Meet Our 2022 New Voices The Republic’s National Student Essay Winners

After close to 500 submissions, meet our 2022 New Voices winners

Imagine the year is 2050 and you are in your ideal Nigeria. What does it feel like to live in that country? How do you think Nigeria can evolve into that future nation?

With this prompt, earlier this year, we launched a national student essay competition in partnership with the Nigerian government and the United Nations Development Programme. This competition was framed around the launch of the Imagine Nigeria report.

After almost 500 submissions, our three winners are: 

Winner

‘My Ideal Nigeria: The Beauty of Standard Health Care Services in its Actualization’
by Rofiat Hamza (University of Ilorin

Second Prize

‘The Romanticization of Mushin: A Larger Problem’
by Kehinde Gbelee
(University of Lagos) 

Third Prize

‘On Security and Environmental Development: Nigeria, a Peaceful Nation’
by Taiwo Akinsanya (
University of Lagos

And the rest of our finalists are (in alphabetical order): 

‘Post Climate Apocalypse: The Journey to Environmental Wellness’ by Atinuke Falaiye (University of Lagos) 

‘In This Journal, I Write Of Growth & Of Nigeria—The Country That Was’ by Amanda Ilozumba (University of Lagos) 

‘Letter to 2022 Me; The New Nigeria’ by Favour Musa (University of Ilorin) 

‘Nigeria of the Future: A Reading and Writing Nation’, by Oluwadamilola Oshodi (Lagos State University) 

‘The Children of the Mass Exodus’ by Erere Onyeugbo (University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus) 

‘Edge of Tomorrow: The Indomie Generation’s Revolt’ by Timilehin Sogbesan (Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta, Ogun) 

‘Child Literacy: The Nigeria of My Dreams’ by Nnaemeka Sylvester (University of Nigeria, Nsukka Campus) 

Congratulations to you all! The winners and the rest of our finalists will receive a year-long print and digital subscription to The Republic, starting today. 

Our final three winners will also be announced in our next print issue, which will be published later this month. Authors of the top three essays will receive N500,000, N250,000 and N150,000 in respective cash prizes in total, with the winning entry published on our website

Entry into this competition is now closed.