By FUNMILOLA GBOTEKU

The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) has launched InnovateNaija, a N250 million innovation challenge to empower Nigerian youths and strengthen the innovation ecosystem.

Mr Khalil Halilu, Executive Vice Chairman of NASENI, announced the initiative on Thursday during its launch at the GITEX Nigeria Tech Expo and Future Economy Conference in Lagos.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the project is backed by the Presidency, AfriLabs, and the NASENI Innovation Hub.

Halilu said 37 innovators, one from each of Nigeria’s 36 states and the FCT, would be selected through a nationwide public voting process.

Each winner will receive N2.5 million in grants to further develop their proposed solutions and bring them closer to commercial viability.

The top 15 innovators will then compete at the NASENI Invention Fest in Abuja, February 2026, with the overall winner securing N100 million funding.

Halilu explained that the competition was created to give young Nigerians an opportunity to showcase their skills, creativity, and innovative ideas to a wider audience.

“The InnovateNaija Challenge offers funding to 37 outstanding youths to transform their innovative ideas into tangible solutions,” he said.

He added that the NASENI Innovation Hub would nurture these projects into scalable solutions, advancing Nigeria’s technological capacity and knowledge economy.

Halilu further announced the pre-launch of NASENI’s Innovation Hub in Abuja, which will provide infrastructure, mentorship, training, and funding support for young innovators.

Also speaking, AfriLabs Executive Director, Ms Anna Ekeledo, said the initiative would inspire creativity across Nigeria while strengthening Africa’s wider innovation ecosystem.

“By empowering innovators nationwide, this competition not only fuels creativity but also builds the ecosystem. We are excited to support NASENI spotlighting Nigerian ingenuity,” she said.

Similarly, Kashifu Abdullahi, Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), described the challenge as a platform to transform ideas into commercial products.

“Nigeria has talented individuals with brilliant ideas, but they often lack platforms. InnovateNaija provides that platform, turning solutions for local problems into globally exportable products,” he said.

NAN reports that the three-month competition is expected to attract nationwide participation, positioning Nigeria as a continental hub for grassroots innovation. (NAN)

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