Youth Empowerment through Entrepreneurship /Business Education: A Gateway to National Growth and Self Reliance in Nigeria

The role played by youth empowerment through Entrepreneurship/Business Education in promoting national growth and self reliance in Nigeria cannot be overemphasized. Entrepreneurship Education and Business Education have common goal of helping the recipients acquire functional skills in terms of vocational business, technical, technological and other forms of skills which could empower them to be self reliant without necessarily waiting for government employment before they can contribute their quota to national development. The youth forms the greatest percentage of the workforce in Nigeria. Business Education with its interwoven connectivity with Entrepreneurship Education on their parts, equips the youths with skills and competencies needed for national growth and self reliance. This paper is therefore aimed at assessing the benefits of youth empowerment through Business and Entrepreneurship Education; and exposing curriculum content of these two courses for recipients towards achieving self reliance and national growth in Nigeria. The following recommendations among others were made; the introduction of Entrepreneurship/ Business Education programs should be made compulsory in the school systems from secondary to higher institutions. Youths should also see school attendance as an avenue to make them creators of job and not seekers of jobs.