Nigeria Education Repository and Databank - NERD

29/08/2026

Guardian Newspaper Report
FG unveils N365m prize for outstanding academic research, innovations

The Federal Government has unveiled the Tertiary Institutions National Laureate Prize, with a yearly prize pool of about N365 million

28/08/2026

The Federal Government of Nigeria launched the Tertiary Institutions National Laureate Prize, an annual ₦365 million fund to reward outstanding research, innovation, and intellectual excellence in higher education

Overview and Purpose
Initiative: Announced by the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, in Abuja.

Implementation: Jointly run by the Federal Ministry of Education and the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (NERD).

Goal: Turn universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education into problem-solving and research-commercialisation centres.

Prize Structure (₦365 Million Total):
Undergraduate Star Prize: ₦35 million
Master's Star Prize: ₦50 million
Doctoral Star Prize: ₦100 million
Thematic Excellence Prizes: ₦180 million split across 15 categories (₦12 million each)

Thematic Categories
Science, Engineering and Technology
Medicine and Health Sciences (featuring the special Dr. Stella Adadevoh Prize for Medicine and Medical Innovation)
Arts and Social Sciences
Agriculture
Law
Teaching Innovation.

28/08/2026

https://www.channelstv.com/2026/08/27/fg-launches-%E2%82%A6365m-national-laureate-prize-for-nigerian-students-researchers/

14/08/2026

National Laureate Committee: Step-by-Step Guide to Submitting Dissertation and Thesis Entries for the 2026 ₦365 Million National Prize

Step 1: Log in to the **National Laureate Committee (NLC) Portal**.

Important: This assumes that your institution has constituted its Institution Laureate Selection Committee and directed its **NERD Focal Officer (NFO)** to enrol and formally designate the appointed members on NERD. Committee members require this designation to access the Laureate Portal using their existing NERD credentials:

https://nationallaureate.ng/login.php

Step 2: On the Laureate Dashboard, click Manage Institution Entries from the top-right menu.

Step 3: The next page will display the dissertations, projects and theses submitted within your institution, grouped under the relevant academic levels: Undergraduate, Master’s and Doctoral, or their recognised equivalents in polytechnics, monotechnics, colleges of education and other accredited tertiary institutions.

Step 4: Use the filters at the top of the page to search for a specific dissertation, project or thesis.

Step 5: Once you locate the work your Committee intends to enter into the competition, click View to review the submission details carefully and confirm that all information is correct.

Step 6: On the View page, click View Submission Evidence to confirm that all required departmental and institutional attestations have been properly supplied.

Step 7: Click Open Authoritative Student File to view the exact PDF of the dissertation, project or thesis as originally submitted.

Step 8: If everything is in order, click Back to Previous Page or Back to Dashboard to return to the relevant work selected by your Committee for entry into the competition.

Step 9: Tick the oath checkbox and read the declaration carefully before proceeding. By ticking the box, the Committee is making the prescribed institutional declaration in respect of the entry.

Step 10: Click Submit Entry.

That completes the submission process for that entry. Your Committee may then proceed to review and submit other eligible works selected by your institution.

Each institution may submit up to 18 entries: up to six Undergraduate dissertations, six Master’s theses, and six Doctoral theses, or their recognised equivalents, drawn from the six approved thematic areas.

All Committee members are strongly encouraged to read the NLC-approved Guideline and Operational Manual before completing their institutional submissions:

https://nationallaureate.ng/laureate_committee_user_guide.php

National Laureate Programme

03/08/2026

03/08/2026

₦365m up for grabs as FG rolls out biggest student research prize

29/07/2026

PUBLIC NOTICE

WARNING AGAINST UNAUTHORISED WEBSITES IMPERSONATING NERD

It has come to the attention of the Management of the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (NERD) that members of the public are being directed to nerd.com.ng, a website that is neither owned, operated nor authorised by NERD.

Members of the public are hereby advised that nerd.com.ng is NOT an official NERD website and must not be used for any NERD-related registration, submission, payment, verification or other activity.

The only authentic and official NERD website is ned.gov.ng. Students, institutions, academics and other users are strongly advised to access NERD services exclusively through the official platform and to exercise caution when encountering websites, links or messages purporting to represent NERD.

The Management of NERD is taking the matter seriously and will work with the relevant authorities to investigate and take appropriate action against spoofing, impersonation or fraudulent websites established to mislead or defraud members of the public.

Members of the public should disregard any information, payment request, registration instruction or other communication originating from nerd.com.ng, or from any other unauthorised website claiming affiliation with NERD. Suspicious websites, messages or activities should be reported through NERD's official communication channels.

Please be vigilant. Protect your personal and financial information. Always verify that you are dealing with the official NERD platform.

03/07/2026

A New Era for Academic Excellence in Nigeria

The Federal Government has repositioned academic excellence, research, innovation, and the commercialisation of research as key drivers of national development with the inauguration of the Tertiary Institutions National Laureate Committee by the Honourable Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, CON.

Describing the National Laureate Programme as a strategic national intervention, the Honourable Minister said the initiative is intended to ensure that scholarly excellence receives the same level of national recognition accorded to achievement in other sectors. He charged the Committee with developing transparent award criteria, overseeing an independent adjudication process, engaging stakeholders across Nigeria's tertiary education system, and safeguarding the integrity, credibility, and prestige of the Programme.

The Committee is chaired by Emeritus Professor Abubakar Sambo OON.

Other members of the Committee are Professor Solomon Nwhator of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife; Professor (Mrs.) Tolulope Ariyomo of the Federal University Oye-Ekiti; Professor Francis F. Uba of the Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo; Dr Babangida Abubakar Albaba, representing the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE); Dr Salihu Bakari Girei, representing TETFund; Professor (Mrs.) Carol Arinze-Umobi of Nnamdi Azikiwe University; Dr (Mrs.) Obianuju Anigbogu, representing the Federal Ministry of Education; Mr. Francis Egbokare, representing the Nigerian Academy of Letters; Dr Ezinne Orisakwe, representing the National Universities Commission (NUC); Dr Pius O. Ekireghwo, representing the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE); while Mr Richard Falaye, Secretary of the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (NERD), serves as Secretary to the Committee.

With an annual prize fund of approximately ₦365 million, the National Laureate Programme will recognise outstanding undergraduate dissertations, master's theses, and doctoral (PhD) theses. It will also confer six National Laureate Excellence Awards in Medicine and Health Sciences, Engineering and Technology, Agriculture, Law, Arts and Social Sciences, and Teaching Innovation.

Among the landmark announcements made by the Honourable Minister was the establishment of the Dr Stella Adadevoh Excellence Award in Medicine and Medical Innovation, in honour of the late physician whose leadership during Nigeria's 2014 Ebola outbreak helped prevent a wider public health crisis. Stella Adadevoh

Speaking on behalf of the Committee, Professor Sambo pledged that the selection process would be transparent, merit-based, nationally inclusive, and free from institutional bias, ensuring that every deserving student in Nigeria's accredited tertiary institutions has an equal opportunity to attain National Laureate status.

The maiden National Laureate Awards Ceremony is scheduled for November 2026, marking the commencement of a national initiative designed to celebrate scholarship, reward innovation, encourage research commercialisation, and inspire a new generation of researchers, inventors, and problem-solvers.