- Home Edu Gists FG S-VCG Finalists, Bootcamp and
Awards Day 2026 Digestible Summary(tl; dr)The Federal government has shortlisted 65 finalists for the Student Venture Capital Grant. Awards Day holds on 29 March 2026 in Lagos. 65 finalists came from 30,639 candidates
- Applications originated from 404 tertiary schools
- Bootcamp ranges from 26 to 29 March 2026
- Awards Day holds from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
- Location is UNDP Innovation Center, Lagos
- accelerating high-impact student-led endeavors
- backing scalable solutions throughout key sectors
- providing equity-free funding to endeavors at the commercialisation phase
- assisting task creation through student entrepreneurship
- constructing an economy driven by originalities
- AI-enabled screening for eligibility and positioning
- independent human validation for precision and fairness
- examination by groups from federal government, market, academic community, and the investment environment
- assessment based upon scalability, expediency, founder capability, and effect possible
- pitch sessions
- endeavor advancement workshops
- live endeavor examinations
- investor-style feedback
- application scores
- bootcamp efficiency
- evaluation committee considerations
The Federal Government has moved the Trainee Venture Capital Grant, S-VCG, to its final stage after shortlisting 65 student creators from 30,639 candidates across 404 tertiary schools. The programme stands as a flagship job of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR. It brings student-led organization ideas better to funding; it also indicates the scale of fresh thinking originating from campuses throughout Nigeria.
Released in December 2025 in collaboration with the Bank of Industry, BOI, the scheme provides to N50 million in equity-free funding for ventures at the commercialisation phase.
Table of contents
What the S-VCG programme is set to do
Through the Trainee Equity Capital Grant, the Federal government states it is focused on:
What the shortlist shows
The shortlist covers 65 student creators drawn from a big field of 30,639 applicants across 404 tertiary schools.
That outcome places a clear spotlight on the depth of trainee enterprise in Nigeria’s university area, with scalable concepts originating from major sectors.
Minister’s declaration
The Honourable Minister of Education, Dr Maruf Olatunji Alausa, CON, explained the scheme as a strategic financial investment in Nigeria’s next generation of creators and job creators.
He stated, “The quality and aspiration shown by these 65 trainee innovators is deeply motivating; we are developing a strong pipeline of innovators who will drive Nigeria’s future growth.”
How the selection was done
The draft states that choice followed a multi-stage procedure. The steps consisted of:
The final decision will rest on application ratings, bootcamp efficiency, and committee considerations.
Program stages and timeline
Stage 1: Finalist choice
This phase has been finished.
A total of 65 trainee creators were shortlisted from 30,639 applicants across 404 tertiary schools.
Stage 2: Endeavor Development Bootcamp
Date: Thursday, 26 March to Sunday, 29 March 2026
The bootcamp will concentrate on:
Stage 3: Last grant choice
The final grant decision will be based on:
Stage 4: Recipient Awards Day
Occasion: Trainee Equity Capital Grant, S-VCG, Awards
Date: Sunday, 29 March 2026
Time: 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Area: UNDP Innovation Hub, 17 Alfred Rewane Roadway, Lagos, Nigeria
Live protection: Channels TV and Emerge TV
Awards Day information at a glance
The final public event in this cycle is the Student Equity Capital Grant Awards Day. It will hold on Sunday, 29 March 2026, from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM at the UNDP Development Center, 17 Alfred Rewane Roadway, Lagos, Nigeria.
Channels TV and Arise TV will cover the event live.
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