Ogun Teacher Wins Nigeria Best Teacher Award and Car Prize

(Mary Oluwaseun Adebayo. Photo by Punch News)

Dr Mary Adebayo, a teacher at Nawair-Ud-Deen Grammar School in Obantoko, Abeokuta, has been named Nigeria's Overall Best Teacher for 2026.

The award comes from the Federal Government's President's Teachers' and Schools' Excellence Awards.

She got the news at the World Teachers' Day event in Abuja.

Her prize was a brand-new car.

She won in the Best Public Senior Secondary School Teacher category, which led to the top national title.

She said she started out in a private school and kept working without expecting any reward.

"I kept doing the work, I did not know the Lord will reward me this way," she said.

Her old school's association says the award makes them proud.

Its national president, Hon. Fasiu Bakenne, and its public relations officer, Sanni Damilola, both congratulated her.

Lawmaker Nasir Gboyega Isiaka also praised her, calling her a source of pride for Afon and Imeko-Afon.