UBA Offers N41m Opportunities To Young Minds As 2026 National Essay Competition Opens

Opportunities, they say, don’t come too often. So when it does, one must value the moment, grab with both hands and not take a rare chance for granted.

Speaking about opportunity, a life changing one that is poised to give five young Nigerians a shot at getting a share of N41million in educational grants towards their university education is in the offing.

Parents, students and teachers should be awake to this big one and jump on this train of opportunity as well as milk it to their advantage.

The UBA Foundation National Essay Competition (NEC), is the much talked about life changing opportunity and it is back for the 16th edition, and this year, it comes with even more reason for young writers to put pen to paper and change their lives in the process.

Previously, there was a lot of talk around education not given priority or due reward as against reality shows or ephemeral activities. Now that talk is gone with the wind.

The UBA annual competition is here to give senior secondary school students across Nigeria a platform to express their ideas, showcase their writing and critical thinking skills, which will see the top five finalists, receive financial support throughout their university education.

Most importantly, the prize pot has just gotten bigger as the first-place winner will receive a N15 million university grant, while the second and third-place winners will receive N10 million and N7.5 million respectively.

It gets even more rewarding as the fourth and fifth-place winners – introduced for the first time ever in the competition – will also receive N5 million and N3.5 million each.

Participants will be expected to tackle a question that directly affects Nigeria’s future: “No nation can develop without food security. How can Nigeria deal with this problem?” That means this is a chance not just to write, but to think, question, and propose practical ideas for a challenge that affects everyone.

If you are a Nigerian senior secondary school student, this could be the opportunity to turn your words into something much bigger.

Applications close Friday, October 23, 2026. Essays must be handwritten and no more than 750 words, with applications submitted through the competition’s digital portal, https://www.ubagroup.com/nec/

Sometimes, an opportunity really does begin with putting your thoughts on paper for a share of N41 million.