Nigeria owned a business?
It may sound simple, even obvious, but when you look at the numbers, the potential becomes staggering. With over 80,000 villages across Nigeria, even if only half of them established viable enterprises, millions of sustainable jobs could be created, communities would be strengthened, and our economy would be transformed from the bottom up.
This is not a thought experiment. In Imo State, where the One Kindred One Business Initiative (OKOBI) is already in place, we have seen how collective entrepreneurship can work in practice. In just 20 months, OKOBI has supported the creation of more than 450 businesses and over 13,000 jobs. These are real businesses, owned by real communities, creating wealth and opportunities at the grassroots.
The lesson is clear. Nigeria doesn’t need to wait for big corporations or government jobs to tackle unemployment and poverty. Villages and communities, through cooperative ownership, can become the real engines of economic growth.
I invite you to read my full article on The Cable here:
You’ve nailed it again – always a pleasure to read your work. I appreciated how you focused on practical ideas instead of just describing the challenges facing the Nigerian economy. Your point about creating an environment that supports productivity and sustainable business growth really stood out because long-term transformation requires consistent policies as well as private sector participation. I also believe that a managerial economics seminar & course in Lagos, Nigeria can provide the best foundation for executives who want to make better strategic decisions based on sound economic principles. One aspect I'd love to see explored further is how small and medium-sized enterprises can be better positioned to benefit from these proposed reforms. Thanks for sharing such a thought-provoking…