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OSCA WOVEN WORDS COMPETITION – ITOHOWO UDOFIA

“Imagination gives birth to things unknown but the writer’s pen turns them into shapes and gives to them living breaths.”

ALSO READ: BOWEN WOVEN WORDS COMPETITION WAS A HUGE SUCCESS

The 2018 OSCA WOVEN WORDS COMPETITION was organized by My Woven Words and it was only for undergraduates of tertiary institutions in Osun State as approved by the ministry of education, Osun state. There were Terms and Conditions for contestants.

OSCA Woven Words Competition remains the “first-of-its-kind” and “one-of-its-kind” in Osun state, Nigeria. To avoid Conflicts of Interest, we reached out to a number of unbiased scholars in a university outside Osun State to assess the submitted manuscripts and select the best contestants. All the contestant got a certificate of participation and some of the submitted manuscripts were selected for online publication.

TOPIC: The Tenacity of Nigerian Youths in National Development and Leadership Roles.

Nigerian youths are citizens of Nigeria aged between 18 – 40 years which make up the larger percentage of the Nigerian population (about 70%). This implies that they have the numerical strength to achieve their desired goals. However, the nation’s atmosphere doesn’t give these youths a voice or a better listening ear.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary describes tenacity as “the quality or state of being tenacious, that is, a state of being very determined to do something where as national development is the ability of a country to improve the social welfare of its citizen while leadership is the action of leading people in an organization towards achieving a common goal. Therefore, one may ask; Are Nigerian youths tenacious in national development and leadership roles? The answer may be yes or no.

The development of any country lies on the creativity and productivity of its youths. The youths are the driving force of any nation because they provide the labour force for goods and services. Nigeria is blessed with youths who at least have a handwork and are more than eager to work and learn more. Although challenged with lack of access to qualitative education, unemployment, poverty and generational gap, Nigerian youths despite all the odds against them have not given up in the development of her country.

In recent years, youths, be it an individual or a group have taken up interest in several sectors of the economy and national development by setting upmulti million naira businesses for the sole purpose of making the nation a better place for all. We draw example from Abisoye Ajayi-Akinfolarin who won the CNN heroes awards 2018. She is the founder of the Pearls Africa Foundation. The foundation aids disadvantaged girls in Nigeria gain technological skills therefore transforming their lives. Also looking into the life of Jason Njoku, a Nigerian film magnate and African start up investor. He is the founder and CEO of Iroko TV and Spark. Through spark, he has invested in many other companies and have set up businesses for various people. By doing this, he has made job available for other youths, therefore reducing unemployment rate and poverty rate etc.

Youths are the leaders of tomorrow and the youths of Nigeria are more than ever prepared for leadership roles in the country. Barely six months ago, the Nigerian youths took a big step by creating its own political party; Youth Party. It is currently present in 28 states including Lagos and the Federal Capital Territory and had over five thousand members prior to registration. The party is aimed at ensuring transparent leadership and curbing bribery, violence, corruption and other socio-economic vices. Another of such huge steps in leadership roles is the formation of the Youth Alliance. The organization is a movement of young professionals with the aim of mobilizing Nigerian youths to canvass for leadership positions, instead of leaving it in the hands of olderpeople.

In essence, the youths are the cornerstone of any nation and the Nigerian youths are ready to take the bull by the horns.