At just 16 years old, when many teenagers are still finding their feet, Akande Oyinkansola Josephine has already stepped into a spotlight bright enough to illuminate a generation. A 200-level medical student at the prestigious Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife, she has emerged as the overall winner of the 2025 Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) Annual National Undergraduate Essay Competition, an achievement that not only stunned the academic community but also inspired thousands of young Nigerians across the country.
The NCDMB Annual National Undergraduate Essay Competition is a flagship initiative by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board. First launched around 2017, the contest is now in its ninth edition (2025) and invites undergraduates nationwide to submit essays on themes centred on local content and Nigeria’s oil & gas sector. Beyond the impressive prizes - a ₦1 million cash award for the winner and laptops for top finalists, the contest is fundamentally about nurturing young Nigerian minds, promoting local capacity and elevating writing, reasoning and innovation skills.
Oyinkansola’s story is one stitched with brilliance, discipline, and an uncommon sense of purpose. Entering university at an age when others are just settling into senior secondary school, she carried with her a quiet confidence and an insatiable hunger to learn. Her professors often described her as a “rare mind”, the kind that absorbs knowledge with the ease of breathing and transforms it into insightful, creative output.
When she decided to participate in the NCDMB National Essay Competition, she didn’t just aim to compete; she aimed to make a statement. Her essay, a compelling piece that combined deep analysis with visionary thinking, set her apart from hundreds of undergraduate participants from universities across Nigeria. Judges praised her for her clarity of thought, mastery of language, and her ability to chart bold solutions for Nigeria’s future through the lens of local content development.
But behind this shining moment lies a quieter, more powerful narrative, the story of a young girl who refused to be boxed in by age, expectation, or circumstance. Oyinkansola spent late nights poring over research materials, balancing the demanding workload of medical school with the intellectual rigor required for the competition. While her peers marveled at her ability to juggle both worlds, she remained anchored by a simple belief: “The mind can do extraordinary things when you feed it with discipline and dreams.”
Her victory has now become a symbol of what is possible when passion meets preparation. It is a reminder that excellence has no age limit and that brilliance can bloom anywhere, whether in a bustling lecture hall, a quiet library corner, or the determined heart of a young girl with a pen in her hand and a vision in her mind.
For Nigeria’s young scholars, Oyinkansola’s story shines as a beacon, proving that their voices matter, their ideas matter, and their efforts can rise beyond classrooms to national platforms. For the nation, her triumph is a reassurance that the next generation is filled with minds capable of redefining possibilities.
As she stood on stage, receiving her award with grace beyond her years, one thing became clear: Akande Oyinkansola Josephine is not just a winner of an essay competition, she is a rising force, a promise of the future, and a living testimony that greatness often begins quietly, in moments when you dare to try.
And this is only the beginning.
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