TAFTA calls for security measures and tax relief for young entrepreneurs

The Terra Academy for the Arts has called on federal and state governments to improve security and introduce tax rebates and other incentives for young entrepreneurs. TAFTA Academy Lead Joseph Umoibom made the appeal at the second Ogun Women Entrepreneurship Development Programme, organised with the Mastercard Foundation at the June 12 Cultural Centre in Abeokuta. Umoibom said insecurity was a major obstacle to entrepreneurship, particularly in the creative sector.

He noted that creative businesses often require people to travel, work outside conventional hours and meet customers in different locations. He also criticised what he described as heavy taxes on businesses that were still trying to establish themselves. Umoibom said rebates and incentives could give young entrepreneurs room to develop before facing significant tax obligations.

He advised entrepreneurs to build their businesses around integrity and problem-solving. In his view, customers would support enterprises that offered solutions to problems, while a lack of trust could prevent businesses from attracting partners and clients. TAFTA’s Ogun programme manager, Oluwafemi Oluwasuyi, said the academy and the Mastercard Foundation had trained more than 67,000 young Nigerians in Lagos, Ogun and Kano over four years.

More than 25,000 of those trainees were in Ogun, he said. About 400 young women took part in the programme’s second cohort. The three-day initiative included virtual sessions followed by a physical session in Abeokuta, with training, mentorship and business support.

Oluwasuyi said TAFTA also offered free business registration, information on grants and support for beneficiaries seeking employment, freelance work or opportunities to establish and expand their own enterprises.