Augustus J. Flomo, former Deputy Minister for Economic Management at the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, has challenged young people in Liberia to adopt innovative thinking and seize local opportunities to drive economic growth.
Flomo, known for his advocacy on youth empowerment and entrepreneurship, made the disclosure recently on his social media video post while encouraging young people to think outside the box to look at aquaculture as an opportunity in Liberia.
The former Deputy Finance Minister for Economic Management also questioned the youth's willingness to explore untapped industries such as aquaculture and other value-added ventures.
"Who are the young people thinking outside the box to look at aquaculture as an opportunity in Liberia?" he asked. He emphasized the need for youth to rethink waste and turn excess resources into valuable products. Flomo is also the CEO of Gusceman Inc, a prominent Liberian business development firm in the country.
Sharing an example from his recent visit to India, Flomo highlighted how young people there transform coconuts--often seen as waste--into valuable commodities.
"In India, they call the coconut a 'fruit of God' because nothing is wasted. What you may call the coconut peel or shell is converted into useful items like bags, purses, wallets, and office accessories," he explained.
He stressed that Liberia is rich in resources like coconut trees, yet these opportunities remain underutilized. "I believe in Liberia we have so many coconut trees. How can people see these things and convert them? Why should people wait until someone tells them there is an opportunity?" he questioned.
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Flomo criticized the culture of passivity among some young people in Liberia, urging them to be proactive. "Young people need to wake up and make their brains active. The minds are too idle. People are too laid back--a lot of sleeping people," he remarked.
He warned that Liberian youth are in a global competition where their peers in other countries are actively innovating and creating solutions.
"The other young people in other countries are not joking. Why should we be sitting and waiting? Why should we wait for someone to send a donation before we survive?" he challenged.
Flomo called for a transformative shift in the mindset of Liberian youth, describing it as a "360-degree swing" in their approach to opportunities and challenges. "If they have that 360-degree change of mind, many things are possible because Liberia is a treasure," he concluded.
