The U.S. embassy in Nigeria has selected 40 Nigerians to
participate in the Mandela Washington Fellowship Programme for Young African
Leaders in 20 top U.S. universities, for a period of six weeks. Speaking in Abuja on Tuesday, U.S. Ambassador James Entwistle,
congratulated the beneficiaries on their selection. Mr. Entwistle explained that the 40 Nigerian fellows were
selected amongst 7,000 Nigerian applicants and tens of thousands of others
throughout Africa.
“I congratulate the newly selected 2015 Mandela Washington
fellows. As you may know, you competed with more than 7,000 applicants from
Nigeria alone.
“You all should be proud of your accomplishment. “Your selection says a lot about who you are as young leaders,
and the level of impact you are having on your communities as entrepreneurs,
civic leaders and public servants,” he said.
The envoy explained that the Mandela Washington Fellowship for
Young African Leaders, is an integral part of President Barack Obama’s
commitment to invest in the future of Africa.
“The White House created this initiative in recognition of the
critical and increasing role that young Africans play in strengthening democratic
institutions, spurring economic growth, and enhancing peace and security.”
Entwistle said 45 fellows from Nigeria were among the 500 young
people selected from across Africa in 2014 to participate in the fellowship.
According to him, the fellows engage in an intensive, six-week
fellowship at 20 top U.S. universities.
“They also had the opportunity to participate in a presidential
summit, hosted by President Obama in Washington, D.C.
“Some fellows also completed internships with prestigious U.S. organisations
like the Smithsonian Institution, the Brookings Institution, and Deloitte
Consulting,” he said.
Mr. Entwistle said fellows from the programme were using their
knowledge and experiences to scale up their businesses and initiate projects
that would have a tremendous impact on society.
The U.S. envoy advised the fellows to be good ambassadors,
saying that they would have the opportunity to meet hundreds of bright and
inspiring minds from other parts of Africa.
He admonished them to take advantage of the opportunity to
learn, share, and expand their network.
Speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria, one of the fellows,
Hassan Rilwan, said he looked forward to learning how to build a
generationally-sustainable business model.
“Most Nigerian businesses do not grow beyond the first
generation. In America, you see businesses that are beyond a century or 200
years.
Another fellow, Grace Jerry, who is physically-challenged, said
she hoped to learn about mainstreaming disability in development efforts in Nigeria.
(NAN)
Source-premiumtimesng.com
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