The National Examinations Council (NECO) on Thursday celebrated outstanding staff, retirees and high-achieving students at its 2024 annual staff productivity award ceremony in Minna, Niger state.
Ibrahim Wushishi, NECO registrar, said the event was designed to reward exceptional performance and strengthen a culture of excellence, discipline and ethical service across Nigeria’s education system.
“Excellence is the heartbeat of NECO because what we do forms the bedrock of individual development and the collective progress of our nation,” Wushishi said.
“By rewarding diligence and achievement, we reaffirm our mission to deliver credible, timely and fair assessments that protect Nigeria’s future.”
Awards were presented in multiple categories, including outstanding public service award for exemplary staff, lifetime achievement award for retirees, excellence in integrity and ethics award for transparency and accountability, student excellence award for top candidates in NECO examinations
NECO honoured 45 retirees with certificates of service, recognised 61 staff as the most hardworking and dedicated of 2024, and presented 15 special awards.
Top students also received national recognition which include senior school certificate examination (SSCE) presented to Nwachukwu Victor Ikechukwu (St Paul’s Academy, Jos) and Adeyemo Emmanuella Adedamola (Our God Reigns Crystal School, Oju-Ore).
Others are basic education certificate examination (BECE) received by Charles Brian Uzoma and Awanbor Omoriyekemwen Claire (Igbinedion Education Centre, Benin City), and national common entrance examination (NCEE) presented Balogun Farian Ajibola and Iyasei Ifeanyichukwu Victory.
Wushishi praised NECO’s workforce, past and present, as “unsung heroes whose daily efforts sustain the council’s credibility,” and urged students to sustain their drive for knowledge.
Yakubu Kolo, a former Niger state commissioner for environment and climate change, commended NECO for institutionalising the awards, saying the recognition reinforces the value of hard work in public service.
“Today’s honourees show that excellence is not an accident but a choice and a discipline,” Kolo said, calling on students to see the awards as the start of “a lifelong pursuit of impact and knowledge,” Kolo said.
