First Bank of Nigeria Limited has used the conclusion of the 15th Junior Achievement (JA) Africa Company of the Year competition in Abuja to underscore its backing for climate-focused youth enterprises, presenting its CEO Award to Team Mauritius at the event’s closing ceremony.
The three-day competition, held from December 3 to 5, 2025, featured student entrepreneurs from eight African countries—Eswatini, Ghana, Mauritius, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda and Zambia—who presented business ideas on the theme Action for Climate Transformation. The forum offered the participants an opportunity to compete for continental recognition, access funding and scholarships, and secure long-term venture support.
FirstBank said Team Mauritius earned the CEO Award after its company, Plantura, performed strongly across the contest’s five judging pillars: strength of business idea, financial management and sustainability, leadership and teamwork, stage pitch, and trade fair presentation. The bank said the team’s “plant and air-based purifier”, developed by four students described as “smart, agile and intelligent”, stood out in the final assessment. “We unanimously agreed that Mauritius had our vote for the FirstBank CEO Entrepreneurship Award,” the bank stated.
President and CEO of JA Africa, Simi Nwogugu, acknowledged FirstBank’s continued involvement in the competition, noting that the bank has strengthened entrepreneurship and financial literacy initiatives across the continent. “FirstBank has been an incredible supporter,” she said. She added that the organisation intends to broaden the partnership, including through employee volunteerism.
Nwogugu drew attention to the continent’s widening employment gap, stating that about 11 million young Africans enter the labour market annually while only 3 million jobs are created. She said the organisation aims to equip young people with the skills to create work rather than rely solely on employment. “Our solution is to raise young people who are not only job seekers but job creators,” she said. She noted that entrepreneurship education, ethics, integrity and problem-solving remain central to JA Africa’s programmes. JA Africa currently reaches 1.5 million youths and plans to double that by 2028 and expand to 5 million by 2030.
President and CEO of Junior Achievement Worldwide, Asheesh Advani, called for more Nigerian organisations to adopt FirstBank’s approach to supporting youth entrepreneurship. “FirstBank is a great example of leadership in this regard, and we encourage other Nigerian companies to follow their lead,” he said.
