FG Opens Portal for N50 Million Students’ Venture Capital Grant

The federal government has opened the application portal for the Students’ Venture Capital Grant (S-VCG), aimed at turning student ideas into high-impact ventures.

Minister of Education Tunji Alausa said the initiative is a key part of the Renewed Hope Agenda to develop a new generation of Nigerian innovation entrepreneurs.

“The president challenged us to look for the next moonshot within our tertiary institutions,” Alausa said. “We are scouting for future Nigerian unicorns whose roots will be planted right here in our universities. This is an equity-free seed investment in Nigeria’s future.”

The grant offers up to N50 million to student founders with innovations in STEMM fields.

Successful applicants will join a support ecosystem with incubation programmes, mentorship from entrepreneurs, and access to platforms and resources to scale their startups.

“Google’s Gemini AI powers evaluation agents embedded in the portal to ensure fair and efficient review,” Alausa said. “Each successful applicant also receives a one-year free Google Gemini Pro license and premium learning resources to strengthen their entrepreneurial skills.”

“This structure ensures ventures are not only launched but supported to become market-ready enterprises,” he added.

Students in accredited Nigerian tertiary institutions are urged to apply via https://svcg.education.gov.ng, submitting projects that demonstrate scalability, market relevance, and the potential to address national or global challenges.