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The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has endorsed efforts to expand the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) Start and Improve Your Business (SIYB) programme in Nigeria, saying structured <a href="https://usglobalxpress.com/the-ingredients-helping-africas-women-entrepreneurs-succeed/” title=”The Ingredients Helping Africa’s Women Entrepreneurs Succeed”>entrepreneurship training is critical to strengthening small businesses, improving productivity and creating jobs
The endorsement came as Simply Exponential Consult Limited announced the rollout of the ILO SIYB Train-the-Trainer (ToT) Programme across Lagos and Abuja, aimed at expanding the pool of professionals equipped to provide structured business support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. )
Speaking at a press conference in Lagos, Founder and Managing Partner of Simply Exponential Consult and ILO-certified Master Trainer, Morounfayo Williams, said the two-week hybrid certification programme would run from September 21 to October 5, 2026, followed by a 30-day implementation and mentoring phase
She said the programme was designed to build the capacity of professionals who work with entrepreneurs and SMEs, enabling them to deliver practical and standardised entrepreneurship training
According to Williams, the ILO SIYB programme has been deployed in more than 90 countries and provides practical training packages that help aspiring entrepreneurs developusinesses.
The training will cover three core packages: Generate Your Business Idea (GYBI), Start Your Business (SYB) and Improve Your Business (IYB). Participants will also use practical learning tools including business simulation games, role plays, life cards, record-keeping exercises and participant manuals covering business planning, marketing, adult learning and trainer guides
Williams said participants would not receive certification simply by completing the classroom phase. They would be required to conduct step-down training for entrepreneurs during a 30-day implementation and supervision period, after which their delivery would be observed before final certification
The programme is targeted at business development service providers, SME desk officers in financial institutions, managers of enterprise development organisations and microfinance institutions, entrepreneurship trainers and other professionals supporting small businesses. The programme fee is N765,000.
Williams said the certification could also improve the international competitiveness of Nigerian trainers, noting that ILO-certified professionals can qualify for entrepreneurship training assignments and tenders in different countries
She said the practical nature of SIYB was one of its major strengths, as the methodology uses simulations and exercises to teach entrepreneurs areas such as marketing, financial management, record keeping, planning, stock control and productivity
She also highlighted standardisation as an important feature of the programme, allowing trained facilitators to deliver the methodology consistently across different countries while adapting it to local business environments
Representing NECA Director-General Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, Director, Social and Labour Affairs/Projects, Adenike Adebayo-Ajala, said the private sector supported initiatives that strengthen small businesses, create jobs and contribute to economic growth
She stressed the importance of structured business training in areas including costing, record keeping, access to finance and market linkages, particularly as many small businesses continue to struggle with the fundamentals required for survival and growth.
Williams disclosed that more than 5,000 people had been trained in Nigeria under the SIYB framework, with at least four active master trainers currently operating in the country
The new ToT programme builds on an earlier ILO SIYB training held in Abuja in December 2025, which trained 24 participants from organisations including the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, Job Centres, NECA, the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria. The training was intended to create a foundation for step-down training and wider national expansion of SIYB.
The initiative is expected to create a multiplier effect by equipping more Nigerian professionals to train entrepreneurs, potentially expanding access to standardised business knowledge and practical support for SMEs across the country
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