UBA Foundation launches 2026 National Essay Competition with N41.5m in prizes

The UBA Foundation has launched the 2026 edition of its annual National Essay Competition (NEC), marking its 16th consecutive year. This year, the foundation has increased the total prize pool to N41.5 million in educational grants and prizes for the top five winners.

In a significant expansion, educational grants will now be extended to the fourth- and fifth-place winners for the first time. The first-place winner will receive a N15 million university grant, a 50 per cent increase from the N10 million awarded in 2025. Second and third-place winners will receive N10.5 million and N7.5 million, respectively, while the fourth- and fifth-place winners will receive N5 million and N3.5 million each.

The competition is open to senior secondary school students in Nigeria. Participants must submit a handwritten essay of no more than 750 words on the topic: ‘No Nation Can Develop Without Food Security. How Can Nigeria Deal With This Problem?’ The deadline for submission is October 23, 2026. Winners can use their grants toward university education at any African university of their choice.