Ikenna Ugwuegbulam Emerges Winner of 2012 UBA Foundation National Essay Competition, Gets N1m Educational Grant

Master Ikenna Ugwuegbulam, a Senior Secondary School student of International School, University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos State has emerged the overall winner of the 2012 edition of UBA Foundation National Essay Competition for Secondary Schools in Nigeria. He clinched the first position at the grand finale and prize giving ceremony, held at the UBA headquarters on Monday, getting an educational grant of N1m to study in any African university.
 
Master Ugwuegbulam clinched the coveted prize ahead of 11 other finalists in the essay competition in which students from Nigerian secondary schools were invited to write on an essay topic titled: What I will do if I were the President of Nigeria. Twelve finalists had emerged from over 2800 nationwide entries which cut across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
 
Arokoruba Cheetam-West of University of Calabar International Secondary School, Calabar, Cross River State emerged as the first runner-up while the third position was taken by Nwaezuoke Anastasia of Federal Science and Technical College, Yaba, Lagos. They also won the sum of N750,000 and N500,000 respectively as educational grant to study in any African university. However, all the 12 finalists got a laptop gift from the Foundation.
 
The twelve finalists are: Abisoye Onanuga – Lagos; Nwaezuoke Anastasia – Lagos; Gbe David –Abuja  - FCT; Oluwagbemiga Ayomide – Ondo; Arokoruba Cheetam West – Cross River; Amina Buhari – Kebbi; Ugwuegbulam Ogbonna– Lagos; John Jacob – Plateau; Onah Chidera – Enugu; Muokamuche Chijindu – Lagos; Akanni Oluwakayode – Lagos; and Peace Chukwu – Enugu.
 
Coincidentally, Miss Enitan Amodu from the University of Lagos International School, Akoka, Lagos, emerged the overall winner at the maiden edition last year.
 
Speaking at the prize giving ceremony, Deputy Managing Director, UBA Plc, Mr. Kennedy Uzoka, said the essay competition has continued to gather momentum going by the increase in the number of entries from 719 essays last year to over 2000 in 2012.
 
“The mission by UBA Foundation to rekindle the dwindling writing culture in Africa has started yielding results. We have seen the benefits of the essay competition going by the increase in the number of entries from what we received last year. Indeed, we received under 3000 entries this year and we are impressed because we have seen entries even from remote areas which shows that UBA Foundation transcends different strata of the society,” he said.
 
This gesture, according to Uzoka, has put UBA as one of the few institutions in the country that takes education to mean “getting the best in the students who are future leaders and without quality education, the dream may become a herculean task.” 
 
Managing Director of Financial Derivatives, Mr Bismarck Rewane, who was the Chairman of the occasion, commended UBA Foundation for the initiative adding that “UBA Group remains one of the institutions in Nigeria that is not only doing smart things but modern things.”
 
“This initiative is impressive, the efficiency and integrity of the process is extremely commendable. Congratulations UBA Foundation for this initiative,” Rewane added.
 
According to the Managing Director, UBA Foundation, Ms Ijeoma Aso, the essay competition is running concurrently with the ‘Read Africa’ project of the Foundation, which was flagged off recently by the Kenyan author, Ngugi wa Thiong’o.
 
Under the ‘Read Africa’ initiative, role models in the society and top management of UBA Plc had been visiting secondary schools in Nigeria and African countries to mentor the students and give out copies of this year’s literature book, Weep not Child, by Ngugi wa Thiong’o to the students, courtesy of the Foundation.
 
As a the CSR platform for the UBA Group, UBA Foundation through her four areas of focus continued to impact positively on the lives of Africans,  particularly in the various countries where the group has presence through a number of laudable projects and initiatives.