By Olusegun Adeniyi
In 1979, the outgoing military administration of General Olusegun Obasanjo established the Nigerian National Merit Award (NNMA) to identify our country men and women (whether at home or in the Diaspora) who have made outstanding contributions to knowledge and creativity and grant them special recognition. The award is categorised under four fields of human endeavour: Science, Medicine, Engineering/Technology, and Humanities—including arts and culture. After a rigorous selection process, worthy candidates are awarded the Nigerian National Order of Merit (NNOM) with a certificate and cash prize by the President on the first Thursday in the month of December—although the cash prize has dwindled in value over the years.
From inception till date (46 years), the NNMA Governing Board has only conferred the prestigious NNOM award on a total of 79 Nigerians to demonstrate how exclusive it is. Past awardees include Professors Chinua Achebe, Idris Mohammed,…
Source: Thisday Newspaper
