The federal government will honour 14 outstanding teachers and schools with cars, laptops and a bus at the 2026 World Teachers’ Day celebration on October 5.

The Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Said Ahmad, disclosed this on Friday at a news conference in Abuja ahead of the celebration.

The World Teachers’ Day celebration will feature teachers from the 36 states and the FCT, including a march-past in state flags and cultural attire.

Ahmad said the first, second and third-best teachers would receive cars, while the best Federal Unity College would receive a bus.

Other awardees would receive laptops.

The celebration, themed “Transforming the Teaching Profession for Africa’s Future,” will focus on innovation, mobility, artificial intelligence, inclusion and professional excellence.

Ahmad said the Federal Ministry of Education, in collaboration with the Nigeria Union of Teachers, coordinates the annual event, while state ministries of education facilitate nominations.

She said the 2026 award selection process had been digitalised for the first time to improve transparency, accountability and documentation, eliminating the need for applicants to submit hard-copy entries in Abuja.

The minister also said the Federal Government had developed a policy to attract and retain quality personnel in the teaching profession.

According to her, the policy, approved in 2025 and disseminated to the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, provides strategies for attracting high-quality personnel and improving teachers’ welfare and retention.

Ahmad said implementation would require state governments’ cooperation because most teachers are employed by the states.

Also speaking, the National President of the Nigeria Union of Teachers, Comrade Audu Amba, represented by Deputy President Elder Comrade Kizito Kalu, called for increased investment in preparing teachers for changes brought by technology and artificial intelligence.

Amba said technological advancement, artificial intelligence and changing approaches to teaching and learning were transforming education, stressing the need to equip teachers to use emerging technologies while retaining their professional judgement.

“The NUT believes that a strong education system cannot be built without a strong, respected and adequately supported teaching profession,” he said.

Earlier, the Director of Education Support Services in the ministry, Gabriel Oluwole, said the automated selection process covered Best Teacher, Best School and Best Administrator categories across basic and secondary education.

He said the exercise included public and private schools as well as Federal Unity Colleges nationwide. (The Nation)

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