Photo Caption: From left: Head of corporate marketing &key accounts Folorunsho Alaran, Chief Operating Officer, West Africa (Pharma) Business Operations, Shalina Healthcare, Arun Raj, overall winner of the Shalina Young Talents Award (SYTA), Abiona Damilola Peace of the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ibadan, Dr. Ezekiel Akinkunmi, National Chairman, Nigeria Association of Pharmacists in Academia (NAPA) and Prof. Sunday Idowu Dean Falculty of pharmacy University of Ibadan at the Grand Finale and Presentation of Prizes of Shalina Young Talents Award (SYTA) Season 4 in Lagos on Tuesday.
A good number of stakeholders in the Nigerian pharmaceutical industry has commended a leading pharmaceutical company, Shalina Healthcare for its efforts in promoting the development of pharmaceutical industry in Nigeria.
These came in Lagos on Tuesday at the Grand Finale of the fourth edition of Shalina Young Talents Award (SYTA), a national level competition for final year pharmacy students in the Nigerian universities. A value adding initiative by Shalina Healthcare.
Speaking at the event, the National Chairman, Nigeria Association of Pharmacists in Academia (NAPA), Dr. Ezekiel Akinkunmi commended the pharmaceutical company for yet another effort in ensuring a genuine development of the pharmaceutical industry in Nigeria. According to him “Shalina has again raised the bar in intellectual contribution to the development of the industry in Nigeria. And this idea of promoting the best brains among the pharmacy students in the Nigerian universities deserve the commendation and support of every stakeholder.”
In this same regard, Dean Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lagos, Professor Aderonke Adepoju-Bello hailed the pharmaceutical company for the impact it is making in uplifting the knowledge of the students as well as the pharmacists in general saying “the company has done very well, it has brought unprecedented knowledge-based development by going to the universities to discover young talents in the industry. They brought something new to the students, and the students were excited. It is my hope that they won’t relent and sustain this great initiative. And go further to expand it.”
Meanwhile, in his welcome speech, the Chief Operating Officer, West Africa (Pharma) Business Operations, Shalina Healthcare, Arun Raj said the initiative is centered on “rewarding young talents in pharmacy practice in an usual way. It is the biggest hunt for the best pharmacy brain in the Nigerian universities. We are standing on our founding principles – giving quality products at affordable prices and going beyond business to drive our purpose of making access to quality healthcare a right for every African so they can lead healthy productive lives. This is by ensuring that we are doing something different to make impact in the society, especially in the lives of our teeming consumers.”
The competition which is for the final year pharmacy students in the Nigerian universities. The grand finale featured zonal winners from seven Nigerian universities of University of Ibadan, Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife, University of Lagos, University of Jos, University of Uyo, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
At the end of the day, after five rounds of contest which include, Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ), Rapid Fire, Debate, Case Study and Viva, Abiona Damilola Peace of the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Ibadan emerged the overall winner after pooling 90.29 points and won a cash prize of three hundred thousand naira while Ogunmekan Temitope of University of Lagos with 73.9 points and Adebimpe Ebunoluwa of University of Ibadan with 72.64 points emerged first and second runner-up and won two hundred thousand naira and one hundred thousand naira respectively. More so, in addition to this Arun Raj, Chief Operating Officer, West Africa (Pharma) Business Operations, Shalina Healthcare promised that all the fourteen participants at the Grand Finale will be absorbed into the company after graduation if they so wish.
