The Federal Government has explained that Nigeria’s absence from the 2025 and 2026 editions of the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) was not due to lack of funding but because the country did not receive official invitation letters from the host countries.
The clarification was given by the National Mathematical Centre, (NMC) following reports suggesting that Nigeria had been relegated to “observer status” in the competition.
According to the NMC, the organisers of the IMO did not extend letters of invitation to Nigeria for the 2025 and 2026 editions.
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The Centre explained that under the rules of the International Olympiads, organisers are expected to send invitation letters to all participating countries to facilitate protocol and logistics, especially visa processing.
“Nigeria did not therefore register students in the 2025 and 2026 edition of the International Mathematical Olympiad, IMO because IMO did not extend an invitation letter to the country.
“The Nigerian representative, that is the Nigerian team leader did not receive an invitation letter to register students for the competition not because Federal Ministry of Education failed to fund student teams through the National Mathematical Centre,” the statement signed by its Controller, Information & Public Relations, Dr. Onyekachi Njoku, said.
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The NMC added that Nigeria’s only participation as an observer nation was in 2005 in Mexico when the country was registering for the competition.
It noted that since then, Nigeria has consistently taken part in the competition and has performed impressively and won medals.
The Centre faulted claims that the Federal Government had failed to fund Olympiads for three consecutive years, describing the assertion as “false and misleading.”
It noted that the Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Education is encouraging and will continue to encourage the Centre to prepare and present students for International Olympiad competitions.
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The NMC also stated that the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, has authorised Nigeria’s participation in all the Olympiads this year.
“Not long ago, Dr Alausa did not hesitate to approve a memo sent to him by the Centre on the need and urgency for special intervention on all Olympiad competitions. He went further to graciously recommend that some quantum of funds should be made available to the Centre for this purpose,” it noted.
The Centre further said that funding of the Olympiads is not the exclusive responsibility of government as there are components of private sector engagement.
It noted that “Nigeria has not and will never be relegated to Observer nation in any International Olympiad competition as a result of funding. In the real sense, Observer nation status in the Olympiad is for countries which are yet to participate in the competition and are interested to do so. Not countries like Nigeria that has made their mark in the competition for over two decades.”
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The NMC cited Nigeria’s recent participation in the 2026 Pan African Mathematics Olympiad, PAMO, in Yamoussoukro, Côte d’Ivoire, where the Ag Director & Chief Executive of the Centre, Prof Benjamin Oyelami, led the Nigerian delegation, as proof of government’s commitment.
“It is therefore erroneous, preponderous and smacks of mischievous intend to say that Nigeria was relegated to an Observer nation in a body and competition she has presented students and participated in for over two decades due to lack of budgetary allocation by Federal Ministry of Education,” the statement added.
“Something is therefore being done to forestall a recurrence. Nigeria has always participated in the International Mathematical Sciences Olympiads and will continue to do so,” it added.
Recall that three Nigerian students recently won gold medals at the Grand Finale of the International STEM Olympiad in Rome, Italy.
The students, 11-year-old Onyedikachi Egejurum, 13-year-old Onwubiko Chimdiebube and 17-year-old Don Anele Munachimso, were sponsored to the competition by education advocate and Educare CEO, Alex Onyia.
They qualified after emerging among the top performers at the Southeast Mathematics Olympiad, a regional contest organised by Onyia that drew more than 11,500 participants.
According to Onyia, Egejurum won gold in the Primary Mathematics category, while Munachimso secured two golds in Mathematics and Science.
The International STEM Olympiad was held at the Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma and attracted participants from more than 150 countries.