The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has opened entries for the NEMA National Essay Competition 2026. The competition is open to senior secondary school students, tertiary institution students, and NYSC corps members. Entries must be submitted by email to [email protected] on or before 15 April 2026.
There are three categories with specific topics: "My Role in Disaster Risk Reduction" for senior secondary students, "Climate Change and Disaster Management in Nigeria" for tertiary students, and "Technology for Disaster Response: Opportunities and Challenges" for NYSC members. Essays must be in Times New Roman, font size 12, saved as Word documents, and must not exceed 500 words for secondary students or 1,000 words for other categories. Only one entry per person is allowed.
Each entry must include the participant's full name, category, and institution or NYSC deployment details. Judging will be based on content relevance and depth (40%), originality and creativity (30%), and structure, grammar, and style (30%). The first-place winner in each category will receive N500,000, the first runner-up N300,000, and the second runner-up N200,000.
NEMA's essay competition offers Nigerian students and NYSC members a direct opportunity to engage with national issues in disaster management and climate change. The cash prizes and structured themes may encourage more youth to deepen their understanding of emergency preparedness while improving their research and writing skills.
