The Dawn of 21st Century Startups Via HULT PRIZE
Every day we see problems of diverse sorts ranging from unemployment, health issues, contaminated environment, poor education, corrupt politics, wars amongst many others. But then, there are organizations, non-governmental bodies and even foundations that have taken the burden to evict most of these issues from the world and there was a reasonable change but not enough to completely transform the world and that is where Hult Prize has to be injected especially with the plan to affect millions of consumers within a decade and of course make income both for the organization and the consumers concerned.
Hult Prize is a social entrepreneurship movement that has created a platform for young minds to contribute to the change the world needs by providing ground-breaking ideas and solutions that have long term impacts on the environment.
Bill Clinton and Time Magazine regarded “Hult Prize as one of the top five ideas that is changing the world”.
Since 2009, when Hult Prize officially kicked off operations, it has impacted millions and attracted millions of students from all around the world. They have taught students to understand that you could solve the world's most pressing issues and still be a profitable entrepreneur.
It was the Chief Executive Officer, Ahmad Ashkar that said “Solving the world’s most pressing challenges is not just the right thing to do, it is also good business”
Hult Prize works directly with the Hult International Business School, United nations and EF Education First. Each of these organizations have supported the movement since inception and is believed to have attracted sponsors and students from all around the world.
As the movement increased across the continents, they moved to Nigeria and in a short while a set of brilliant entrepreneurs brought it to Landmark University in 2016. As soon as they arrived, students did not give all the attention but as soon as we got our first campus director in 2017 in-person of Ore-Aruwaji Oloruntola, students began to see the realness attached to the movement and by this, the number of participants has increased per year. In 2019, I am privileged to be the campus director with over 1700 students attending all our info sessions as several teams are registered for the on-campus program as well.
Apart from the fact that the Hult Prize creates a platform for students to showcase their solutions to problems, they expand the thinking horizon of students and their potential to erect disruptive startups.
One product of the Hult Prize that has become a startup in Nigeria is the Ina Lite company. Ina Lite has started thriving in the country with bubbling awards and recognition in Nigeria and Germany. Recently they received an award called the Green product award and also got funding from Union Bank, Nigeria to support the rise of an exciting startup.
There have been other successful startups that all erupted from the opportunity that the Hult Prize has created so students in Landmark University and even other schools are advised to be part of this movement that is leading a generation to change the world.
