The General Superintendent, Holy Spirit Mission (aka) Happy Family Church, Bishop (Dr) Charles Ighele has said the Church in Nigeria has capacity to take the country out of economic woods.
He made the submission at the 2024 end of the year’s forum organised by the Association of Christian Correspondents of Nigeria (ACCoN).
At the event which took place recently at the Vineyard Christian Ministries, Lagos, Ighele said ‘the Church has been so blessed with both material and human resources..It has capacity to pull Nigeria out of the economic misery if only it decides to.
Speaking on the theme, ‘The Church: Entrepreneurship and Innovation for a Prosperous Nigeria,’ the bishop said the need for the church to come to the rescue of the country cannot be overemphasized.
The Church according to him must be able to provide funding for industrialisation and also make entrepreneurship attractive to a larger population.
How the church can help
Explaining how the church can drive entrepreneurship he said, ‘the Church must dispatch its people to create initiatives that promote agripreneurs apart from providing the needed funds for start ups.
He noted that the agric sector has the capacity to turn Nigeria around adding however that there is need to support entrepreneurs in that sector.
The cleric also urged the government to support initiatives by the private sector especially the church by providing the enabling environment for the sector to operate.
He said, “For a nation to rise in terms of development, such nation must look at the area of its comparative advantage.. In raising entrepreneurs we must look at area of our strength as a nation to drive development and boost economy’
Israel and other nations
Making allusion to Israel, Singapore and Hong Kong, he said these nations have risen from nothing to achieve economic prosperity and national development through entrepreneurship.
Israel according to him has the greatest number of entrepreneurs in the world.. “Countries like Singapour, Dubai, Hong Kong started from nothing but by deliberately training entrepreneurs, their nation experience economic growth. These nations push people into the entrepreneurship’ He said.
Citing his Church’s example he said, ‘Our church’s institute of entrepreneurship and skills development is set to take off by 2025. We are going to walk the talk in the direction of raising entrepreneurs.’
OAIC
Chairman of the Lagos Organisation of African Instituted Churches (OAIC), His Eminence, Apostle Julius Opasola also emphasised the need for entrepreneurs and innovation to boost growth and meaningful development in the country.
He called on church leaders to build people rather than buildings. Without entrepreneurs and innovation, the church will remain stagnant and without any significant growth.’ he said.
Foursquare G.O
Also speaking at the event, the General Overseer of Foursquare Gospel Church in Nigeria, who was also the father of the day, Pastor Sam Aboyeji, observed that the Church plays a vital role in nation building.
He said, ‘this is done in several ways, including by advancing Christ’s glorious gospel, promoting good values in society, and modeling the right moral leadership.
The Church has engaged in several societal interventions aimed at promoting entrepreneurship and innovation over the years with the establishment of schools, hospitals, award of scholarships, setting up vocational and ICT centers, which in many instances are made free for the benefit of the youth,”
While noting that the church is both the light and salt of the world, he said, “The Church continues to contribute its quota towards advancing a prosperous nation,”
ACCoN president
Earlier, in his welcome address, the president, ACCoN, Mr Adeola Ogunlade said that it is imperative that the church should create solutions to national challenges.
Ogunlade said that faith fuels innovation and that the Church through its teachings should come up with practical solutions to bridge the youth unemployment gap in the country through entrepreneurship.
He further disclosed that the annual forum was aimed at fostering meaningful conversations around the church’s role in societal development.
“The Church has always been a beacon of light and a cradle of ideas that shape lives and nations. From the early days of Christian missions, when education, healthcare, and community welfare were introduced, to the present day, the Church has consistently demonstrated its capacity to foster innovation and prosperity.”
He said entrepreneurship is not merely about profit but about creating solutions to problems, generating employment, and building a thriving economy. Innovation, on the other hand, is about discovering new ways to bring about lasting change.