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.. Warn Against AI Entries
Prospective participants in the 2026 Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) Annual National Undergraduate Essay Competition have been given until September 26, 2026, to register and submit their entries.
Mahogany 21st Century Concepts Limited, consultants to the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) for the 2026 NCDMB Annual National Undergraduate Essay Competition, disclosed this in an important notice to prospective and participating students in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.
The essay competition is being organised around the topic: “Promoting Manufacturing for Sustainable Local Content Development.”
The consultants urged interested students to complete their registration and submit their essays on or before the September 26 deadline, stressing that late submissions would not be accepted.
Students interested in participating are expected to register and submit their essays through the competition website, www.ncdmbessay.ng.
The organisers also issued a strong warning on the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in preparing entries.
According to the notice, all essays detected to have been generated or substantially produced using AI would be automatically disqualified.
The organisers further prohibited participants from engaging third parties to prepare their entries.
They said participants were expected to write and submit their essays personally and independently, warning that the use of consultants, mercenaries, essay writers or any other third party to write or substantially assist in writing an entry was strictly prohibited.
Any participant found to have violated the rule, they said, would face immediate disqualification.
In another measure aimed at testing the originality and personal writing ability of participants, the organisers announced that the top five students emerging from the essay competition would be invited to the NCDMB Corporate Headquarters in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, for a final physical handwritten test.
The topic for the final handwritten test, according to the organisers, would be disclosed to the five qualifiers upon their arrival at the NCDMB Corporate Headquarters.
The consultants said the measures were introduced to uphold the integrity, fairness and credibility of the competition and ensure that winners emerged solely on the strength of their own knowledge, ideas, writing ability and originality.
They therefore urged all participating students to take the guidelines seriously and ensure that their submissions complied fully with the rules of the competition.
The notice was signed by Mr. Eyinimi Omorozi, CEO, Mahogany 21st Century Concepts Limited.
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