NewzNkonya Senior High School has become the first school from the Oti Region to qualify for the 2026 National Science and Maths Quiz (NSMQ) Championship after winning a low-scoring regional contest. The qualifier, which featured Krachi Senior High School and Nkwanta Senior High School, was characterised by a sluggish start, with all three schools struggling to score points in the opening rounds. The contest remained closely fought throughout, with only a few points separating the schools as they searched for momentum.
The contestants found some rhythm in the third round, but the final round again proved difficult, limiting the scores. Nkonya SHS maintained its lead to finish with 20 points, securing the region’s first ticket to the national championship. Nkwanta SHS placed second with 11 points, while Krachi SHS finished on 10 points.
The victory sends Nkonya SHS to the 2026 National Championship, while Krachi SHS and Nkwanta SHS bow out of this year’s competition after falling short in the regional qualifiers. Nifa Senior High School has ended Okuapemman School’s four-year streak of qualifying for the National Science and Maths Quiz (NSMQ) National Championship after emerging winners of the Eastern Regional qualifiers. Nifa secured the region’s automatic qualification slot after finishing the contest with 55 points, ahead of Akwamuman Senior High School, which placed second with 48 points.
Okuapemman School, a regular fixture at the national stage in recent years, could only manage 35 points, while Kibi Senior High Technical School finished fourth with 22 points. The result brings an end to Okuapemman’s run of consecutive appearances at the NSMQ National Championship, which stretched from 2022 to 2025. The school had established itself as one of the Eastern Region’s strongest representatives, reaching the One-Eighth Stage of the competition in both 2024 and 2025.
However, its failure to progress from this year’s regional contest means the school will miss the national championship for the first time since 2021. Nifa earns national ticket Nifa SHS’s victory secures its place among schools competing at the 2026 NSMQ National Championship, where it will represent the Eastern Region. The school’s performance saw it pull clear of its closest challengers to claim the region’s automatic slot.
For Akwamuman SHS, the journey may not yet be over. Although it missed out on automatic qualification, its second-place finish gives it a chance of advancing as one of the highest-ranked second-placed schools from the regional qualifiers. The school will now await the final ranking of second-placed teams across the country to determine whether it secures a place at the national competition.
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