Group holds innovation youth idea lab at Energy summit

Strategic Women and Youth Institute (SWYI) has concluded plans to host a youth idea lab at the forth coming Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES), 2022.

The event, which is the first in its series, aims to capture, collaborate, scale and measure ideas of the youth in one centralised innovation youth lab at the NIES scheduled to take place between 27th Feb and 3rd March next year in Abuja.

In a statement signed and made available to BusinessDay by the President and Board Chair of Strategic Women and Youth Institute, Ngozi Oyewole, her organisation decided to gather brilliant youths to showcase their brainstorming ideas that would scale them into successful novelty.

Oyewole, who also is a renowned entrepreneur in the areas of integrated safety equipment and services in the Energy and Gas space, added that the broader aim of the event was to help young people become entrepreneurs of their own lives as well as to be able to shape personal prospects through constant updating and upgrading of skills and hybrid know-how, in a changing environment.

To her, innovation and creativity can also help young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to become resources in co-creating solutions that give them access to society.

“The range of programmes put together by SWYI stimulates young people’s employability and entrepreneurship skills which can inspire policy making and help solve problems as experts in this field.

“The other objectives of this Youth Lab Innovation programme apart from fostering creativity and entrepreneurship, is also to empower young people to implement their own ideas, to raise self-esteem and self-confidence and to promote the acquisition of competences and skills by carrying out concrete projects,” the statement read in part.

However, Oyewole in the statement stressed the need for other organisations to throw their weight behind SWIY in giving youths the much-needed funds to realise their dream.

On her part, Vice President and Deputy Board Chair SWYI, Blessing Enakimio observed in the statement that the usefulness of encouraging STEMpreneurs in the energy and gas industry, especially the recognition of the young inventors, would encourage more youth participation in society.