AE-FUNAI Students Shine in French Embassy-Sponsored Get-Creative Competition

Two final-year students of Alex Ekwueme Federal University Ndufu-Alike (AE-FUNAI), Ebonyi State, have emerged winners of the prestigious Get-Creative Competition organized under the Wealth Capacity Project and sponsored by the French Embassy in Nigeria.

The winners, Hyacinth Ebenyi, a 400-level MBBS student, and Chidinma Nwaigwe, a 400-level Biotechnology student, stood out among participants from 11 universities across the country.

Speaking while presenting the students to the university management, Director of the Centre for Climate Change and Development, Professor Robert Onyeneke, explained that the winning entries were submitted under a French Embassy-funded project focused on innovative plastic management solutions in Nigerian universities.

Sharing her experience from the Abuja event, where French Ambassador to Nigeria, Marc Fonbaustier, praised their work, Miss Nwaigwe revealed she had repurposed nylon waste into a functional school bag. She expressed gratitude to the Embassy for the training, exposure, and gift items—including tablets, ring lights, microphones, and stands—given to winners.

“If supported to scale up my idea, it would significantly reduce plastic pollution in our environment and create jobs for young people,” Nwaigwe said, highlighting the project’s potential for long-term environmental and economic impact.

Mr. Ebenyi’s project, titled Plastic to Plastine – Pollution to Plantation, focused on converting plastic waste into tools to boost fruit and vegetable production. He proudly noted that AE-FUNAI and Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) were the only institutions with two winners each in the competition.

In response, the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sunday Elom—represented by Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration), Professor Abel Ezeoha—commended the students for distinguishing AE-FUNAI in a national competition. He noted the university’s longstanding, productive relationship with the French Government and emphasized that AE-FUNAI is highly regarded in academic circles, particularly in Abuja.

He encouraged the students to leverage the university’s strong reputation and their new platform to expand their innovations beyond the classroom, adding, “You have all it takes to compete with the best minds globally.”

The Vice-Chancellor urged them to fully utilize the opportunities that have come with their win in the Get-Creative competition to build lasting, impactful careers.