Interswitch’s science competition to boost STEM education in schools

Interswitch Group, a Nigerian-based integrated payments, and digital commerce company, has announced the commencement of the fifth edition of its annual InterswitchSPAK National Science competition, a STEM-focused initiative targeted at young Africans.

The competition, which is open to all senior secondary school students between the ages of 14 and 17 in public and private schools in Nigeria, according to Interswitch aims to discover and nurture young students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, with the goal of building a knowledge-based society and promoting sustainable development in Africa.

InterswitchSPAK provides a platform for students to showcase their academic prowess in STEM subjects and compete for various exciting prizes, including university scholarships.

Mitchell Elegbe, founder and GMD of Interswitch said, “InterswitchSPAK is a celebration of our commitment to promoting STEM education in Africa and empowering the next generation of innovators and problem solvers. As we commence the fifth edition, we are delighted to have reached this milestone in the competition and assure Africans that more students across the continent will have access to quality STEM education through InterswitchSPAK.”

According to the payment service company, contestants in the course of the competition will be taken through various qualifying rounds, including online assessments and a national qualifying examination leading to the semi-finals stage.

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This will be followed by a grand finale where the finalists will compete for the ultimate prize of N7.5 million in scholarships for a five-year period, a laptop, and monthly stipends. The second-place winner will receive N4 million in scholarships for three years, a laptop, and monthly stipends. The third-place winner will in turn get N1 million in scholarships for one year, monthly stipends, and a laptop.

Cherry Eromosele, executive vice president, Group Marketing and Corporate Communications at Interswitch said the competition highlights the company’s focus on inspiring and empowering innovative young minds to drive progress in STEM and shape the future of Africa and the world at large.

Oladapo Ojo, founder and GMD of JustMedia, the technical partner of the InterswitchSPAK initiative, while speaking on the edition added that Working on InterswitchSPAK over the years has been an incredible journey for the company.

“We are proud to be a part of this initiative which seeks to promote academic excellence and STEM education among secondary school students in Africa. Our team has been fully committed to providing technical support to ensure the success of the competition and we are excited and looking forward to the fifth edition of this laudable project,” he said.

Meanwhile, the company added that InterswitchSPAK will purchase JAMB e-PINS for 54 contestants to enable them to register for the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination free of charge, which shows its commitment to empowering young Nigerians.