ENACTUS team from the prestigious Ahmadu Bello University Zaria Kaduna, has broken the status quo by developing the first ever Nigerian shoe polish. The polish is exceptionally produced from pure water sachets reducing the plastic waste in our environment.
The polish is a flagship product of the team’s social enterprise project called PUP (Plastic Up-cycled Product). PUP is creating a reality where the lifecycle of plastics can be fully complete — from birth to death situation. PUP is a student owned social enterprise based in Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria where its factory is also situated. It sprang up as the team’s project and has over the years evolved to become a registered business with Corporate Affairs Commission. PUP up-cycles, uses pure water sachets to produce valuable products with limited carbon emissions aiding to a greener and sustainable environment.
PUP shoe polish is a waxy paste used to shine, protect and restore footwear. A recent survey indicated that over 40% of Nigerians use leather products regularly, hence a ready-made market that will keep growing with the population. The ban on importation has made the Shoe Polish very expensive; problem PUP is trying to tackle head on.
Enactus team from Ahmadu Bello University has been the top leading student organization on campus. ENACTUS (ENTREPRENEURAL ACTION AND US) is the largest student organization in the world with presence in over 700 Universities and in over 36 countries. The ABU ENACTUS team has represented the University in over 14 yearly National Competitions in Lagos and Abuja and has represented Nigeria in two World Cups in the United Kingdom in 2017 and in Silicon Valley, USA in 2018.
The team had over the last 14 years developed and implemented several social and business enterprise projects aimed at, in one hand, solving some social and economic issues around the ABU surrounding communities; and on the other hand, developing in the ENACTUS students, Leadership, Entrepreneurial and Self reliance Skills. The main aim and objective of the team is to promote and advance the good name of Ahmadu Bello University.
The team this ENACTUS year was led by its president, Mr. James Onaji of blessed memory. Mr. Onaji passed on last month after a brief illness. The team is now being led by Mr. Ahmed Munir for the rest of the ENACTUS year. The team has over the years been mentored and supervised by its Faculty Adviser, Prof. M. K. Aliyu, mni.