She was announced at the grand finale and awards ceremony held on Tuesday at UBA House, Marina, Lagos. The annual competition, organised by United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc through the UBA Foundation for senior secondary school students, is free to enter and now in its 16th year.
Ojima, an SS3 science student, won a ₦15 million scholarship to study at any university in Africa, along with a trophy, a laptop and a certificate of merit. Female students dominated the contest, taking the first five positions and seven other places among the 20 finalists.
The rest of the top five were:
Second: Unwanabasi Otobong Udom (Topfaith International Secondary School, Akwa Ibom), ₦10 million scholarship
Third: Flourish Chibunumona Udamzi (University of Port Harcourt Women Association International Secondary School), ₦7.5 million scholarship
Fourth: Godsfavour Ezekiel Udo (Federal Government Girls’ College, Ikot Obio Itong, Akwa Ibom), ₦5 million scholarship
Fifth: Uchenna Olivia Anyanwu (Coral Impacts International School, Abuja), ₦3.5 million scholarship
Each of the top five also received a laptop and a certificate of merit. This is the first year the fourth- and fifth-place finishers have received scholarships, while the other 15 finalists got cash prizes and laptops. UBA also raised the prize pool from the previous ₦10 million, ₦5 million and ₦3.5 million for the top three.
Ojima, who attended with her father, said she won on her first attempt after many late nights of research and writing on this year’s topic: “Examine how poverty and other social vices contribute to the prevalence of child marriage in Nigeria.” She thanked the UBA Foundation, saying the contest broadened her understanding of national issues and showed her that hard work and critical thinking pay off.
UBA Group Managing Director/CEO Oliver Alawuba said the competition is meant to promote education, revive reading culture and encourage healthy rivalry among secondary school students. “The future of the world is in Africa, and that can only be achieved by preparing our youth well for what lies ahead,” he said. He added that the higher rewards are meant to cushion the effect of high inflation across Africa, that the competition now runs in at least seven other African countries where UBA operates, including Ghana and Senegal, and that the bank will keep investing in young Africans pursuing university education on the continent.
UBA Foundation Managing Director/CEO Bola Atta congratulated the winners and urged other participants not to give up on their dreams. She said the competition has noticeably improved students’ writing, confidence, exposure, critical thinking and social awareness.
Judge Prof. Ini Uko of the University of Uyo struck a more cautionary note. While the winning entries were highly competitive, she said, many submissions overall were poor, with some students writing out of context or misusing artificial intelligence tools. She warned that this suggests many students are too distracted by social media at the expense of their studies.
