Nigeria has been delisted from full participation in the International Mathematical Olympiad [IMO] and will now attend only as an observer nation, according to multiple reports on June 24, 2026.

The downgrade comes weeks before the 67th IMO finals scheduled for Shanghai, China, in July, and follows four consecutive years of the Federal Government’s failure to fund Nigeria’s participation through the National Mathematical Centre [NMC].

The development means Nigerian students will no longer be eligible to compete for medals or receive official recognition at the competition, widely regarded as the world’s most prestigious contest for pre-university mathematicians.

Education advocate and Educare CEO, Alex Onyia, who broke the news on X, described it as “a big shame for Nigeria”. He blamed the Ministry of Education’s “inability to fund students for four consecutive years through the National Mathematical Center”.

The NMC is mandated by the Federal Ministry of Education to select, train, and sponsor Nigeria’s team for the IMO and other science Olympiads. Its Head, Ojo Solomon, told FIJ that “Olympiad is capital intensive” and funding from the Ministry “is not enough”.

The crisis affected 15-year-old Agbo Adoga in the last edition, a student of Graceland International School in Port Harcourt, who qualified to represent Nigeria after scoring a perfect 1600 on the SAT. He could not be sponsored.

The Ministry of Education, however, denied the claims. In a statement, it said it was “not aware” of any sponsorship request and had “no record or correspondence in its files”.

Nigeria has not fielded a team at the IMO since 2021 due to unavailability of funds. Reports indicate that non-participation for five years leads to a country being downgraded to observer status.

Observers say the sanction underscores concerns about inadequate investment in STEM education. The development sparked criticism online, with many questioning government spending priorities amid other budgetary allocations.

For university students, the IMO downgrade has downstream effects. Departments of Mathematics, Computer Science, and Engineering across Nigerian universities, including FUOYE, often rely on students who excelled in secondary school Olympiads to drive research groups and national contests. With fewer students gaining international exposure early, university programs may face a smaller pool of STEM-ready undergraduates in coming years.