The Minister of Youths & Sports Development, Sunday Dare, and First Bank of Nigeria Limited have advised youths on the need to generate creative business ideas that would attract funding for their entrepreneurship schemes.
Speaking at the National Company of the Year (NCOY) competition, Dare said that youths with creative ideas have good chances of accessing the N75 billion Youth Development Fund being promoted by the Federal Government to support youth-owned businesses.
He said entrepreneurship has a critical role to play in solving Nigeria’s unemployment problems as the world is looking beyond qualifications and focusing on creative ideas.
In her goodwill message, Group Head, Marketing and Corporate Communications, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Mrs. Folake Ani-Mumuney, said FirstBank has been supporting the NCOY competition which is an extension of the Junior Achievement Nigeria (JAN) Company Programme designed to empower students on financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship through experiential, hands-on programs.
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Ani-Mumuney said the 10th anniversary of NCOY is a significant milestone. She also stated that NCOY brings together outstanding students and business teams across Nigeria to compete to represent Nigeria at the African Company of the year competition.
Continuing, Dare said the uptake of technology is very high among youths, adding that the programme was enriching and promising for the students to achieve their life ambitions and solve societal problems. He said the technical skills the participants exhibited showed that Nigeria has a future for younger generations.
He said the idea of what a non-governmental organisation is changing, as they are now using technology and knowledge to solve societal problems.
At the end of the competition, the New Phase from Brookstone Secondary School, Port-Harcourt, Rivers state emerged winner producing an eco-friendly block. The second runner up was Jikoru from Alvana Secondary School, Owerri, Imo state designing a web platform that connects freelancers to jobs; while the first runner up was Amazing Amazons from Government Girls Secondary School, Abaji, Abuja came up with an innovative Health technology that connects hospitals to blood banks and to blood donors.
Innovative Vibrant Youth from International School of the University of Lagos, Lagos state also won in the Facebook award category designed a mobile application that to crowd fund towards feminine hygiene products for girls in undeserved communities. People’s choice award went to Amazing Amazons from Government Girls Secondary School, Abaji, Abuja while the New Phase from Brookstone Secondary School, Port-Harcourt, Rivers state won the MasterCard award.
In her remarks, the Director of Marketing and Innovation, Oduolayinka Osunloye, said the NCOY is an opportunity for them to showcase the depth of potentials that lies within the students.
She also stated that this is the first time the event would be organised virtually, adding that it would not be an exception “as we should be ready to experience creativity in another dimension.”
Continuing Ani-Mumuney said, “First Bank of Nigeria Limited has been involved with JAN for several years, and it is also one of the many fronts for engagements with the next generation of Nigerians who will create the innovative future that we all aspire for. Our partnership with JAN in the NCOY competition has made a decade of impact and illustrations, driven by the very products and services created by young minds to solve real problems facing society. Also, the problems facing the businesses they put in place is to successfully produce and market the product in a sustainable manner and positively impact their local communities.
“Considering the growing incidents of death and explosion resulting from gas leakages in homes, offices, and industries, well students from Taidob College Abeokuta, Ogun State, through their student company TC achievers chose to address this challenge and created an innovative solution to address that, this what we are looking to celebrate and continue to promote. TC achiever produced an industrial, domestic gas leakage detector; it is a device that raises the alarm and sends an SMS to the owner’s mobile phone once there is any gas leakage.
“The innovative device fetched TC achievers first position in the regional competition in Ogun state and the national final in Lagos, they won and earned the right to represent Nigeria in 2019 African Company of the Year competition in Ghana.
Taidob College emerged from Ghana with four awards the most by any participating JAN member countries including Botswana, Swaziland, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The Nigeria representative won the client focus award, the entrepreneurial spirit award, the facilitator of the year and with second runner-up with the actual company of the year. We are hoping this year we will clinch everything. For us, the winners of NCOY are to be celebrated.”
