Enactus Nigeria has empowered more than 20,000 tertiary institution students over the past 25 years with entrepreneurial, leadership and innovation skills aimed at helping them develop solutions to social and economic challenges.

Country Director of Enactus Nigeria, Michael Ajayi, disclosed this in a statement amid growing debates among Nigerian youths over the relevance of formal education to wealth creation and career success.

Ajayi cautioned that while entrepreneurial success could be achieved through different pathways, the growing belief that formal education was no longer important because of a few exceptional success stories could undermine investment in human capital.

He said education remained critical to developing skilled professionals, entrepreneurs and responsible leaders capable of contributing meaningfully to the economy.

According to him, Enactus Nigeria combines education with innovation, entrepreneurship, creativity, discipline and problem-solving to equip students with practical skills needed to tackle social, economic and environmental challenges.

He explained that through experiential learning, Enactus students work in multidisciplinary teams to identify challenges in their communities, develop innovative solutions, mobilise resources and implement projects capable of creating measurable social and economic impact.

Ajayi said a key part of the organisation’s programme was the annual Enactus Nigeria National Competition, where student teams from tertiary institutions across the country present and defend their community-based projects before business executives, industry experts and development leaders.

The 2026 National Competition, themed “Re-Imagining Transformation,” is scheduled to hold on Thursday, August 13, 2026, at the Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.

He disclosed that the winning university team would represent Nigeria at the 2026 Enactus World Cup in Brazil.

The competition, he added, would also provide an opportunity to identify promising student innovations that could attract investment, scaling and commercialisation.

“Our long-term impact is in developing Nigerian students to become responsible future leaders,” Ajayi said.

He stressed that outstanding innovations should not end as competition entries but should be developed into viable businesses capable of creating jobs, generating wealth and improving lives.

As preparations for the 2026 national competition gather momentum, Ajayi expressed appreciation to organisations that have supported Enactus Nigeria through funding, mentorship, technical expertise and strategic partnerships.

He also called on investors, development finance institutions, corporate organisations, philanthropic foundations and other strategic partners to support promising student innovations and help transform them into sustainable enterprises.

Such support, he said, would enable the innovations to create jobs, generate income and improve livelihoods across communities.

He acknowledged the contributions of partners and sponsors, including KPMG, SC Johnson, Chevron Nigeria, Schneider Electric, Sahara Group, Unilever, GTBank, FirstBank, First City Monument Bank, Sahara Foundation, LEKOIL, Coca-Cola Nigeria, the United States Embassy in Abuja, the United States Consulate General in Lagos, Sterling Bank, Interswitch, First E&P, Sovereign Trust, Nigeria Society of Engineers, African Capital Alliance Foundation, Verve, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board and Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, among others.