The Future Africa Leaders Award (FALA) has unveiled its 2020 winners, just as Gwei Michael Wawa, emerged star-winner for the year, reports ITREALMS.
This is coming as the organisation insisted that youths in the continent are not lazy.
FALA's Head of Department, Dave Ogbaka, took a swipe at those African leaders who, in their insensitive impulse had declared the generation of youth as lazy, comfort-loving and unserious, insisting that African youth remained the hope of the continent.
Reacting to questions from ITREALMS on the sideline of the press conference on the 2020 edition of the Future Africa Leaders Awards event in Lagos on Tuesday, Ogabka said, the current crop of African youth is resilient, innovative, highly resourceful, inquisitive and mentally alert, making a lot of waves and break throughs ever refusing to be daunted even in the face of all discouraging circumstances in the continent.
The cleric described an earlier uncomplimentary comment by an African leader on youths as "lazy, comfort-loving and unwilling to work" as unfair, insensitive and unfounded.
He posited that African youth, particularly of Nigerian extraction can compete favourably well with their counterparts anywhere in the world given the same favourable environment and the wherewithal to perform.
Ogbaka maintained that since the African youth could display their current level of skills, creativity and industry amidst the pervading unfavourable political and socio-economic circumstances, there is nothing to stop them from hitting the technology-driven industrial height if given the right enabling environment.
Also speaking, a pastor and the Snr Programme Co-ordinator of FALA, Dr. Olajumoke Akisanya, submitted that she was confident that future development of Africa remains in the hands of the youth who are sure to recreate Africa for Africans whereby there would be absolutely no need to look up to the Europeans and other non-Africans for solutions to African problems.
The Cameroonian Star-Winner of the Award for Year 2020, Gwei Michael Wawa, expressed his appreciation for the opportunity offered him by FALA organisers, which has exposed him to the needs, challenges and opportunities surrounding the African youth viz-a-viz their environment and what to do to better the lot of the African communities, especially in the areas of education, skill acquisition, women training and development.
He also harped on touched on his zeal to contribute all that is ever possible within his disposal to help the advancement of African society via the deployment of technology.
Further, ITREALMS gathered that at the event were winners from Liberia, South Africa in the earlier editions of the award.
ITREALMS recalls that the Future Africa Leader Award was founded by Revd Chris Oyhakilome as a project to discover highly gifted African youths and help them to actualise their life goals and ambitions after they must have emerged from a rigorous selection process proven to be devoid of any human manipulation.
Banji Boye/Editor
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