Abia Public School Students Win Top Prize at Qatar International Debate Championship

Students from public schools in Abia State, representing Nigeria, have emerged overall champions at the 2026 International Schools Debate Championship held in Doha, Qatar.

The Abia students clinched the biggest prize of the tournament, the Best International School Debate Team award, after overcoming teams from several countries in a highly competitive championship.

The team also won four major trophies and 12 laurels for outstanding performances at the competition.

The feat was disclosed in a statement issued on Sunday by the Chief Press Secretary to the Abia State Governor, Ukoha Ukoha.

The 2026 International Schools Debate Championship, coordinated by the Vocara Institute and hosted by the QatarDebate Centre at Georgetown University, Doha, attracted more than 84 groups from eight countries.

The QatarDebate Centre, established in 2008 by the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development, is Qatar’s national debating organisation.

Team Nigeria, presented by Presidential School Debate Nigeria and composed entirely of students from Abia public schools, competed against teams from Jordan, India, Qatar, the Philippines, Kenya and other countries.

The team was led by the Executive Chairman of the Abia State Universal Basic Education Board, Amb. Lydia Onuoha, alongside representatives of the Presidency and Presidential School Debate Nigeria.

Members of the victorious team were Christian Chinweotitom Esther, Chikodi Maureen, Akamnonu Franklin, Ifeanyichukwu Prisca and Simon Divine.

The students demonstrated strong performances throughout the preliminary rounds, defeating competitors from the Philippines, Jordan, India and Qatar to secure a place in the finals.

At the conclusion of the championship, Team Nigeria emerged winner of the Best International School Debate Team award, regarded as the most prestigious prize of the tournament.

The team also secured the Overall Best Team – Junior Category, Best Leadership Award and Best Debater Award, in addition to 12 individual and team laurels for outstanding performances.

Reacting to the achievement, Ukoha described the victory as a demonstration of the quality of education and intellectual capacity being developed in Abia’s public schools.

He said the feat had once again demonstrated the strength of what he described as the state’s new education model under Governor Alex Otti.

“This historic victory has once again demonstrated the strength of Abia’s new education model under Gov. Alex Otti and the intellectual capacity of students in Abia public schools. The Abia Debate Team has made Abia and Nigeria proud,” he said.

Also reacting, the Abia State Commissioner for Basic Education, Elder Goodluck Ubochi, expressed excitement over the achievement, saying the performance was an indication that the state’s ongoing education reforms were producing the desired results.

“We feel elated now. What we are doing is that we are transforming the educational sector, and this outcome now is one of the expectations, and they are indicators that what we are doing is working,” Ubochi said .

The commissioner said the state government would host and celebrate the victorious students upon their return from Qatar.

He, however, noted that the debate team would not be the only group of students to be celebrated, disclosing that other Abia students had also recorded notable achievements in national competitions.

“Let them come back first. When they come back, we are going to host and celebrate them. They are not the only ones. There are others that we are going to unveil by the time we celebrate all our victors together, the winners.

“We have a lot of them. One student won the national essay competition organised by the All Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS) nationally.
“So we have a handful of them that we’re going to celebrate. We are waiting for them to come back. We will organise when we will celebrate all the contingents that have represented us well in one form of competition or the other,” he said.