The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) has unveiled a new initiative aimed at discovering and empowering young innovators across Nigeria’s universities and secondary schools.

The programme, known as FutureMakers by NASENI, was formally launched on Thursday in Abuja by the agency’s Executive Vice Chairman, Khalil Suleiman Halilu, who described it as a strategic pipeline for raising world-class innovators between the ages of 5 and 16.

Through NASENI Institutes spread across the country, Halilu said FutureMakers will provide young learners with skills in design thinking, creativity, engineering basics and technology use, mentorship from industry experts and innovators.

Others, he said, are access to prototyping laboratories and equipment, hackathons, pitch competitions and innovation challenges.

“We are creating a cycle where a child’s curiosity today becomes Nigeria’s breakthrough tomorrow,” Halilu stated.

The NASENI boss said FutureMakers is not a standalone programme but a key component of the agency’s long-term strategy to strengthen Nigeria’s innovation ecosystem.

This strategy, he said, aims to build technical confidence early, develop problem-solvers and inventors, prepare young people for STEM fields, entrepreneurship and leadership.

“This is our way of securing Nigeria’s innovation stability over the next 30 to 50 years,” he said.

Halilu noted that the world’s leading innovation economies invested in young talent early, citing examples such as the United States’ FIRST Robotics, which has produced top engineers and startup founders, India’s Atal Innovation Mission, which exposes millions of children to innovation labs and design-thinking challenges, the United Kingdom’s TeenTech, a programme that helps young people explore science, engineering and technology

“These global programmes prove one thing: early exposure creates lifelong innovators,” he added. Today, Nigeria is joining that league through FutureMakers by NASENI.”

Halilu urged parents, teachers, private sector organisations and development partners to support the programme.

To parents, he said: “Encourage your children, let creativity lead the way, to teachers, let’s make innovation a daily experience. To the private sector, this is the time to invest, sponsor challenges, fund prototypes, adopt regions.”

Addressing the students, Halilu reminded them that age is no barrier to creativity. 

“You are not too young to build something that matters. The world is full of innovators who started exactly where you are today with one idea and the courage to try.

“By launching FutureMakers, we are planting seeds that will grow into Nigeria’s innovation destiny. This is how nations rise.”

Chairman of the Senate Committee on the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Senator Francis Ezenwa, noted that the programme stands out because it targets children and young artisans between the ages of five and 16, introducing them early to design thinking, creative workshops, and prototype development.

Expressing pride in the initiative, the senator said it reflects NASENI’s commitment to building a Nigeria that not only consumes technology but creates it.

Senator Ezenwa added that the programme goes beyond offering a platform, as it equips young Nigerians with practical tools to transform ideas into real solutions.

He urged stakeholders to renew their commitment to building a nation where creativity is celebrated and every child is empowered to dream and innovate.

In his remarks SA to the EVC/CEO of NASENI, Dr. Anas Yazid, said the Future Makers Programme aims to replicate such transformative experiences at scale across Nigeria.

The programme, he explained, goes far beyond robotics, coding, engineering or design thinking. 

He noted that years from now, many of them may trace their own success stories back to this very programme.

Outlining the programme objectives, Head, NASENI Innovation Hub Manager, Rachael Perez-Folayan, noted that the programme will provide prizes worth up to N5m to top winners from each zone, an exclusive study abroad with the EVC of NASENI and scholarships.

Speaking on the programme structure, she said the programme is is proposed for a three-month period, starting from December 2025 to February 2026. She added that the proposed total number of participants for this first cohort is 60 children selected from all the six geopolitical zones.

Furthermore, Perez-Folayan, stated that applicants must be 16 years old or younger at the time of application with proof of age such as birth certificate, National Identification Number (NIN) and international passport, which all applicants must be a Nigerian citizen or currently residing in Nigeria.