FG Launches N365m National Laureate Awards for Scholars

The Federal Government of Nigeria unveiled a N365 million annual national laureate award program aimed at rewarding outstanding academic excellence and research innovation within the country's tertiary institutions. Announced by the Minister of Education, Dr.

Tunji Alausa, during an inauguration in Abuja, the program is described as Africa's largest publicly funded academic recognition scheme. It features a prize pool of approximately N365 million, including N35 million for the best undergraduate dissertation, N50 million for the best master's thesis, and N100 million for the best doctoral (PhD) thesis.

Additionally, the program includes six special national laureate excellence awards valued at N30 million each across various thematic areas such as medicine, health sciences, engineering, technology, law, arts, social sciences, agriculture, and teaching innovation, bringing the total value of these awards to N180 million annually. The initiative is designed to promote academic excellence and align with national priorities, encouraging research commercialization for national development.

The inaugural national laureate award is scheduled for November 2026, with Prof. Abubakar Sambo, chair of the Nigerian Academy of Science, leading the committee responsible for establishing eligibility criteria and evaluation frameworks.