Octoville Development Company, in partnership with the British Council and King’s Trust International, has graduated 85 young entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs from the 2025 edition of its flagship programme, the Youth Sustainable Enterprise Challenge (YSEC).
The initiative, which concluded with a graduation ceremony on Thursday in Abuja, is designed to equip young Nigerians with practical entrepreneurship and employability skills, while fostering innovation, workplace readiness, and business growth.
Highlights of YSEC 2025
A major highlight of the 2025 edition was a pitch competition, where participants presented innovative enterprise ideas before a panel of judges. Eight winners emerged, each receiving ₦300,000 in seed funding to scale their ventures.
The programme has been implemented across four states—Abuja, Ogun, Rivers, and Jigawa—over the last three years, offering pathways for youth to create sustainable livelihoods.
Chikodi Onyemerela, Director of Programs at the British Council, explained that YSEC was introduced in Nigeria to help young people find sustainable pathways to prosperity.
“The initiative helps provide skills for young people across four states in Nigeria. The intention is to empower them to start businesses and also equip those who are not entrepreneurship-minded with employability skills to contribute to the GDP,” he said.
Nelson Okwonna, Chief Executive of Octoville Development Company, noted that the programme deliberately targets youth aged 18 to 35 who already show leadership and initiative in nation-building.
“We are looking for people who are already willing, interested and capable. And we are now working with them to make that happen,” Okwonna said, adding that some participants will also receive grants to kickstart their ventures.
Kehinde Awujoola, Special Assistant to the Minister of Youth Development on Gender Matters, commended the initiative, pledging continued collaboration between the government and private sector.
“The minister has been operating an open-door policy, bringing in organisations like Octoville to collaborate and co-create solutions for Nigerian youth,” she said.
Also speaking, Olabimpe Fawale, Head of Women and Youth at SMEDAN, emphasized the importance of private sector involvement in driving MSME development.
“The federal government cannot do it all. We don’t even have the resources in terms of human capital and funding. There is no way only SMEDAN can serve almost 40 million MSMEs in Nigeria,” she said, while inviting entrepreneurs to take advantage of SMEDAN’s support structures and services.
On his part, Damilola Sotiminu, Country Director of King’s Trust International, urged beneficiaries to remain resilient despite challenges in the business landscape.
The ceremony was attended by representatives of key partners, including the Ministry of Youth Development, Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Ministry of Women Affairs, and the Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities (JONAPWD).
Nigeria is home to over 40 million MSMEs, yet many face barriers such as poor access to finance, inadequate training, and limited market opportunities. Programs like YSEC are helping to close these gaps by combining capacity building, mentorship, and startup funding with strong public-private collaboration.
