By Adeola Akinbobola
A Civil Society Organisation (CSO), Future Pathways Development Initiative (FPDI) has concluded its second edition competition for youth to develop practical solutions.
Mr Ayokunnu Ojeniyi, the Founder and Executive Director, stated this in a statement issued on Thursday in Abuja.
Ojeniyi said the competition demonstrated a shift among young Nigerians from expressing frustration to developing practical solutions.
He explained that the competition brought together 300 delegates for policy debate, legislative simulation and youth-led governance reform.
He said the conference was themed “Rebuilding Trust in the Nigerian State”.
He further explained that the highlight of the conference was policy challenge finals, which featured three finalist teams selected from 322 submissions.
Ojeniyi said 1,371 expressions of interest was received from young Nigerians across 33 states of the federation.
He said Team SMETrust emerged as the 2026 policy challenge grand prize winner, earning N2 million for its proposal through a national small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) digital compliance interface to rebuild trust in Nigeria’s tax system.
The executive director said team Astrum emerged as first runner-up and received N1 million for its proposal addressing challenges in the electricity sector through three institutional reforms.
He added that team Nikao, the second runner-up, received N750,000 for its proposal focused on closing the gap between the motto and realities of the Nigerian Police Force (NFP).
“Beyond the prize money, the three winning teams will receive pathways into paid policy internships and engagement with FPDI’s network of policy practitioners and governance reform professionals.
“Without getting policy right, the hope of having a better system is broken. These young Nigerians are getting policy right,” he said.
Ojeniyi assured that FPDI preparations for the 2027 policy conference for youth were already underway.
The conference opened with a theatre performance and followed by a keynote address from the Founder of the African Governance Institute for Development, Mr Seyi Adisa.
Adisa challenged delegates to reconsider the meaning of trust between citizens and government, arguing that government performance alone does not guarantee public trust.
He urged young Nigerians to replace persuasion with proof in the institutions they entered.(NAN) (www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Funmilayo Adeyemi