2020 edition of Global Diamond Challenge launches in Nigeria

Team of 3 Students as Semi Finalists at the 2019 Diamond Challenge in University of Delaware, United States

The country partners’ organizations – TedPrime Hub and House of Diamond Community Initiative of the Horn Entrepreneurship/University of Delaware’s Diamond Challenge in United States has called for applications from interested schools in Nigeria for the 2020 edition.

Offering $100,000 in awards, the Diamond Challenge provides a unique opportunity for teens around the globe to learn about entrepreneurship while putting their ideas into action.

Created by University of Delaware Horn Entrepreneurship in 2012, the Diamond Challenge is backed by academic grounding in state-of-the-art entrepreneurship education methodologies.

While delivering her keynote briefings, Rachel Strauss the programme Coordinator at the University of Delaware said students within 13-18 age range would have Pitch site events for the 2020 season in 7 states in US and other 21 countries including Nigeria to produce global semi-finalists at the Diamond Challenge Summit holding at the University of Delaware, United States in April 2020.

Speaking at the flag off in Nigeria, Odeogbola Ayodele, the Co-founder and the Global Partnership Lead for TedPrime Hub expressed his delight on the Diamond Challenge framework as one of the top initiatives that advance the strategy of improving young people of Nigeria and the rest of the world as global citizens

“This is the era of globalization and Diamond Challenge for schools globally has positioned itself to be a rallying point in the attainment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 17 – Partnership for Sustainability and TedPrime Hub and Support Initiative is proud to be part or history again in Nigeria,” Ayodele said.

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On her part, Comfort Georgia Amanyi, the Programme Manager, House of Diamond Community Initiative, expressed the expectations of the two organizations on presenting Nigerian youths at the world stage competition.

Amanyi described Diamond Challenge as an impactful programme that encourages creativity, critical thinking and develops entrepreneurial tendency among teenagers in secondary school.

She added that Diamond Challenge offers practical approach to entrepreneurship education in Nigeria and will put Nigerian teenagers in Secondary schools at the same pedestal with high school students in other parts of the world. “Diamond Challenge is a great complement to our Teen Entrepreneurship Programme (TEP) and we are super excited to be part of this great experience in the history of education” she said.

Twenty finalists/Teams shall be shortlisted to attend the pitch event in both Ogun and Kaduna State where Nigeria’s teams for the two categories shall be selected to represent the country through a judging process at the 2020 Horn’s Entrepreneurship Summit in University of Delaware in United States.

Interested school/independent teams are to sign up at https://diamondchallenge.org to submit their Business or Social Innovation Concepts and ideas on or before 8th January, 2020 at 11:59pm EST.

Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha

Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha is the Aviation Correspondent at BusinessDay Media Limited, publishers of BusinessDay Newspapers. She is also the Deputy Editor, BusinessDay Weekender Magazine, the Saturday Weekend edition of BusinessDay. She holds a BSC in Mass Communication from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka and a Masters degree in Marketing at the University of Lagos. As the lead writer on the aviation desk, Ifeoma is responsible and in charge of the three weekly aviation and travel pages in BusinessDay and BDSunday. She also overseas and edits all pages of BusinessDay Saturday Weekender. She has written various investigative, features and news stories in aviation and business related issues and has been severally nominated for award in the category of Aviation Writer of the Year by the Nigeria Media Nite-Out awards; one of the Nigeria’s most prestigious media awards ceremonies. Ifeoma is a one-time winner of the prestigious Nigeria Media Merit Award under the 'Aviation Writer of the Year' Category. She is the 2025 Eloy Award winner under the Print Media Journalist category. She has undergone several journalism trainings by various prestigious organisations. Ifeoma is also a fellow of the Female Reporters Leadership Fellowship of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism.