UBA Foundation has announced the commencement of the 2025 edition of its National Essay Competition (NEC), with winners set to receive over N22 million in educational grants and consolation prizes. The competition, now in its 15th year, is open to senior secondary school students across Nigeria. Participants are invited to write on the topic, “Nigeria is characterised by diverse cultures, ethnicities, and religions. How can young Nigerians deploy diversity to build a united nation?”
Students are expected to research, organize their ideas, and submit scanned copies of their handwritten essays through the Foundation’s digital portal on or before Friday, October 17, 2025. The theme is designed to inspire young Nigerians to explore how the country’s diversity can serve as a tool for nation-building, unity, and sustainable development, while promoting a stronger reading culture among youths.
Over the years, the competition has become one of UBA Foundation’s key educational initiatives, aimed at fostering critical thinking, nurturing creativity, and empowering future leaders. This year, the Foundation also announced an increase in its scholarship awards. The first-place winner will receive N10 million in a university grant to study at any African university, an increase from last year’s N7.5 million. The second and third-place winners will receive N7.5 million and N5 million respectively, up from N5 million and N3.5 million in 2024.
The Managing Director and CEO of UBA Foundation, Mrs. Bola Atta, emphasized the importance of the initiative in strengthening national unity. “For well over a decade, the National Essay Competition has provided a vital platform for our secondary school students to express their ideas and showcase their intellectual prowess. In fact, parents and pupils have come to look forward to the NEC as they keep calling to ask about the commencement,” she said.
Atta added, “This year’s topic is particularly crucial as it tasks them to look at our country’s greatest asset which is our diversity, and devise ways to leverage it for unity, growth, and national development.”
Eligible applicants must be Nigerian senior secondary school students and are required to upload a handwritten essay not exceeding 750 words, along with a passport photo and a valid birth certificate or ID. Entries can be submitted via ubagroup.com/uba-foundation/national-essay-competition/.
The NEC also runs across other African countries where UBA operates, expanding opportunities for more students. Through its education and youth empowerment projects, including the ‘Read Africa’ initiative, UBA Foundation continues to promote learning and development across the continent.