The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Osun State concluded its Inter-Platoon Skills Acquisition Competition and Exhibition on Friday September 13, at the NYSC Permanent Orientation Camp, Ede, marking a milestone event for the 2024 Batch B Stream II Corps Members.
The ceremony highlighted the closing of the in-camp Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) training, which has been a platform for equipping Corps Members with entrepreneurial skills.
In his farewell address, the State Coordinator, Mr. Agbor Ndoma Obim, praised the discipline and dedication of the Corps Members throughout the training.
He underscored the declining availability of white-collar jobs in Nigeria, urging the participants to embrace skills acquisition and entrepreneurship as a sustainable path toward self-reliance. He also officially launched the post-camp training, encouraging the Corps Members to further deepen the skills learned during the program.
The event, coordinated by the SAED supervisor, Mr Aleshinloye Adeniyi and the Head of SAED, Mrs. Kemi Adebayo, saw Corps Members from various platoons showcasing their newly acquired skills in areas such as hairdressing, tailoring, customizing, film/photography, and leather works.
Mrs. Adebayo, in her welcome address, stressed the importance of continuing with the post-camp SAED training, which offers Corps Members the opportunity to refine their entrepreneurial talents even after the camp’s conclusion.
As part of the grand event, the much-anticipated WEMA Bank Business Pitch competition also took place. Corps Members had the opportunity to present innovative business ideas to a panel of judges, covering a variety of industries including hairdressing, catering, and technology services.
The competition featured finalists such as Bassey Godwin Godstime (Hairdressing), Akinbode Olatoyosi (Thrift services), Ayebatari Meindinyo (Healthy living food products), Olumekor Stella-Maris (bean powder production) and Edeke Ivy Edeke (Poultry farming), among others.
Akinbode Olatoyosi (LA/24B/9882) emerged as the overall winner with his Thrift services proposal, earning the top prize of ₦800,000. Other winners included Stella-Maris Olumekor (OS/24B/2563) with her Tidal Botanics business, who secured the first runner-up position earning ₦700,000, and Edeke Ivy (LA/24B/9907) and Omoze Joy (LA/24B/8010), as second runner up winning 600,000 and with the fourth position winning a consolation prize of 200,000.
Additionally, the SAED ambassadors shared their inspiring testimonies of success, recounting how skills such as ICT, public speaking, phone repair, and beekeeping had transformed their entrepreneurial journeys. Platoons like 1 and 7 excelled in the competition, with Platoon 1 clinching first place in categories such as hairdressing, customizing, and culinary and catering services, while Platoon 7 and 8 shone in leather works and tailoring respectively.
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