An inspiring all-girls team from Kano has clinched the coveted Africa Company of the Year (CoY) trophy, dazzling judges with an innovative, AI-powered drone designed to revolutionize farming. Their triumph marks a major milestone for girl education and entrepreneurship in Northern Nigeria, validating years of dedicated effort by Junior Achievement (JA) Nigeria and its partners.
The victorious team designed and presented an AI-powered drone that scans farmlands for issues and helps farmers formulate effective solutions to boost yield and profitability.
In a stunning show of support for the young innovators, the Aliko Dangote Foundation crowned their achievement by declaring full scholarships to the universities of their choice for all team members.
A Dream Realized for Northern Expansion
Simi Nwogugu, President & CEO of JA Africa and former Executive Director of JA Nigeria (JAN), expressed her immense joy at the victory. She noted that expanding JA’s footprint in the North was her top priority upon returning to the JAN ED role in 2016, following the devastating impact of the Chibok girls kidnapping in 2014, which saw girl education plummet.
“I was extremely overjoyed to see an all-girls team from Kano not only win in Nigeria but go ahead and win the Africa Company of the Year trophy this past week in Abuja!!!” Nwogugu stated. “They are indeed ‘set for life’!!”
Years of Commitment Bear Fruit
The victory is the culmination of significant investment and strategic partnerships focused on empowering marginalized youth and girls in the region:
- Office Space: The Aliko Dangote Foundation provided essential office space in Kano, enabling the initial establishment of operations.
- Borno Operations & IDP Camps: Support from the Citi Foundation facilitated operations in Borno, including entrepreneurship programs in Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps.
- Program Expansion: First Bank of Nigeria Ltd. and the Aspire Coronation Trust (ACT) Foundation funded the expansion of the flagship entrepreneurship program, the Company Program (CP), across Northern states.
- Empowering Marginalized Girls: Last year, a generous donor funded the School-to-work Educational Transitions for Long-term Youth Fulfillment (SET4LYF) program. This initiative is specifically designed to equip marginalized girls in communities with high school-dropout rates with the entrepreneurial skills needed to demonstrate that girl education is an economic necessity, not a liability.
Tributes to Key Leaders
Nwogugu took the opportunity to recognize the long-term dedication of individuals who championed this expansion and JAN’s mission:
- Niyi Yusuf: Praised for his leadership as Board Chair for the past ten years, whose tenure recently ended.
- Akin Dawodu (Citi): Credited for relentlessly pursuing the grant that enabled programs in Borno’s IDP camps.
- Folake Ani-Mumuney (FirstBank): Acknowledged for years of championing FirstBank’s contributions and volunteer efforts to JAN.
- Osayi Alile (ACT Foundation): Recognized as a JAN founding member who has continually funded the CP expansion.
- Foluso Gbadamosi: Hailed for succeeding Nwogugu as JAN Executive Director, building a stronger organization, and now leading the SET4LYF program regionally.
Nwogugu extended her gratitude to all JA Africa board members, staff, sponsors, volunteers, and teachers, concluding, “You are making dreams come true and building Africa’s future leaders!!”