The federal government has rewarded three Nigerian students from Yobe State for their exceptional performance at the 2025 TeenEagle Global English Championship held in London, United Kingdom.
The students: 17-year-old Nafisa Abdullahi Aminu, 15-year-old Rukayya Muhammad Fema, and Hadiza Kashim Kalli, represented Nigeria at the competition and emerged among the best in various categories, beating over 20,000 participants from 69 countries.
At a ceremony in Abuja on Thursday, Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, announced a cash prize of N200,000 for Nafisa, who emerged overall best in English language skills. Rukayya and Hadiza received N100,000 each for winning the debate category and a bronze medal in productive communication skills, respectively.
Commending Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, for his commitment to education, the minister assured that the federal government would continue to recognise and celebrate outstanding students from all 36 states of the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Alausa said, “We will continue to celebrate students from all the other 35 states of the federation, including the FCT. These students have made us proud.
“I also want to acknowledge His Excellency, the Governor of Yobe State, Governor Mai Mala Buni, whose emphasis on education made this possible.
“Thank you, Your Excellency, for everything you continue to do to prioritise education in Yobe. This should be an example for all the other governors, as well as the Minister of the FCT.”
The Yobe State Commissioner for Basic Education, Prof. Abba Idris, commended the three teenage girls from the state, describing their victory as “a triumph of resilience and commitment to education.”
The commissioner, who spoke on behalf of Governor Buni, expressed gratitude to President Bola Tinubu and the Minister of Education for hosting the students and recognising Yobe’s investment in education.
He said, “Your interest in the progress of education in Yobe State is quite encouraging.
“A few years back, our story was different and pathetic. Schools were destroyed, students and teachers killed, and education became unattractive. Today, we are celebrating victory.”
Prof. Idris outlined measures taken by the Buni administration since declaring a state of emergency on education in 2019, including rebuilding over 300 schools destroyed by insurgents, constructing 627 new classrooms and renovating 448 others, as well as employing and training thousands of teachers.
The commissioner added, “The state government has paid over N4 billion on its school feeding programme, N3 billion on examination fees for WAEC, NECO, NABTEB and BECE, and N2.2 billion in scholarships for 890 students, including these champions we celebrate today.”
He said that Yobe state currently sponsors about 40,000 students in universities and colleges at home and abroad, while its tertiary institutions remain among the most affordable in the country, charging as low as N9,000 in tuition.
The commissioner also noted that 171 graduates of medical and allied courses recently returned from India under a state scholarship scheme and have been employed in the health sector.
Idris reaffirmed the state’s commitment to sustaining investment in education.
He added, “Although it is still a work in progress, the education sector in Yobe State under Governor Buni has no doubt progressed tremendously, especially looking at where we are coming from.
“This is a victory of the people’s resilience and of a governor who believes in the power of education as the key to a prosperous future.”