Enactus Nigeria has empowered more than 20,000 students in tertiary institutions across Nigeria over the past 25 years through programmes focused on entrepreneurship, leadership and innovation aimed at helping young people develop solutions to social and economic challenges.

Country Director of Enactus Nigeria, Michael Ajayi, disclosed this in a statement amid growing debates among Nigerian youths about the relevance of formal education to wealth creation and career success.

Ajayi said entrepreneurial success could be achieved through different pathways, but warned that the growing perception that formal education is no longer important, based on a handful of exceptional success stories, could undermine investment in human capital.

He maintained that education remains important for producing skilled professionals, entrepreneurs and responsible leaders who can make meaningful contributions to the economy.

According to Ajayi, Enactus Nigeria integrates education with innovation, entrepreneurship, creativity, discipline and problem-solving to provide students with practical skills for tackling social, economic and environmental challenges.

Through experiential learning, students work in multidisciplinary teams to identify problems within their communities, develop innovative responses, mobilise resources and implement projects capable of generating measurable social and economic impact.

Ajayi said the annual Enactus Nigeria National Competition gives student teams from tertiary institutions across the country an opportunity to present and defend their community-based projects before business executives, industry experts and development leaders.

The 2026 National Competition, themed “Re-Imagining Transformation,” is scheduled to hold on Thursday, August 13, 2026, at the Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The winning university team will represent Nigeria at the 2026 Enactus World Cup in Brazil, while the national competition will also serve as an avenue for identifying promising student innovations with potential for investment, scaling and commercialisation.

“Our long-term impact is in developing Nigerian students to become responsible future leaders,” Ajayi said.

He stressed that successful innovations should not end as competition entries, but should progress into viable businesses capable of creating jobs, generating wealth and improving livelihoods.

Ajayi called on investors, development finance institutions, corporate organisations, philanthropic foundations and other strategic partners to support promising student innovations and help turn them into sustainable enterprises.

Such support, he said, would enable the innovations to create employment, generate income and improve livelihoods across communities.

He also expressed appreciation to organisations that have supported Enactus Nigeria through funding, mentorship, technical expertise and strategic partnerships.

The organisations recognised include KPMG, SC Johnson, Chevron Nigeria, Schneider Electric, Sahara Group, Unilever, GTBank, FirstBank, First City Monument Bank, Sahara Foundation, LEKOIL, Coca-Cola Nigeria, the United States Embassy in Abuja, the United States Consulate General in Lagos, Sterling Bank, Interswitch, First E&P, Sovereign Trust, Nigeria Society of Engineers, African Capital Alliance Foundation, Verve, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board and Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, among others.

The organisation’s 25-year record reflects its focus on combining formal education with practical entrepreneurial and problem-solving experience, while the 2026 competition is expected to provide another platform for Nigerian students to showcase innovations addressing challenges in their communities.

Source: MSME Africa Online