Ondo and Ogun States emerged first at the zonal final of the annual National Quiz Competition sponsored by the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
The two states tied with 60 points each to beat others in the zone at the zonal final of the competition which took place on Friday at Christ Girls School, Ado-Ekiti.
Lagos and Ekiti States also tied with 50 points each, although Lagos later beat Ekiti to third place when it answered a quick question from the quiz master.
Ekiti came fourth with 50 points, while Oyo and Osun took fifth and sixth positions with 45 and 40 points respectively.
The three states of Ondo, Ogun and Lagos would represent the zone at the national level of the competition.
Speaking after the competition, the Group General Manager, Public Affairs Division of NNPC, Mr Ndu Nghamadu, said that the competition was designed mainly for students in the nation’s secondary schools.
According to him, the competition has impacted positively on the intellectual attainment of young Nigerians.
He said that the competition had also provided financial succour to successful contestants who are placed on bursary throughout their university education.
Nghamadu added that many of the winners of the competition had won academic laurels in tertiary institutions.
Represented by Mr Gboyega Bello, Nghamadu said that the 2017 edition was the 15th in the history of the competition.
He also said the corporation would be providing a one-off educational grant of N100, 000 each for all state winners of the competition, while a scholarship award of N300, 000 will be granted per session to the overall winner of the competition.
According to him, second and third place winners will receive a scholarship of N250, 000 and N200, 000 respectively per session for the duration of their tertiary education.
In his remarks, Ekiti Deputy Governor, Prof. Kolapo Olusola, said that government was ready to partner with any organisation investing in the education sector.
According to the deputy governor, the state government is committed to enhancing the standard of science-based subjects.
The consultant on the quiz competition, Mr Olutayo Sanni, said it had laid a solid foundation for science development in Nigeria.
Sanni said the quality of performance of the schools had improved since the competition began.