Baba Ahmed University, Kano emerges winner of NOA North-West campus debate

Students of Baba Ahmed University, Kano, on Wednesday emerged winners of the 2025 National Orientation Agency (NOA) North-West Zonal Face-to-Face Campus Debate held in Kaduna.

The Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT), Kaduna, came first runner-up, while the Federal University Dutse, Jigawa, took the second runner-up position. The debate focused on the topic: “Unity in Diversity: Defining Nigerian Identity in Nigeria’s Multicultural Society.”

Other participating institutions included Isa Kaita College of Education, Katsina; Umaru Ali Shinkafi Polytechnic, Sokoto; Huda University, Gusau; and Kebbi Polytechnic, Dakin Gari.

Speaking at the event, NOA Director-General, Lanre Issa-Onilu, represented by the North-West Zonal Director, Hamisu Abubakar, described the National Campus Debate as more than just a competition. He said it was being developed as a flagship civic engagement platform to groom young Nigerians intellectually, morally, and patriotically.

He explained that this year’s edition adopted a three-tier format: institutions first submitted video entries from across the 36 states and the FCT, after which successful teams advanced to zonal face-to-face debates. Winners at the zonal level will now proceed to the National Grand Finale in Abuja.

The final event, scheduled to coincide with Nigeria’s 65th Independence Anniversary, will hold at the Presidential Villa, where President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is expected to unveil the National Values Charter.

“At NOA, we are clear in our mandate — to build a nation bound in freedom, peace, and unity by instilling values that unite and uplift. This debate is not only about competition, but about values,” Issa-Onilu said.

He urged students to think critically about Nigerian identity, embrace diversity as strength, and reject social vices such as cultism, drug abuse, and violence, which he described as “foreign to Nigeria’s cultures and destructive to its moral fabric.”

Issa-Onilu also highlighted the launch of the CLHEEAN App, a real-time feedback and empowerment platform for citizens to access government information, report community challenges, and engage public institutions. The app is already live on iOS and will soon be available on Android.

Kaduna State NOA Director, Danjuma Makama, said the debate fostered patriotism, tolerance, inclusivity, and national pride. He added that it challenged students to engage with issues of cultural diversity, history, and identity in ways that promote unity and nation-building.