The technical team, mandated to design criteria for the selection of winners of `Nigerian Prize for Leadership’ (NPL) on Monday in Abuja, submitted its report to the governing board of the organisers.
Presenting the report, Chairman of the team, Prof. Oye Ibidapo-Obe, told the NPL Governing Board that the team conceived global best practice criteria for measuring entries and nominations and selecting winners of the annual prize.
The technical team of experts was inaugurated on Oct. 3 to create standard criteria for assessing and measuring nominees, based on Nigerian ecosystem.
The annual leadership prize is an initiative to groom a replacement generation to tackle Nigeria’s leadership question.
He said that NPL would focus on eight key component criteria and 45 indicators for measuring leadership excellence in the Nigerian ecosystem.
Ibidapo-Obe listed them as the ability to understand the impact of leadership on the society, sacrifice, character, role modelling/mentoring and creativity.
“Others are innovation, vision, diversity and inclusion (culture, faith and gender), governance, based on transparency and accountability.
The Chairman of the Board, Prof. Anya O. Anya, said that Nigerian Prize for Leadership would be bestowed annually on role models, who have distinguished themselves in service to humanity.
Identifying leadership as a key to development and nation-building, Anya insisted that the question of human progress would remain a continuing challenge wherever the leadership question was unresolved.
“Good leadership opens a variety of great and powerful doors. But leaders do not just emerge automatically; leaders are raised through deliberate education, mentoring, training and discipline.
“This is why we are so passionate, determined and deliberate to put in place a credible platform to identify, recognise and honour persons that have excelled in leadership in Nigeria.
“This move will raise a successor generation of leaders of excellence with character, integrity, competence and courage,’’ he said
Dr Ike Neliaku, Executive Secretary, NPL, said that the annual prize was part of efforts to address the leadership challenges confronting Nigeria.
According to him, this is a deliberate effort to generate a new leadership culture in the country.
“A culture whereby there will be a benchmark for electing leaders who have the needed qualities to move the country forward.
“We need leaders who are products of a process that should address the leadership challenges in the country.
“We are trying to depart from the past and set a new standard; we need to groom leaders,’’ Neliaku said.
The maiden edition of the Nigerian Prize for Leadership is scheduled for December 2020.