Enactus Nigeria has, over the past 25 years, supported and empowered over 20,000 tertiary students with entrepreneurial, leadership, and innovation skills aimed at equipping young Nigerians to develop solutions to pressing social and economic challenges and driving economic sustainability.
Country Director of Enactus Nigeria, Michael Ajayi, disclosed this in a statement against the backdrop of growing debates among Nigerian youths on the relevance of formal education to wealth creation and success.
Ajayi said while entrepreneurial success could be achieved through different pathways, the increasing perception that education was no longer important because of a few exceptional success stories could undermine investment in human capital and the development of skilled professionals, entrepreneurs and responsible leaders.
He explained that Enactus Nigeria’s approach combines education with innovation, entrepreneurship, creativity, discipline and problem-solving to equip students with practical skills for addressing social, economic and environmental challenges.
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According to him, through experiential learning, Enactus students work in multidisciplinary teams to identify community needs, develop innovative solutions, mobilise resources and implement projects that create measurable social and economic impact.
Ajayi said a major component of the organisation’s programme is the annual Enactus Nigeria National Competition, which brings together student teams from tertiary institutions across the country to showcase and defend their community projects before business executives, industry experts and development leaders.
The 2026 National Competition, themed “Re-Imagining Transformation,” is scheduled for Thursday, August 13, 2026, at the Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.
He disclosed further that the winning university team would represent Nigeria at the 2026 Enactus World Cup in Brazil, while the competition would also provide an avenue for identifying promising student innovations for investment, scaling and commercialisation.
“Our long-term impact is in developing Nigerian students to become responsible future leaders,” Ajayi said, adding that outstanding innovations should not end as competition entries but should evolve into businesses capable of creating jobs, generating wealth and improving lives.
As preparations intensify for the 2026 National Competition, the Country Director expressed profound appreciation to the organisations that have supported Enactus Nigeria’s mission over the years through funding, mentorship, technical expertise and strategic partnerships.
Ajayi urged investors, development finance institutions, corporate organisations, philanthropic foundations and strategic partners to support the transformation of promising student innovations into sustainable enterprises capable of creating jobs and improving livelihoods.
He acknowledged the invaluable contributions of partners and sponsors, including KPMG, SC Johnson, Chevron Nigeria, Schneider Electric, Sahara Group, Unilever, Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank), FirstBank, First City Monument Bank (FCMB), Sahara Foundation, LEKOIL, Coca-Cola Nigeria, the United States Embassy in Abuja and the United States Consulate General in Lagos, Sterling Bank, Interswitch, First E & P (First Exploration & Petroleum Development Company Limited), Sovereign Trust, Nigeria Society of Engineers, African Capital Alliance Foundation, Verve, Nigerian Content Development & Monitoring Board, and Renaissance (Africa Energy Company Limited) among several others.