Future Africa Leaders Foundation (FALF), on Friday, said it has spent $1.5 million to support African youths in providing sustainable solutions in their communities.
This was disclosed during an interactive session with the winners from 10 different countries in Lagos.
The initiative conceived by the Chris Oyakhilome Foundation International is committed to identifying, nurturing and empowering young African leaders who are actively shaping the continent’s future.
A member, Central Executive Council, Pastor Tuoyo Temisan, said: “Over 12 years, FALF has opened doors for these young leaders, both locally and internationally, allowing them to contribute to key policy decisions and engage with global leaders.
“This year, 10 winners were selected from a pool of thousands of nominees across the continent. Each nominee was involved in multiple projects, and only the most outstanding were chosen for the awards. The selection process involves narrowing down the top 30 candidates before selecting the final 10.
“It’s not just about having 10 winners; it’s about the thousands of projects happening across the continent. These 10 are the best of the best,” Temisan said.
The FALA is open to all African youths, regardless of religious background, and is not restricted to any specific nationality or faith. This year’s winners hail from 10 different countries, with one notable first-time winner from Benin Republic. Over the years, the awards have seen strong participation from Cameroun, which has had the most winners, but this year saw only one representative from the country.
Temisan, however, encouraged those present to continue supporting young leaders in their communities.
FALF Senior Executive Officer, Olajumoke Ola-Akinsanya, noted that the winners of the award were chosen after a thorough evaluation of over one thousand applications.
She emphasised that despite the ongoing economic challenges, the foundation had no intention of reducing the prize amount.
“FALA has been able to transform the winners as they have had the opportunities to further show what they have been doing and how they have been able to impact their environment and communities.”
“Winners, as the change agents, have had the opportunities to go global and have global accolades and recognition. FALA exposes winners to life-changing opportunities through invitations to global conferences and meetings.”
The FALA star prize winner from Benin Republic, Julienne Ariori, expressed gratitude to the foundation for the honour.
“It’s a great privilege and honour for me to be a recipient of the prestigious Future African Leaders Award. This means so, so much for me, and I can’t tell enough how my heart feels with joy to be acknowledged after all this hard work and the investment of my time, my resources, and everything. So, I want to thank the FALF, especially our president, for giving us such a platform to showcase our reputation as young leaders.”
She noted that the recognition would enable her to further advance her efforts in promoting healthy living.
Her projects focus on encouraging farmers in Benin to use organic pesticides instead of harmful chemical alternatives.
“To go further, I will champion organic and sustainable agriculture by investing in the production of bio-pesticide to combat the use of chemical pesticides in Benin Republic.”
Winners who received the $10,000 prize were Ntung Ngela Landon, a 23-year-old technology innovator from Cameroon; Favour Effiong from Nigeria; Mawada Abdalla from Libya; Israel Majek Yei from South Sudan; and Anneckjiet Joan Kapomba from Malawi.
Other winners include Akram Sebai from Morocco, Jessica Lenor Balde from Guinea-Bissau, Collins Nwagi from Kenya, and Fady Atef from Egypt..
