Bomba Dauda
In partnership with The Kukah Centre, our company, GreySoft Technologies, has commenced the endowment of ‘The Kukah Prize for Young Innovators’ in order to celebrate outstanding innovative minds of Nigerian and African descent in the field of technology, said, Dr. Manzo Daniel Maigari, Chairman of Greysoft Technologies.
The conferment of the award in the name of Bishop Kukah is in clear acknowledgement of the sterling efforts deployed by the erudite Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese in encouraging younger generations to rise up and embrace modern innovation through the use of technologies for development, he added.
These remarks are contained in press statement issued by Greysoft Technologies on the first edition of the ‘Kukah Prize Award for Young Innovators,’ which is slated to hold on August 31, 2022 in Abuja.
In awarding this prize, Manzo further said, we are recognising the inspiring role played by the Bishop in advancing and encouraging youths to rise up and realise their manifest destiny in various human endeavours. Apart from spearheading moves in identifying with modern trends in digital transformation; Bishop Kukah remains a symbol of fearlessness in advocating for freedom and democratic rights.
There’s no doubt that the mass of African youths are burdened with the task of surviving hard times brought by underdevelopment and other challenges confronting the continent. Amidst declining living standards caused by monumental crises, this award attempts to honour exceptionally brilliant young minds dedicated to the development of their countries in resolving their immediate problems.
Our youths are still trapped in the backwaters of a forlorn hope, but we also accept the fact that the youthful spirit of standing beyond the boundaries of despair holds the promise for a new day in Africa. Recognising these talents that are determined to change the story of Africa has the capacity to inspire and encourage others to embark on the journey of making a difference for the improvement of humanity.
If we ever hope to join other parts of the world engaged in the deployment of the Knowledge Economy for the advancement of Africa, we must encourage and reward young Africans who have demonstrated exceptional skills for digital transformation. We must also stay the course in inspiring bright young minds whose creative technological solutions have the potential to bring about positive growth in our communities and in the wider world.
We recently closed nominations for the award, and now entries are being evaluated by judges in the startup and tech space across the continent for the most innovative digital solutions in the form of startups or initial concepts meeting global developmental challenges. The selection criteria included that the candidates shall not have reached their 31st birthday by the time the award is received; candidates must be African, even though this maiden edition is limited to Nigeria, subsequent ones will encompass Africa; the award will be presented to individuals whose innovative work demonstrates high levels of excellence in technology, and the award winner will be selected on the basis of the outstanding quality, novelty and significance of the candidate’s research.
we are open to partners and sponsors as we do not aim to build this legacy alone. Today we have “Microsoft Africa Development Center” as partners and a few other brands. Collaboration is necessary if we must build a lasting and sustainable system.
