Youth Empowerment Programme 2012 Registration (YouWiN! Women)

YouWiN! stands for Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria. It is an innovative business plan competition aimed at job creation by encouraging and supporting aspiring entrepreneurial youth in Nigeria to develop and execute business ideas.

The accomplishments of the 1,200 YouWiN! awardees were celebrated at the Presidential Villa on April 12, 2012.YouWiN! Women is the second edition of the entrepreneurial scheme which is designed for only female entrepreneurs aged 45 years or less.

YOUWIN Youth Empowerment Programme 2012 RegistrationObjectives of the programmeThe main objective of the Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria (You WiN!) Programme is to generate jobs by encouraging and supporting aspiring entrepreneurial youth in Nigeria to develop and execute business ideas that will lead to job creation.

The programme will provide aspiring youth with a platform to show case their business acumen, skills and aspirations to business leaders, investors and mentors in Nigeria.Specific Objectives of the Programme include to:

· Attract ideas and innovations from young entrepreneurial aspirants from Universities, Polytechnics, Technical colleges, and other post-Secondary institutions in Nigeria;

·Provide a one time Equity grant for 1,200 selected aspiring entrepreneurs to start or expand their business concepts and mitigate start up risks;

·Generate 80,000 to 110,000 new jobs for currently unemployed Nigerian youth over the three years during which the three cycles will be implemented;Provide business training for up to 6,000 aspiring youth entrepreneurs spread across all geo-political zones in Nigeria;

·Encourage expansion, specialization and spin-offs of existing businesses in Nigeria; and,Enable young entrepreneurs to access a wide business professional network and improve their visibility.

Please NoteYouWiN is an equity contribution to your business. It is therefore NOT A LOAN but a grant.Award recipients will be paid according to the needs of the business and specific mile-stones stated in the business plan.

Award recipients must be registered with CAC before disbursment of funds even though they do not need to be registered  to apply. YouWiN will support the registration process.Award recipients will opperate accounts using their registered companies with any of the participating commercial banks prior to disbursment.Award recipients must sign a grant agreement with the managers of YouWiN before disbursment of funds.

Competition Timeline

-Mon. Sep 3, 2012 Launch of 2012/2013 Edition of the YouWiN! Business Plan Competition tagged "YouWiN! Women".

-Mon. Sep 3, 2012 First stage business concept submission starts after launch by President Goodluck Jonathan.

-Sun. Oct 14, 2012 First stage business concept submission closes. No entries accepted after this date.

-Mon. Oct 15, 2012 Marking of first stage submission by an International Business School.

-Fri. Nov 30, 2012Notification of successful first stage candidates and invitation for training in each state of the nation.

-Mon. Dec 10, 2012Training of the 1st set of second stage candidate starts.

-Trainings will be held in sets on 10 – 21 December 2012 and 2 – 11 January 2013.

-Mon. Dec 10, 2012 Submission of second stage business plan starts on 10 December 2012 and ends 8 February 2013. Please note that only entries from candidates who attended the training and had their biometrics information collected are eligible and will be reviewed.

-Fri. Feb 8, 2013 Submission of second stage business plan entries closes. All qualifying candidates must submit their business plans by this date.

-Mon. Feb 11, 2013 Business plan marking commences with an international business school providing quality assurance.

-Wed. May 1, 2013 Winners are notified and published on website and major national dailies.

Click here to apply; https://www.youwin.org.ng/howapply.php

From; www.informationnigeria.org