The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) says it is working to promote the culture of innovations and entrepreneurship among secondary school students in the territory.
The Director Secretary, FCT Secondary Education Board (SEB), Dr Muhammed Ladan, stated this in Abuja on Friday, at the 2024 FCT-SEB’s Students Trade Entrepreneurship, Exhibition, Competition and Award programme.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the programme, which is the 4th edition, was organised by FCT-SEB in collaboration with the Service Improvement Department.
According to Ladan, the goal is to promote entrepreneurship and self-reliance among students in all the 88 secondary schools in the territory.
He added that the FCT Administration was also planning to establish the Nigerian-Brunell Entrepreneurship Centre in Nigeria before the end of 2024.
He explained that the centre would be established in partnership with Brunel University to facilitate the training of the young innovators in FCT schools and incubate them for prominence.
He said that the 88 secondary schools under the FCT-SEB participated in the student entrepreneurship competition.
“We started with the Area Council in which some schools were eliminated while others moved to the zonal level, out of which 12 schools moved to the final.
“Out of the 12 schools that participated in the finals, five emerged as the winners.
“We have a lot of young mentors and sponsors that are ready to pick up from where they stopped and support in packaging and marketing the products.
“In the last edition, a school won the competition with interlock production using waste polythene bags,” he said.
Ladan further said: “We have gotten the original machine that can produce interlock using wastepaper and the school has started production and has gotten orders from organisations.
“This is part of efforts to ensure sustainability of the students’ project and ensure that no child in FCT graduates from secondary school without a self-reliant skill.”
NAN reports that Government Secondary School, Kuduru, Bwari, emerged winner of the competition, while Government Secondary School, Gwagwalada, and Government Girls Secondary School, Dutse Alhaji, emerged the first and second runner up.
The winner will represent FCT in the national competition scheduled for Lagos later in the year and the winner will represent Nigeria at the continental competition. (NAN)
By Philip Yatai
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