Ajala Faheezah from Oladipo Alayande School of Science has emerged winner of the Karim Adeyemi Foundation Essay Competition, which was designed to commemorate the 2023 International Day of Sport for Peace and Development.
Faheezah and two other students, Abiola Khalid from Oke – Ado High School and Ogundele Damilare Emmanuel from Ikolaba Grammar School won the competition with the topic “Uniting a Nation: The Role of Football in Promoting Social Inclusion and National Peace” on Wednesday, May 31.
The overall winner went home with a cash prize of N300,000 while the first runner-up, Abiola Khalid from Oke-Ado High School received N250,000, and the second runner-up, Ogundele Damilare Emmanuel from Ikolaba Grammar School got N200,000.
Winners were given a certificate of achievement, branded books from Karim Adeyemi Foundation (KAF) and Access Bank.
Access Bank was on the ground having Partnered with the foundation to ensure the smooth opening of student accounts and disbursements of cash prizes. In addition to the cash prize and gifts, all winners were awarded scholarships till the completion of their secondary school education.
Speaking after the presentation held on Wednesday in Ibadan, Faheezah lauded KAF for bringing the idea of the essay competition, as she noted that it would help students in no small measure to develop academically.
On the skills she applied to emerge as the overall winner of the competition, Ajala said “I noted that football has a way of uniting the people because of its nature. Football has made people understand the spirit of ‘never giving up’. It also made people understand that a day might be for you and another day might go against you. It’s a game of winning and losing”
In his remarks, the Chief Operating Officer of Karim Adeyemi Foundation, Olaolu Adedayo, said according to the slogan of the organisation, every face deserves a smile.
Olaolu stated that KAF started operations barely a year ago and it has made numerous interventions in football development in Oyo State through Adeyemi Football Club while also noting that the essay competition is its maiden intervention in education.
“Earlier in the year, the Foundation presented a new 24-seater bus to Adeyemi Football Club to assist with mobility and ease of training. Football kits are also frequently supplied to the club in a bid to support their vision of becoming the best football club in Ibadan.
“KAF launched her first essay writing competition among public secondary schools in Oyo State on April 6 to mark the 2023 International Day of Sports for Development and Peace. The topic for this essay competition was Uniting a Nation: The Role of Football in Promoting Social Inclusion and National Peace.
“We believe that education is the key to unlocking potential and creating a brighter future for all and that is why we are proud to offer scholarships to the top 3 students in public secondary schools in Oyo State based on their performance in the essay competition,” he said.
The President of the organisation, Abiodun Adeyemi stated that this is just the tip of the iceberg, as the Foundation is poised to support students to realise their educational dreams.
He urged the beneficiaries of the scholarships to make the best of this opportunity while expressing his gratitude to the students, teachers, and other guests who graced the occasion.
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