By Bianca Iboma-Emefu
No fewer than 81 students have emerged from the over 12,000 candidates that vied for a spot in the finals of the fourth edition of the InterswitchSPAK National Science Competition.
The 81 students were shortlisted after the nationwide computer-based test (CBT) that served as a basis for progression into the competition.
InterswitchSPAK, a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative of Interswitch, in its fourth year, continues to drive and reward interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).
The CBT exams were taken in two stages; the first was taken from June 2, 2022, to June 5, 2022, and the second stage on June 8, 2022, trimming the number of students from 12,014 to 500 and finally to 81. These students, who scaled the screening process, are representing 13 schools. Schools whose students scaled through both the first and second rounds include Adedokun International School, Ota, Ogun State; The Ambassador College, Ota, Ogun State; Marist Brothers’ Juniorate, Uturu, Abia State; Faith Academy Canaan Land, Ota, Ogun State; Loyola Jesuit College, Abuja; and Mount Olive College, Anambra.
Others include Greater Tomorrow International College, Arigidi, Ondo State; Bofoat Model College, Ondo State; FUTA Staff Secondary School Akure, Ondo; Seolad International College, Ogun; Great Cornerstone International Science College, Ondo State; Apt Scholars Universal College, Ogun State; and Oritamefa Baptist Model School, Ibadan, Oyo State.
Speaking on the importance of InterswitchSPAK and the need to encourage, and reward students in Africa to take up STEM subjects, the Group Chief Marketing and Corporate Communications Officer, Interswitch, Cherry Eromosele, urged Africa countries to play central role in mapping out the future of the continent.
Eromosele added that the continent was ripe for development at the same scale as observed in the developed world, adding that this development have been proven to be spurred by the knowledge and application of STEM.
She said, “InterswitchSPAK remains an integral expression of the belief we hold at Interswitch, which is that Africa’s story can be changed from the inside out.”
“And what this means is that only through the active participation of Africans can the change we seek come about.
“For this reason, we leverage the InterswitchSPAK National Science Competition, now in its fourth run, to encourage young Africans to find value in STEM subjects that have been identified as drivers of economic prosperity, something that we at Interswitch have seen firsthand.”
Eromosele said since inception, InterswitchSPAK has continued to champion the study of STEM subjects among students in Africa, as the competition has moved beyond a locally organized initiative and has expanded to other parts of Africa such as Kenya in East Africa.
The InterswitchSPAK competition rewards students for their interest in STEM, with the first-place winner going home with N7.5 million in scholarship over a five-year period, a laptop, and monthly stipends. The second-place winner gets N4 million as scholarship, a laptop, and monthly stipends for a period of 3 years. The third-place winner will receive N1 million in scholarship for a year, monthly stipends, and a laptop.