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By EricJames Ochigbo

Young entrepreneurs from Government Science School, Agaie, Niger state have emerged winners of the inaugural Student Entrepreneurship Activity Hub (SEA-Hub) national competition.

The competition which was organised by Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) on Thursday in Abuja was titled “Securing the Future of Young Nigerians.

Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) is a development agency owned by the German government.

Government Model Science School, Bida, also of Niger came second while Government Secondary School, Township in Plateau came third out of the 15 school that participated.

Earlier, Minister of State for Education, Mr Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba said that it was a privilege to be a part of the laudable initiative and commended GIZ for organising it.

He said that in recent years, gross mismanagement of government institutions and resources plus frustration of young Nigerians in the various institutions of higher learning had been a challenge for young people.

The minister said that the stress on young people and their families, due to economic global meltdown was also a challenge for young Nigerians.

Nwajiuba said in order to make life worth living, crucial solutions were being provided by GIZ .
He said that the entrepreneurial skill acquisition which is being carried out in four states of the country is empowering young Nigerians.

According to the minister it is helping them to achieve their full potentials, creating enabling environment for parents to give full support to their children and all round development, thereby giving them an independent life.

Nwajiuba said that the ministry will continue to partner with Sea-Hub to ensure that Nigerian secondary schools develop entrepreneurial skills for self reliance and independent life for the improvement of Nigeria’s economy.

Earlier, the Head of Programmes, Mr Detlev Holloh said GIZ has been committed to sustainable development in Nigeria since 1974.

He said that the organisation has continued to enhance employment and income generation with several programmes and designs like the Pro-Poor Growth and Promotion of employment in Nigeria.

Holloh explained that the programme promotes entrepreneurship through several approaches as the SEA-Hub.
He said that it had direct impart on some of the sustainable development goals and it is inline with Agenda 2030 and Goal 3 of the strategic plan of the Federal Ministry of Education.

He said that SEA-Hub is an extracurricular club created in schools to help young people build life-long skills and prepare them for the future.

“So far, SEA-Hub intervention has reached close to 15,00 students in Edo, Niger, Ogun, and Plateau with support from Federal Ministries of Youths and Sports and Education.

“It is our hope that this event and strengthened partnership, with all our invaluable partners, we can continue to work together at state and national levels to build an inclusive and sustainable future for our entrepreneurs,” he said. (NAN)