NASARA DABO'S OLYMPIAN HEIGHTS

Amidst the insecurity turmoil Kaduna, Nasara Dabo, a 14-yearold student of deal International College, Kaduna recently scaled Olympian heights.

Nasara, a student at Ideal College International in Kaduna, gained attention for her exceptional performance at the International Mathematical Olympiad.

She solved 34 math problems in just 172 seconds, averaging an impressive five seconds per question, earning her a gold medal in the junior category. Outshining 150 competitors worldwide, Nasara secured a total score of 145 and claimed the Olympiad champion title.

Kaduna State in Nigeria’s Northwest is easily one of Nigeria’s most volatile states. The state, which maintains proximity to Abuja has always been torn by religious strife. In the early 2000s, the state witnessed what turned out to be some of Nigeria’s fiercest political clashes.

When terrorism took a virulent turn in the country in 2009, Kaduna began to witness a string of terrorist attacks. By the time banditry emerged as a vicious form of terrorism, the state quickly became one of the most affected.

During the presidency of Muhammadu Buhari, some attacks witnessed in the state shook Nigeria’s very foundations. While Kaduna State was impacted, Southern Kaduna was more affected than any other part.

In the Southern part of Kaduna State, entire communities have been laid to waste by rampaging terrorists.

As terrorism has struck Southern Kaduna with venomous velocity, students have formed a large part of its victims. Multiple attacks have been recorded against schools.

In the past few years, dozens of students were abducted in schools within the state and held for days until hefty ransoms were paid. What makes Dabo’s feat even more impressive is that Nigeria is rather notorious for its falling education standard.

It is amidst these uncertainties that Nasara Dabo’s feat is doubly impressive. Her example offers young Nigerians who are doing all they can to acquire an education under notably difficult circumstances a lot of hope.

At a time when many Nigerians are fleeing their country like rats jumping a sinking ship, it is heartwarming to know that there may yet be life here.

Not long ago, Nigerian education received another heavy blow. But that time around, it was not a strike action that made the blow so heavy. Rather, it was the specter of illegal universities, all the shenanigans they perpetrate and enable.

The National Universities Commission may have contrived to shut down some illegal universities, but the fact that the body had to wield the big stick betrayed the fact that the universities had been allowed to ruin education in Nigeria for a while.

Nigeria may have close to 20 million out-of-school children, but in Nasara Dabo’s groundbreaking performance, the prodigious potentials that lie within young Nigerians can be glimpsed.

That Dabo is still a child and a girl is doubly impressive and inspirational. Her feat shows what the girl- child can do if provided the opportunity. In a country where girls face multiple challenges from birth, she represents what is possible for the girl- child in Nigeria.

Nigeria has not had such an inspirational story coming from its schools in a while. In fact, the last time a Nigerian girl was in a big news item because of her education, it was Mmesoma Ejikeme who went to extraordinary length to fabricate her jamb result and deceive millions in the process.

Nigeria is a land of possibilities. There is no telling what is possible if the conditions in the country are made right.

Kene Obiezu, keneobiezu@gmail.com