In a bold stride toward global poverty eradication, the Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (PHCCIMA) has disbursed grants to 20 women entrepreneurs and equipped secondary school students with cutting-edge entrepreneurship training and skills. The initiative, held at PHCCIMA’s Waterlines secretariat in Port Harcourt, underscores the chamber’s commitment to fostering economic independence and innovation as weapons against societal inequities.
The event, themed “From Classroom to Boardroom,” marked PHCCIMA’s observance of the United Nations’ International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17. This annual global call to action spotlights poverty’s pervasive toll and rallies collective efforts to dismantle it. This year’s overarching theme—”Ending Social and Institutional Maltreatment by Ensuring Respect and Effective Support for Families”—framed discussions on building resilient communities through dignity and targeted aid.
A centrepiece of the program was an essay contest for local secondary students titled “Earning Money Legitimately,” designed to instil ethical wealth-building mindsets early. By challenging teens to envision sustainable income streams free from fraud or fleeting schemes, PHCCIMA aimed to cultivate a generation of principled innovators.
Opening the proceedings, PHCCIMA President Dr Chinyere Nwoga issued a clarion call for gender-inclusive progress. “We must raise a cadre of independent thinkers and game-changers,” she declared. “No society advances when half its population—predominantly women—remains economically sidelined.” Emphasising empowerment over charity, Nwoga added, “Women aren’t seeking handouts; we’re demanding tools for self-reliance. Give us resources, and we’ll multiply them tenfold.”
Financial literacy took centre stage with insights from Dr Edughom Hanson, Managing Director of Wider Perspectives Ltd. Urging immediate action, she advised, “Start saving and investing before 18—no income is too small. Shun the trap of outspending earnings, neglecting emergency funds, or chasing get-rich-quick illusions.” Hanson stressed “financial smarts,” advocating loans only for productive pursuits: “Borrowing for consumption is a recipe for regret.”
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Mentorship emerged as a recurring theme, with Chief Ernest Elochukwu, Chairman/CEO of Nestello Group, highlighting its role in navigating entrepreneurial hurdles. He positioned PHCCIMA as “the private sector’s voice and gateway in Rivers State and the South-South,” noting, “Partnering with the chamber means aligning with a network of business titans.”
Paul Damgbor, a senior aide in the Rivers State Deputy Governor’s office, lauded the initiative’s timeliness, urging participants to seize its transformative potential. Meanwhile, Mr Jack Daboikiabo, Chairman of PHCCIMA’s SME and NGO Trade Group, confronted the crisis head-on: “Over 100 million Nigerians endure extreme poverty.” Drawing from a video lesson by Cosmas Maduka of Coscharis Motors, he shifted focus from mere cash to “attitudinal currencies”—values like integrity that magnetise opportunities.
Pacqueens Ehiabe Irabor, South-South Divisional Head at the Bank of Industry (BOI), reframed poverty as a mindset deficit: “It’s not a scarcity of money, but a shortfall in will and discipline to act rightly.” Elevating time as the ultimate asset—”What money buys depreciates; what time invests in appreciates”—Irabor encouraged problem-solving ventures. The BOI, she revealed, has already channelled N10.2 billion this year to regional businesses, with more support pledged.
Lawrence Nwosu, Project Coordinator at the Renaissance Education Foundation, rounded out the discourse by advocating vocational funding and local talent patronage. “Eradicating extreme poverty isn’t charity—it’s justice,” he asserted. “Let boardroom choices uplift our communities today.”
The event’s crescendo featured certificates of participation for attending schools, N500,000 startup grants to the inaugural cohort of 20 women (with more batches planned), and special accolades for AI prodigies Akachukwu Blessed Nwachukwu and Ifunanya Gabriella Okoye. Their co-created app, StayWoke, harnesses technology to prevent accidents, earning praise for blending creativity with real-world impact.
Through these efforts, PHCCIMA not only honours a global mandate but plants seeds for a poverty-free future—one empowered woman, one savvy student at a time.
