Stories From Nigeria Annual Writing Competition 2026

Scholarship Details

Introduction

The Stories From Nigeria Annual Writing Competition 2026 invites Nigerian writers to share powerful stories about the realities, challenges, and experiences shaping the country. With the theme “What the Numbers Don’t Tell You,” the competition encourages participants to look beyond statistics and tell the human stories behind Nigeria’s social, economic, and public challenges.

The competition welcomes submissions in three formats: short stories, poetry, and essays. Writers can explore personal experiences, community challenges, social change, and the everyday realities behind issues such as justice, healthcare, education, and entrepreneurship.

Participants can compete for cash prizes of up to ₦200,000 for first place, ₦150,000 for second place, and ₦100,000 for third place.

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If you are a Nigerian writer with a meaningful story to tell, this competition offers an opportunity to share your perspective and earn recognition for your work.

Competition: Stories From Nigeria Annual Writing Competition 2026
Theme: What the Numbers Don’t Tell You
Organiser: Stories From Nigeria
Eligible participants: Nigerian citizens only
Submission formats: Short stories, poetry, and essays
Maximum length: 750 words
First prize: ₦200,000
Second prize: ₦150,000
Third prize: ₦100,000
Deadline: Saturday, 15 November 2026
Official submission link: https://storiesfromnigeria.org/submissions

Benefits

1. Cash prizes for outstanding entries

The competition offers cash rewards for the top three entries:

• First place: ₦200,000
• Second place: ₦150,000
• Third place: ₦100,000

These prizes provide financial rewards for writers whose submissions stand out in the competition.

2. Opportunity to showcase your writing

The competition gives Nigerian writers a platform to express their ideas, experiences, and perspectives through short stories, poetry, and essays.

3. Explore important Nigerian issues

Participants can use their writing to explore the realities behind statistics and examine how national issues affect individuals, families, and communities.

4. Additional recognition

The competition focuses on stories that reveal experiences and realities that numbers alone cannot explain. It offers writers an opportunity to contribute to important conversations about Nigerian society through original creative work.

Eligibility Requirements

According to the competition flyer, the following requirements apply:

1. Nigerian citizenship

The competition is open to Nigerian citizens only. Applicants should meet this nationality requirement before submitting their work.

2. Accepted writing formats

Entries must be submitted in one of the following formats:

• Short stories
• Poetry
• Essays

3. Maximum word count

Each submission must be 750 words or fewer.

Writers should ensure that their entries comply with the word limit before submitting.

4. Language requirements

Submissions should be written in English. However, entries in indigenous Nigerian languages are encouraged, provided that the required translations are included.

This creates an opportunity for writers to express local experiences and cultural perspectives in their preferred Nigerian languages while making their work accessible through translation.

5. Originality requirements

Only unpublished and non-AI-generated work is accepted.

Your submission must be original and must not have been previously published. The flyer specifically states that AI-generated work is not eligible.

Writers should therefore prepare their entries in their own words and ensure that their submissions comply with the competition’s originality requirements.

6. Formatting requirements

Submissions must follow these formatting instructions:

• Font: Arial
• Font size: 11
• Line spacing: 1.5

Entries should be prepared in a Word document or PDF, according to the application instructions.

Competition Themes and Writing Prompts

The competition’s central theme is “What the Numbers Don’t Tell You.” The supplied flyer includes five specific themes and prompts that writers can use to develop their submissions.

Theme 1: Justice

Background: The flyer cites the World Justice Project’s Rule of Law Index, stating that Nigeria’s justice system ranks 120th out of 143 countries globally and 23rd out of 34 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Writing prompt: Tell a story of 750 words or fewer about a personal or communal experience with Nigeria’s justice system and how it shaped your perception of how easy it is for the common person to obtain justice in Nigeria.

Writers can explore experiences involving access to justice, fairness, legal processes, or the challenges ordinary Nigerians encounter when seeking justice.

Theme 2: Healthcare

Background: The flyer highlights a medical brain drain crisis in Nigeria’s healthcare sector, describing its effects on local health delivery, patient-to-doctor ratios, and healthcare worker burnout.

