In walking the talk, the United Bank for Africa Foundation’s National Essay Competition, which promotes literacy and encourages healthy and intellectual competition amongst senior secondary students is geared to award educational grants worth millions of naira to the outstanding. This year, the foremost Pan African bank has increased the prize money by 33 per cent in a bid to impact the lives of many students and their respective communities. Chiemelie Ezeobi writes that the initiative, which is in its 11th year, was born out of a passion for human development, especially the youth

For the United Bank for Africa (UBA), its National Essay Competition (NEC), is part of its foundation’s education initiative aimed at promoting literacy and encouraging healthy and intellectual competition amongst senior secondary school students in Nigeria and across the African continent.

Serving as a creative avenue for young writers, the NEC is geared at impacting the lives of many students and their communities including the three winners, who would cart away educational grants worth millions of naira, alongside laptops for them and nine other finalists.