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Imo State University (IMSU) has emerged victorious in the just concluded southeast zonal round of the national debating competition, earning a spot to represent the zone at the national finals in Abuja.
IMSU students whose names were given as Okolie Ugochukwu and Osuji Noel Oziomachukwu will represent the zone at the national competition.
The Eastern Updates gathered that the Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO) came second and will compete against the second runner-up from the southwest and south-south zones.
If FUTO secures the highest points among the three, it will also proceed to the nationals.
The zonal competition, themed “My Nigeria, Our Nigeria,” was held at Imo State University, Owerri.
Yiaga Africa organized the event in partnership with the Nigeria Universities Commission (NUC) and All Nigerians Debating Council (ANDC) to provide a platform for young people to express their thoughts and ideas about the Nigeria of their dreams.
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According to the senior communications officer at Yiaga Africa, Mark Amaza, “Debating is a powerful tool to shape minds and drive change. We want to inspire young people to verbalize and visualize the Nigeria they desire and take action towards making it a reality.”
“So the idea of the debate is for them to discuss different topics around governance, politics, democracy, and citizenship in terms of their vision of Nigeria, what they want Nigeria to be.”
A senior programme officer at Yiaga Africa, Anthonia Onda, added: “Our objective is to give young people a platform to express themselves on issues of citizenship, politics, and governance. We want to stir up conversations among young people and grow their interest in engaging with these issues.”
Yiaga Africa plans to organize a national debate competition at the secondary school level in the future, in addition to the university-level competition.
She said the winning team from the zonal round will proceed to the national finals, where they will compete against teams from other geopolitical zones.
