Nigerian secondary school students emerge winners of US science competition

Four students of Whitesands Schools, Lekki have emerged winners of a category in the Conrad Foundation Spirit of Innovation Challenge.

Afolabi Williams, Olubusiyi Famobiwo, Menashi Mordi and Osagumwenro Naaman Ugbo, all junior secondary school students, won the Smoke-Free World category of the competition.

The finals of the Spirit of Innovation Challenge held at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Florida, US.

The Smoke-Free category challenged students to seek solutions to the effects of reduced smoking on tobacco farmers, especially those in developing countries.

They were the only representatives from Nigeria and Africa in the finals. The students also received the KSCVC Good Citizen award at the competition.

The students were accompanied by Matthew Omotoso, junior school ICT teacher at Whitesands, and their trip was sponsored by Guaranty Trust Bank.

The Conrad Challenge is an international innovation competition comprised of five categories: Aerospace Aviation, Cyber Technology and Security, Energy and Environment, Health and Nutrition, and Smoke-Free World.

The competition challenges secondary school students to create a product, using principles of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), that provides solution to a real-world problem such that people can pay for it.

Competitors are also required to conduct a research to determine their creation’s potential market impact and develop a full business plan.

Established in 2008, the Conrad Foundation honours the legacy of Apollo 12 astronaut, Charles “Pete” Conrad, and his four-decade passion for innovation and entrepreneurship.