NLI’s first Business Plan Competition (BPC) was successfully completed on the 31st of October, 2009.  The Business Plan Competition is an effective program to build entrepreneurship skills and kick start Small & Growing Business (SGB) development.

Objectives include:

(i)             To identify entrepreneurs with high potential business ideas;

(ii)            Provide selected entrepreneurs with training, mentoring and access to capital;

(iii)           Act as a channel for equity and loan funds to the resulting SGBs;

(iv)           Stimulate economic development through the creation of jobs and growth businesses.

Participants from the competition participated in a one-week training session facilitated by the Lagos Business School’s Enterprise Development Services (EDS).  Participants were awarded a Certificate on completion of the training program.

After the training program, participants re-evaluated their Business Plans and presented their Business Proposals to a panel of judges:

1) Mr. Gbenga Oyebode – Managing Partner, Aluko and Oyebode, Nigeria

2) Ms Funke Smith – Head of Consumer Banking,  First Bank Nigeria

3) Mr Ndubuisi Ihedigbo – Head of Agricultural  Finance and Special Products, First Bank Nigeria

4) Mr. Dotun Sulaiman – Chairman, Accenture Nigeria

The top three (3) winners were announced at NLI’s Annual Awards Dinner.  The winners were:

1st: Agugo Boniface (Briquette Nigeria)
Prize Money – $15,000

2nd: Ugbor Chidi (FREP FOODS)
Prize Money: $10,000

3rd: Ojo Opeolu Oyejide(Cecejyde Biogenerics)
Prize Money: $7,500 dollars

The October, 2009 NLI Associates are currently implementing 3 new NLI Projects:

• Notes 2 Note History DVD
• NLI Training for Students and Character Clubs
• Electorate Education & Government Accountability Program (EEGAP)
• Word Slam Competition
• NLI Branding & Marketing

Notes 2 Note History DVD

This project is aimed at teaching children & youth the history of Nigeria, using Naira notes as thematic illustrations.  The Naira notes will be used to explain the importance of values over financial gain as they will emphasise the values embodied by the founding fathers.  The DVD will also educate the youth on Nigeria’s heritage and history.

The voice over narration for the 30 minute documentary will be performed by Nigerian celebrities of high ethical standard from an array of industries.   The project will launch with a video premier screening hosted by celebrities at a Lagos cinema to generate awareness. Transportation will be provided for invited local secondary school students to attend the premier.   NLI will then organize DVD screenings at 25 secondary schools nationally. This will be followed by an online distribution campaign using websites, social networks and online videos.

The project will reach 25 schools nationally and approximately 100,000 students.

NLI Training for Students and Character Clubs

NLI hopes to start running seminars similar to its Future Leaders Seminar for Secondary Schools. The seminars will be for Student Prefects, Teachers and Principals.  They will be trained by NLI to set up Character Clubs (focused on values) in schools.  The seminar curriculum and Character Club lessons will be developed by NLI.

The Character Clubs will also serve as a medium for executing community projects.

Electorate Education & Government Accountability Program (EEGAP)

EEGAP is designed to focus on electorate education by undertaking objective assessments of political candidates, evaluations of elected officials, as well as the tracking and reporting of their respective performances.

The ultimate goal of EEGAP is to foster an environment of good governance and accountability by creating a platform for the electorate to put pressure on political office holders to perform and deliver on promises.

Therefore, EEGAP hopes to:

• Enhance voter education
• Inform the electorate of key issues pertaining to corruption and poor governance
• Develop credible performance evaluation tools that track, assess and report the flow of the country’s federal and state funds and the comparative development of each state

Word Slam Competition

Nigerians aged 10 to 16 will be asked to develop spoken word pieces, using any combination of NLI’s 10 values.   The best 10 entries will be compiled into a book.  The writer of the best piece will have the opportunity to work with some of Nigeria’s biggest artists, and have their words produced into a song.

NLI Branding & Marketing

The NLI Branding & Marketing projects aims to do the following:

• Enhance the NLI logo; redesign NLI’s visual identity suite & corporate function materials
• Revamp the website of NLI in line with the new visual identity standards
• Redesign NLI’s annual report and newsletters
• Develop a holistic PR & promotional strategy for NLI

NLI successfully held its 4th Annual Awards Dinner sponsored by First Bank of Nigeria at the Lagos Oriental Hotel’s Function Room on October 31st, 2009.  The Guest Speaker, His Eminence, Sultan Sa’ad Abubakar was represented by Ambassador Hamzat Ahmadu, CON, the Wali of Sokoto.

NLI also had the privilege of giving out this year’s Values-Based Leadership Award to Mallam Adamu Ciroma. The award honours an outstanding leader whose achievements reflect a high standard of honour, integrity and industry. Mallam Adamu Ciroma will be joining previous recipients, Mr. Akintola Williams, Prof. Bolanle Awe and Chief Emeka Anyaoku.

Details of the Sultan’s Speech can be obtained by contacting NLI’s Lagos Office.

NLI hosted the fifth edition of its Future Leaders seminars in Lagos. The Future Leaders Seminar brought together some of the most talented emerging public and private leaders in Nigeria and their peers in the Diaspora within the ages of 25 and 35.  Two classes are held in May and October each year.  Each class has a 3-Day residential seminar in Lagos.  To date, we have held five classes with a total of 138 Associates. For a list of Associates from this Class, please click here.

NLI is thankful for the financial contributions from First Bank of Nigeria (lead sponsors of the Future Leaders Seminar), Air France/KLM and Chevron Nigeria in making the Future Leaders Seminar a success.

In June 2006, NLI held the first NLI National Essay Competition with a theme on values-based society and leadership. The competition was open to Nigerians everywhere and the respondents were asked to write about the essential values a good Nigerian society should be built on and how these values should be embedded in our society. They were also asked to name a present day Nigerian who they would describe as a values-based leader and why.

A diverse range of essay entries was received and in December 2006, NLI released a report on the competition titled Our Shared Values. Whilst being an aggregate analysis of the views of all essay respondents, Our Shared Values also contains articles from various sector leaders on how their various sectors can help to incorporate values into the Nigerian society.

The Winners of the Essay Competition are:

First Prize – Felix Ekpang Akombi, who won a cash prize of N250,000 and had his winning entry published in the THISDAY Newspaper edition of December 11, 2006.

Second Prize – Kenneth Uche Ohaeri, who won a cash prize of N150,000

Third Prize – Olubunmi Fakunle, who won a cash prize of N100,000.