Vice President Kashim Shettima as the Special Guest of Honour, will lead Governors of the 19 Northern States, members of the National and State Assemblies, traditional rulers, senior government officials, elder statesmen, development partners and other dignitaries to the 12th Annual Sir Ahmadu Bello Memorial Lecture and Merit Awards on Jan. 20, 2026, in Dutse, Jigawa State capital.
The Director-General of the Sir Ahmadu Bello Memorial Foundation (SABMF) Abubakar Umar, disclosed this on Monday in Kaduna.
He said the event organized by the Foundation is scheduled to take place at the Government House, Dutse.
The 2026 memorial lecture will be delivered under the theme: ‘Delivery of Equitable Access to Quality Basic Education in Northern Nigeria A Time for Real Action’.
The foundation said the theme underscored its sustained commitment to promoting equitable access to quality basic education and advancing practical, result oriented policy interventions to address long-standing educational challenges in Northern Nigeria.
A former Minister of Education, Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufa’i, is the Distinguished Guest Speaker at the lecture, adding that the Chairman of the Northern States Governors’ Forum (NSGF), Gov. Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State, would chair the occasion while the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III would be the Royal Father of the Day.
Gov. Umar Namadi of Jigawa will be the Chief Host of the event.
To ensure a successful hosting of the programme, Umar said the Jigawa Government had constituted a Local Organising Committee under the Deputy Governor, Alhaji Aminu Usman.
The foundation said the annual memorial lecture and merit awards were instituted to commemorate the legacy and visionary leadership of the late Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto.
It said the platform also recognised individuals and institutions whose contributions reflected his ideals of unity, education, equity, good governance and selfless service to humanity.
According to Umar, five distinguished Nigerians had emerged through a rigorous selection process as recipients of the 2026 Sir Ahmadu Bello Annual Lifetime Achievement and Merit Awards.
The foundation invited policymakers, education stakeholders, development partners, members of the media and the general public to attend the event.
