’Undergraduate, Master’s and doctoral winners to receive ₦35m, ₦50m and ₦100m respectively’ — FG
The Federal Government has unveiled a ₦365 million annual prize scheme to recognise outstanding research, innovation, and intellectual achievement among students and researchers in Nigeria’s tertiary institutions.
The Tertiary Institutions National Laureate Prize (TINLP), jointly implemented by the Federal Ministry of Education and the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank, NERD, will cover universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education across the country.
The initiative was announced on Wednesday during a press briefing attended by members of the NERD National Laureate team.
Under the scheme, the winner of the Undergraduate Star Prize will receive ₦35 million, while the Master’s Star Prize carries ₦50 million. The Doctoral Star Prize has a cash award of ₦100 million.
Another ₦180 million has been allocated to 15 Thematic Excellence Prizes (TEP), with each category attracting ₦12 million.
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The organisers said the awards would cover fields considered vital to national development, including engineering and technology, medicine and health sciences, arts and social sciences, agriculture, law, and teaching innovation.
A special Dr Stella Adadevoh Prize for Medicine and Medical Innovation has also been created in honour of the late physician whose courage during the 2014 Ebola outbreak became a defining moment in Nigeria’s public health history.
Speaking on the initiative, Tunji Alausa, the Minister of Education of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, said the prize was designed to give talented Nigerians a national platform where academic brilliance could translate into tangible solutions.
He said the competition would be open to students and researchers in every accredited tertiary institution, with selection conducted through a transparent, competitive, and merit-based process.
The minister explained that the government’s objective was not only to produce graduates with certificates but also to encourage research capable of generating innovations, enterprises, and measurable economic and social benefits.
He linked the programme to President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, particularly its emphasis on human capital development, skills, research, and innovation.
“The goal is to build an education system that does not simply produce certificates, but produces solutions, innovations, enterprises and measurable national value,” Alausa said.
The initiative also places research at the centre of Nigeria’s education policy at a time when institutions are under increasing pressure to demonstrate how scholarship can address practical national challenges.
By attaching substantial financial rewards to academic and research excellence, the organisers hope to stimulate competition among young scholars while giving promising ideas the visibility and resources needed to develop beyond the classroom.
