Hands & Minds Consult hosted the seventh edition of their annual school competition celebrating Nigeria’s cultural heritage in Lagos.

The event was filled with vibrant performances and creative displays, hosting 15 private schools showcasing young talented Nigerians through various competitions, including art, music and dance.

Sponsored by Grooming Endowment Trust and Amadeus University, the competition featured the creative prowess of students at both senior and junior levels, with schools like Clemmy High School, St. Jude’s Private School, Preserved Generation, and Moral Ville Academy coming in first positions in different categories.

They received cash prizes and memorabilia to celebrate their achievements.

The Co-founder and Managing Director, Hands & Minds Consult, Laurence Ekpe emphasised the impact the annual event has had on the participants over the years, saying,

“Our joy has been the testimonials we get from the schools and from parents of the children who come out tops. The prizes we usually handover to the winners are nothing compared to the fulfilment that the kids derive from merely being given a platform to showcase their talents.

 “For us, we are basically looking at improving the hands and minds of children. Since you can’t teach an old man a new trick, we are doing so from a young age, and giving the children a confidence boost. If children have talents that they hide or are afraid of showing, then their potential could be hidden forever. So for us, every child here is a winner whether they make a podium finish or not,” Ekpe said.

Co-founder, Hands & Minds Consult, Mrs Iziegbe Ekpe, elaborated on the importance of the competition, saying Nigerian children were oblivious to the richness of African culture because schools did not promote it enough.

 “Alluring Africa was the focus this year because we have realised that many Nigerian children seem to be unaware of the richness of African culture, and our heritage seems to be going extinct, especially in schools.

“You see schools investing heavily in phonetics; they want their children to speak a certain way, to sound more British, more American, and they’re now forgetting their father’s culture. But we don’t want our African heritage to die. We know that bringing up a child is a communal effort, and we are providing this platform for them to freely express their talents”, she said.

Ekpe continued, “We see where the world is going now, that children are beginning to find their talents and gifts very early in life. So, we want to be one of the people providing the discovery platform, to the end that in the future, we would have them say, ‘Oh, it was at Hands & Minds Schools Competition that I discovered my talent.”

Other schools that participated in the competition include Caleb International School, Christ the King Primary School, Golden Ville School, New Fountain School, Tender Touch School, Ostra Height School, and Cedars High School, among others.