The involvement of young people in advancing solutions towards many of the challenges confronting humanity will see Yaba College of Technology (YABATECH), hosting students across the country as they compete for a chance to represent the country in winning the $1 million Hult prize.
The Hult prize is a start-up accelerator for social entrepreneurship, which brings together the brightest college and university students from around the globe, to solve the world’s most pressing issues. The annual initiative is described by its organizers, as the world’s largest student competition and crowd-sourcing platform for social-good, and has been funded by the Hult family since its inception in 2009.
This year, the theme is focused on the United Nations’ “Harnessing the Power of Energy to improve 10 Million Lives by 2025” challenge, and students of tertiary institutions across Nigeria are being offered a chance to offer practical, innovative solutions on the theme. The event requires student teams to compete around the world for a chance to secure $ 1million in start-up funding to launch a sustainable social venture.
In partnership with former American President Bill Clinton, this innovative crowd sourcing platform identifies and launches disruptive and catalytic social ventures that aim to solve the planet’s most pressing challenges.
In the words of President Clinton, “The Hult Prize is a wonderful experience of creative cooperation needed to build a world with shared opportunity, shared responsibility, and shared prosperity, and each year I look forward to seeing the many outstanding ideas the competition produces”.
Ahmed Ashkar, CEO and Founder of Hult prize, attributes the success of the competition to a shift in the global economy and the millennial generation’s refusal to live in a world with inequality.
“We are giving entrepreneurs from all around the world a platform to innovate and revolutionise the way we think about servicing the disadvantaged,” said Ashkar.
The winning team from the Hult Prize at Yaba College of Technology’s final event this December, will be fast-tracked at one of the fifteen regional finals events around the world, bypassing the general application which annually receives over 20,000 applicants from more than 850 colleges and universities in over 150 countries.
The Hult Prize Regional competitions will take place in March 2018 in 15 different locations. Following the regional finals, one winning team from each host city will attend a summer business accelerator, where participants will receive mentorship, advisory and strategic planning as they create prototypes and set up to launch their new social business. A final round of the competition will take place in September, where one team will be selected as the winner and be awarded the $1 million prize.
“For the very first time, Yabatech has been selected to host Hult Prize. With this, the search for students with the best ideas to improve the world is on and I believe students of Yabatech have just what it takes, just as students from other countries in order to improve our world. This is not about the $1,000,000 but the race to improve the world,” said Abdulmu’min Edidi, campus director for the contest in Nigeria.
The event holds on December 6, 2017 and student groups interested in the contest are to contact Abdulmu’min Edidi via +2347067520907, and for more information, can visit www.hultprizeat.com/yabatech.
CALEB OJEWALE
