NIGERIA – Nigerian Breweries through its Felix Ohiwerei Education Trust Fund has crowned Anani Oluwabunmi, an English teacher at Concordia College in Adamawa State, as the winner of the 2020 Maltina Teacher of the Year award.

The Felix Ohiwerei Education Trust Fund was set up in 1994 with a startup capital of N100 million (US$262K) to enable sustained quality education through structured intervention in the sector.

In 2015 the trust fund introduced the Maltina Teacher of the Year, a national competition to identify, honour and reward outstanding teachers in Nigeria.

This year’s winner, Anani, will receive a total cash prize of N6.5 million (US$17K) with N1.5million (US$3,900) issued immediately and N1million annually for the next five years.

She would also have the privilege to be part of an all-expense paid capacity development training abroad.

As part of the package, a fully equipped computer laboratory or six-classroom block worth N20 Million (US$52,500) will be built for her school in her honour by the Fund.

Speaking shortly after she was announced as the winner of the coveted prize, Anani thanked Nigerian Breweries Plc, Maltina for putting smiles on the faces of teachers through this initiative by rewarding and recognizing them.

Other teachers who were also awarded include Idele Benedicta, a teacher from Asoro Grammar School Senior in Edo State emerged the first runner-up winning a total of N1.5 Million (US$3,900).

At third place was Adeeko Folukemi, a teacher from Patterson Memorial Baptist Grammar School in Ogun State receiving a prize of N1.25 Million (US$3,285).

Other 27 teachers who emerged as state champions were also rewarded with a sum of N500K each (US$1,300).

“With the Maltina Teacher of the Year, we are saying that our teachers can and should be rewarded for their roles in the development of our nation.”

Managing Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc – Mr. Jordi Borrut Bel

Speaking at the event, the Minister of State for Education, Honourable Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba commended the company’s unflinching commitment in supporting the education sector by rewarding high performing teachers through the annual Maltina Teacher of the Year initiative.

Nwajiuba noted that it was heart-warming that the company is keeping faith with this initiative despite the disruptive impact of the coronavirus pandemic on businesses and economy.

Maltina Teacher of the Year is supported by the Federal Ministry of Education, the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), All Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPPS) and Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN).

The Managing Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Mr. Jordi Borrut Bel, while congratulating the finalists, he stated that the role of teachers cannot be underestimated given their contribution to shaping and moulding lives.

“With the Maltina Teacher of the Year, we are saying that our teachers can and should be rewarded for their roles in the development of our nation,” Bel said.

The Corporate Affairs Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Mrs. Sade Morgan stated that the sixth edition was a clear improvement from the preceding year in terms of participation as the initiative received 1234 entries from teachers all over the country despite the short submission period and other challenges caused by coronavirus pandemic.

Morgan commended the resilience and uncommon passion of teachers for defying the odds by finding new ways to teach students virtually despite the technological limitation noted that their contribution during the difficult period lends credence to their critical role in societal development.

Since inception, the Maltina Teacher of the Year initiative has produced six grand winners, Rose Nkemdilim Obi, Anambra (2015), Imoh Essien, Akwa Ibom (2016), Felix Ariguzo, Delta State (2017), Olasunkanmi Opeifa, FCT (2018), Ezem Collins (2019) and now Oluwabunmi Anani.

Other Corporate social responsibility initiatives the brewery has recently undertaken include committing to inject N500 million (US$1.3m) over the next 10 years for the restoration of 500 hectares of Olokemeji Forest reserve in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

The undertaking is in line with its sustainability agenda, driven through the Brewing a Better World (BaBW) initiative.

To make the project official, the company penned an agreement with the Ogun State Ministry and the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) Ibadan will be the implementation partner, along with experts in the Ogun State Forestry Ministry.

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