News Brief
Founder of The Adunni Foundation, Ms Motunrayo Alaka, has tied Nigeria’s true independence to sustained investment in basic education.
Speaking at the maiden edition of the Foundation’s Basic Education Torchbearers Awards (BETA) held on Tuesday 21 October 2025 at the NECA House, Ikeja, Lagos Ms Motunrayo Alaka said intentional investment in young people would secure Nigeria’s development beyond what she described as an “infancy” stage experienced over the past 65 years.
She noted that the timing of the awards was significant, as Nigeria marked its 65th Independence anniversary in October, while 2025 also marks the 70th anniversary of Universal Basic Education in the country.
“On the 1st of October, when we launched this programme in the media, Nigeria clocked 65. This year also marks the 70th anniversary of Universal Basic Education in Nigeria. It is fitting that we gather today to honour those who keep the flame of learning alive and to remind ourselves that Nigeria’s infancy at 65 is tied to the underdevelopment of its educational sector,” she said.
According to her, rebuilding Nigeria must begin from the foundation of learning.
“We must build up from the foundation—basic education. The first nine to ten years of a child’s education, which is compulsory according to the laws that created it. Even the media must be reminded of this fact, as it currently covers education, especially basic education, sparsely.
“Our message is simple: education is independence. Nigeria will only be truly independent when it becomes intentional about educating its young minds—beginning with a clear, committed focus on compulsory basic education. Our independence, political, social, and moral, is only meaningful if we invest in the minds that will sustain it.”
Ms Alaka also said The Adunni Foundation would intervene in education, poverty, and underemployment, while encouraging local philanthropy through an education endowment aimed at reducing dependence on foreign aid, which she noted is steadily declining.
The event featured a keynote address delivered by Emeritus Professor of History of Education, Michael Omolewa, as well as the presentation of awards to pioneers of basic education across Nigeria and outstanding students in the 2025 National Common Entrance Examination (NCEE) and the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) conducted by the National Examinations Council (NECO).
Professor Omolewa, a former Nigerian Ambassador to UNESCO, lauded The Adunni Foundation for remembering heroes of basic education in Nigeria. He traced the history of education in the country and its impact on national development, highlighting the contributions of education pioneers such as Henry Carr, Chief Stephen Awokoya, Alvan Ikoku, Alhaji Ahmadu Coomassie, and Josiah Ogunlesi, among others.
“All those vetted and included by the Foundation have stood out as exemplary role models—individuals who intentionally harnessed the power of education to achieve greatness both personally and for the broader society. Their lives offer a guiding light for a nation still striving towards lasting success,” he said.
Award recipients were recognised under various categories.
The Sardauna of Sokoto and Premier of the Northern Region, Sir Ahmadu Bello, was honoured posthumously. Dr Ichimi Godwin of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) represented the Sir Ahmadu Bello Foundation to receive the award and reaffirmed the Foundation’s commitment to supporting the work of The Adunni Foundation.
Mrs Anu Adios Moses and Dr Adekunmilola Adio-Moses, PhD, received the award on behalf of Mr Josiah Soyemi Ogunlesi, Nigeria’s first History graduate and Mass Education Officer for the Western Region, who was recognised with the BETA Visionaries (Posthumous) Award.
For Nigeria’s first Chemistry graduate, Chief Stephen Awokoya, who received the BETA Hero (Posthumous) Award, his son, Dr Folorin Awokoya, accepted the award on behalf of the family. Professor Omolewa, the keynote speaker, was also honoured with a BETA Legacy Award.
Mrs Helen Umoh represented the Ighodalo family to receive the BETA Community Champion for Learning (Posthumous) Award for Chief Folayegbe Akintinde Ighodalo, while Dr Adetoun Agbe-Davies represented the Solarin family for the BETA Champion for Learning (Posthumous) Award presented to Dr Tai Solarin and Mrs Sheila Solarin.
Former Lagos State Governor, Alhaji Lateef Jakande, was honoured with the BETA Legacy (Posthumous) Award, which was received by Dr Olanrewaju Adeboye on behalf of the family. Professor Ngozi Osarenren, former Edo State Commissioner for Education and Professor of Counselling, received a BETA Legacy Award, while the BETA Legacy Award presented to eminent curriculum scholar Professor Pius Obanya was received on his behalf by Hajjia Olaitan Oshodi.
In the student category, Michelle Kosisochukwu Okeke, Nwachukwu Michelle Kosisochukwu, and Alocha Naeto Daniel were honoured with BETA Outstanding Student Awards for emerging as top performers in the 2025 National Common Entrance Examination.
For the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) category, Salihu Amir Umar of Kadwell International School, Kaduna; Michael Daniella Chiamaka of Chrisland College, Opebi; and Ogunsola Esther Oritamefa of Baptist Model School, Ibadan, were recognised for outstanding academic performance.
The maiden BETA awards ceremony marked the formal entry of The Adunni Foundation into Nigeria’s education development space, positioning it as a values-driven platform committed to honouring the past, strengthening the present, and securing the future of basic education as the cornerstone of national development and true independence.