Writing prompt: In 750 words or fewer, tell the story of a moment when your health, or that of a loved one, collided with the reality of what Nigeria’s healthcare system could or could not provide. Explain what can be done to mitigate the problem.

This theme invites writers to reflect on personal healthcare experiences and the effects of the country’s healthcare challenges on patients, families, and medical professionals.

Theme 3: Social Reform

Background: This theme focuses on situations where something in a community was not working and someone decided to take action.

Writing prompt: In 750 words or fewer, tell a story about a person, community, or movement you witnessed creating change, or about a moment when you realised that change had to start with you.

The flyer emphasises that change does not have to be a nationwide movement. It can begin with one person, one street, one classroom, or one conversation.

Writers can use this theme to explore community initiatives, individual acts of courage, local problem-solving, and movements that have made a difference.

Theme 4: Education

Background: The flyer states that reports indicate between 10 million and 18 million Nigerian children are out of school. It asks writers to look beyond the statistic and consider the child, classroom, or decision represented by the numbers.

Writing prompt: Tell a story of 750 words or fewer about what accessing education in Nigeria has meant for you or someone in your community, and what the journey revealed about who gets to learn and who gets left behind.

Possible angles include barriers to schooling, financial hardship, unequal educational opportunities, personal determination, and the experiences of children who struggle to access education.

Theme 5: Entrepreneurship

Background: The flyer describes Nigeria as one of the world’s naturally entrepreneurial nations while highlighting the everyday hustle and hurdles faced by Nigerian entrepreneurs.

Writing prompt: In 750 words or fewer, tell a story about what it has taken to build something of your own or watch someone else try to do so in Nigeria.

Writers can explore the realities of starting a business, overcoming setbacks, finding customers, navigating financial challenges, or building something meaningful despite difficult circumstances.

Submission Guidelines

Before submitting, make sure your entry meets all the competition requirements.

• The entry must be a short story, poem, or essay.
• It must not exceed 750 words.
• It must be written in English, or in an indigenous Nigerian language with the required translation.
• It must be original, unpublished, and not AI-generated.
• It must use Arial font, size 11, with 1.5 line spacing.
• It should be saved as a Word document or PDF.
• The document must be renamed using your full name.

The flyer does not specify whether participants may submit entries under multiple themes or whether multiple submissions are permitted. Check the official submission page for any additional rules.

How to Apply

Follow these steps to enter the Stories From Nigeria Annual Writing Competition 2026.

Step 1: Choose a theme.

Select one of the five themes: Justice, Healthcare, Social Reform, Education, or Entrepreneurship.

Step 2: Develop your story.

Use the relevant prompt to write a compelling, original piece based on your personal experience, a community experience, or a story you witnessed. Keep your entry within the 750-word limit.

Step 3: Check originality and language.

Ensure the work is unpublished and not AI-generated. Write in English or include the required translation if submitting in an indigenous Nigerian language.

Step 4: Format your document.

Prepare your submission in Microsoft Word or PDF format using Arial, size 11, and 1.5 line spacing.

Step 5: Rename your file.

Rename the document using your full name, as specified in the flyer.

Step 6: Submit online.

Visit the official submission page:

Follow the instructions on the website to upload and submit your entry.

Step 7: Submit before the deadline.

Ensure that your submission reaches the organisers before the deadline of Saturday, 15 November 2026.

Deadline

The submission deadline is Saturday, 15 November 2026.

Applicants should complete their entries and submit them early enough to review their writing, confirm that the document meets the formatting requirements, and resolve any submission issues.

Conclusion

The Stories From Nigeria Annual Writing Competition 2026 is an opportunity for Nigerian citizens to tell meaningful stories about the realities behind the country’s statistics. With five themes covering justice, healthcare, social reform, education, and entrepreneurship, the competition invites writers to share experiences that reveal the human side of important national issues.

Winners can receive ₦200,000 for first place, ₦150,000 for second place, and ₦100,000 for third place.

If you have an original story to tell, choose a theme, write no more than 750 words, follow the formatting rules, and submit your work before 15 November 2026.