Lagos teacher wins 2026 Maltina Teacher of the Year, gets N10m, SUV, apartment

A teacher at Lanre Awolokun High School, Gbagada, Lagos State, Busayo Adeyemo, has emerged winner of the 2026 Maltina Teacher of the Year Competition, winning a cash prize of N10m, a Honda HR-V SUV and a three-bedroom apartment.

Adeyemo was announced as the winner at the 12th edition of the competition held at Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, on Friday. She also received an all-expenses-paid overseas capacity development training, a year’s supply of Maltina and a N30m school infrastructure project to be executed in her honour. In addition, she won the Maltina Prize for Best STEM Teacher, attracting another N1.5m, while Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, rewarded her with a three-bedroom apartment.

The first runner-up, Yusuf Cariyat of Wisdom International School of Excellence, Abuja, received N5m, while Ephraim Jacob Inyangudo of Comprehensive Secondary School, Akwa Ibom State, emerged second runner-up with N3m. Seventeen other teachers who emerged as state champions also received N1m each. President Bola Tinubu, represented by the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Dr Bernard Doro, commended the Nigerian Breweries-Felix Ohiwerei Education Trust Fund for recognising teachers and improving learning facilities across the country.

Tinubu expressed the Federal Government’s readiness to partner with the trust fund on its planned initiative to support out-of-school children, scheduled to commence in 2027. Similarly, the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, described the competition as an important intervention in strengthening the education sector, noting that corporate investment in teachers and school infrastructure would contribute to improving learning outcomes.

Speaking at the event, the Managing Director of Nigerian Breweries Plc and Chairman of the Trust Fund, Thibaut Boidin, said the competition had remained committed to celebrating outstanding teachers and recognising their contributions to national development. The Corporate Affairs Director of Nigerian Breweries, Uzodinma Odenigbo, disclosed that the 2026 edition recorded 2,510 entries from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, representing a 30 per cent increase over the previous edition. He added that the initiative had so far honoured 305 teachers and delivered 11 school infrastructure projects.