The Federal Government has established a ₦365 million annual prize to reward outstanding academic research, innovation and intellectual excellence across Nigeria’s tertiary institutions.
FG also named a ₦30 million Dr Stella Adadevoh Prize for Medicine and Medical Innovation in honour of the late Nigerian physician, Ameyo Stella Adadevoh, who was credited with helping to curb the spread of the 2014 Ebola outbreak in Nigeria after placing the index case, Patrick Sawyer, in quarantine despite pressure from the Liberian government.
Tertiary Institutions National Laureate Prize, announced by the Federal Ministry of Education, will recognise exceptional undergraduate dissertations, Master’s theses and doctoral research with commercial, industrial or developmental potential.
The initiative will cover universities, polytechnics, monotechnics and colleges of education, with the government saying it is aimed at repositioning tertiary institutions as centres of research, innovation, enterprise and problem-solving.
Unveiling the initiative in Abuja on Wednesday, the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, said Nigeria had considerable intellectual capacity which needed greater recognition and support to translate research into national impact.
