WorldStage— The Federal Government of Nigeria has unveiled a ₦365 million annual prize fund for the Tertiary Institutions National Laureate Programme (TINLP), a landmark initiative designed to reward exceptional student research.
Speaking during a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, August 26, 2026, the Honourable Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Olatunji Alausa, declared that the scheme is a strategic national intervention aimed at elevating scholarly excellence and transforming higher institutions into hubs of innovation.
The Minister emphasized that the programme signals a new era where student research is no longer treated merely as a graduation requirement, but as a blueprint for national industrialization.
He noted that while celebrating social influencers is popular, it must not occur at the expense of local inventors and innovators.
“By elevating our students to the status of celebrated National Laureates, we are ensuring that the rigour of research is matched with the highest level of national prestige,” Alausa stated.
To incentivize intellectual capital, the National Laureate Prize offers substantial cash rewards across three academic categories: Doctoral (Ph.D.) Thesis at ₦20 million, Master’s Thesis at ₦10 million, and
Undergraduate Dissertation at ₦5 million.
The Minister confirmed that the annual project is funded entirely by the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank (NERD) and its partners, successfully protecting public finances from any added fiscal burden.
A 10-member implementation committee, chaired by Professor Abubakar Sambo, is overseeing the rigorous evaluation and selection process.
During the briefing, Dr. Alausa integrated the research push with broader educational reforms under President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
He announced the suspension of the Bilateral Education Agreement (BEA) scholarship scheme, which routinely sponsored Nigerian students overseas for courses easily accessible at home, such as Mass Communication and Psychology.
The Minister argued that Nigeria has built massive domestic capacity over the last two decades, and maintained that the government will redirect vital funds to strengthen infrastructure, laboratories, and research frameworks inside local universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.
According to him, eligible tertiary institutions across Nigeria have already been directed to establish internal selection committees to process the current cycle of research entries.
