70% wealthy individuals globally not into salary jobs – Expert
Director of Executive Education and Consulting at Nungu Business School, Dr. Jibril Salaudeen has once again advised Nigerians to embrace entrepreneurship and investment. According to him, entrepreneurship is the surest avenue to get rich. He said 70 per cent of wealthy individuals globally are not into salaried jobs. Salaudeen, who was the guest speaker during […]
Director of Executive Education and Consulting at Nungu Business School, Dr. Jibril Salaudeen has once again advised Nigerians to embrace entrepreneurship and investment.
According to him, entrepreneurship is the surest avenue to get rich. He said 70 per cent of wealthy individuals globally are not into salaried jobs.
Salaudeen, who was the guest speaker during the 2025 Zakat Disbursement Ceremony of the Lekki Muslim Ummah (LEMU), stated that there are vast opportunities available for entrepreneurial ventures in Nigeria.
A total of N162 million was disbursed by LEMU to over 400 beneficiaries as part of its Annual Zakat Distribution for 2025. The funds were allocated across various sectors, including education, economic empowerment, health, and debt relief.
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He said, “We must keep looking around our environment to see where the opportunities are, and where we need to invest. For opportunities to be there, it means there are gaps. These gaps are what result in businesses.”
He stated that 50 per cent of start-ups around the world don’t see their first anniversary, adding that the next 50 per cent, 60 per cent of them don’t see their second anniversary.
“So majorly it’s because they don’t understand how to drive funding, they also don’t understand how to stay close to their business, they think they can just continue to spend whatever they make from the business, they don’t understand that the business will continue to ask for more money.
“Also when entrepreneurs start business they must also realise that they need to keep a relationship with their funders particularly the banks, if they are able to do this they can get additional funds because the dynamics of business keep changing…”
He added, “The business environment keeps changing, there is nowhere in the world where the government builds businesses , it is the people that build businesses, so once you have a completely free enabling environment there are no more opportunities, so for opportunities to be there it means there are gaps and those gaps are what results into businesses.
“So, Nigeria today is like America in the 70’s, a lot of opportunities people wanting to do salaried jobs and 70% of rich people around the world are not into salary, they are entrepreneurs and another 10% of them are into inherited funds, but the truth is we must keep looking around our environment for opportunities and where we need to invest.”
LEMU President, Dr. AbdulGaniy Labinjo who noted that this year’s amount surpasses the N105 million disbursed in 2024, emphasised that Zakat payments are welcomed from both members and non-members of the organization.
“Our expectation from the beneficiaries is that they will be happy, that a lot of them will fix their debts. Students in need will be able to pay their fees. Business owners will grow their ventures and eventually become Zakat payers,” he said.
Chairman of the LEMU Zakat Committee, Alhaji Yunus Salisu revealed that 400 recipients were shortlisted from the over 500 applications that were received, after careful review by the committee.
The Chief Imam of Lekki Central Mosque, Dr. Ridwan Jamiu also advised the beneficiaries to deploy the funds into profitable ventures, saying they should not spend the money to buy rams. He advised them to embrace prudent financial management.