Africa’s biggest youth awards scheduled for November has called for nominations just as it received the United Nations’ (UN) endorsement.
The organisers, The Future Project, said on Thursday in Lagos that the launch which held at the Transcorp Hilton Abuja saw Amina Mohammed, the Deputy Secretary-General of the UN endorsing the prestigious Awards which has been described as the “Nobel Prize for Young Africans’’.
With the theme, “Nigeria’s New Tribe’’, The Future Awards Africa seeks to reward excellence and service among youth between the ages of 18 and 31.
“Over the years, the Awards has built a strong network of youth supporting each other in the leadership space, breaking boundaries to achieve distinction against barriers of tribe, religious differences, economic instability and government policies,’’ the said in a statement.
The statement quoted Ms. Mohammed as saying at the event that “even while we all acknowledge our socio-economic issues and challenges, our hope for the future is bound on the talent, creativity, and determination in every young Nigerian.
“They represent the much-needed agents of change — a new and perfect direction in giving back power to our youth – so, joining the new tribe should be a movement every young person should aspire to be a part of.
“We are doubling down on the theme, ‘Nigeria’s New Tribe’ as there’s no better time to identify, acknowledge, and showcase a new set of bright, young Nigerians leading the charge to establish a positive, new narrative for the continent.’’
Bukonla Adebakin, the Chief Operation Officer, The Future Project said, “We therefore, urge everyone to nominate outstanding young people in different communities across the country so as to inspire many others who need models of hard work, creativity, impact, and integrity to emulate.’’
It said persons eligible for nomination must have made considerable impact within Nigeria and/or globally within the last one year and must have easily accessible documentation of their achievements.
The public is encouraged to nominate trailblazers from their communities in categories ranging from social activism, business and professional service to media and entertainment.
The statement said that to nominate, visit award.thefutureafrica.com and follow @tfaafrica to keep up with the latest news on the Awards. Official hashtags for the 2019 edition are #TFAA2019 and #NigeriasNewTribe.
The Future Awards Africa has been called the ‘Nobel Prize for Young Africans’, and the ‘most important youth awards’ by Forbes.
It is a set of prizes given annually to celebrate and accelerate innovation, creativity and enterprise amongst young Africans aged 18 – 31.
It has produced over 150 winners and over 1,550 nominees since its first edition in 2006.
The awards are presented in conjunction with The Future Project, which has a mandate to build empowered citizens across Africa, through (inclusive) enterprise and (active) citizenship.
This focus on Human Capital Development is informed by our value proposition: Africa’s growth needs a generation of young people who are gainfully employed and able to demand and secure better leadership.
The projects include Aiki.ng, an employability portal presented with Microsoft; the Nigeria Symposium for Young & Emerging Leaders.
Others ares #StartupsAfrica, Intern4Jobs, YMonitor.org presented with National Endowment for Democracy (NED), The Future Enterprise Support Scheme and The Future Awards Africa, described as The Nobel Prize for Young Africans.
