WIPO 2025 National IP Essay Competition for Nigerian Students

Published: 20 May 2025

Every year on April 26, we celebrate World Intellectual Property (IP) Day to learn more about the role that IP rights play in encouraging innovation, creativity, and economic and cultural development across the world. This year’s celebration is themed “IP and music: Feel the beat of IP”, shining the spotlight on the music industry and the critical ways IP empowers and supports the creatives, artists, innovators, and musicians that bring the industry to life.

The essay competition topic, “IP and Music: Harnessing Nigeria’s Music Industry for Economic Growth”, therefore, invites students to critically reflect on how the creativity of the various players in Nigeria’s music industry, combined with strong IP frameworks, can contribute significantly to the nation’s economy. It also challenges students to reflect on the obstacles, including the impact of emerging technologies, and propose forward-looking solutions that support sustainable growth in the industry and the larger economy

Participation in this competition will provide students with an excellent opportunity to research and deepen their understanding of the role of IP in driving innovation within the music industry, while contributing fresh insights on how Nigeria’s vibrant creative sector can be harnessed to fuel sustainable economic growth.

WIPO National IP Essay Competition

Application Deadline	June 20, 2025
Type	Undergraduate
Sponsor	World Intellectual Property Organization(WIPO)
Gender	Men and Women

Benefits of WIPO National IP Essay Competition

Winners and outstanding participants of the 2025 National IP Essay Competition will receive a variety of exciting learning, professional development and capacity building prizes

Requirements for WIPO National IP Essay Competition

The competition is open to all registered students (undergraduate and postgraduate) of recognised tertiary institutions in Nigeria, including Universities, Colleges of Education, Polytechnics, as well as Professional or Vocational institutions.

Entry requirements:

• The essay must be written in English.
• Essay entries should not exceed 1,500 words (bibliography and references are excluded from the word count).
• Entries should be prepared in Arial (Black) font size 12, with double line spacing, and pages numbered.
• Entries should be submitted in both Word and PDF format.
• Entries must not include any pictures or other graphical illustrations.
• Entries must not contain any indication as to the name, school, number, email address, or other means of identification or affiliation of its author and/or any other person.
• Plagiarism of any sort will result in disqualification.
• AI-generated works are not eligible for submission and will be disqualified.
• Submissions received after June 20, 2025 will not be considered.
• A valid student ID card or proof of enrolment will be required when submitting.

Selection Process

What our judges will look for:

• Originality of ideas;
• Structural flow, clarity of thought and expression, grammatical accuracy and coherence;
• Relevance to the field of intellectual property (IP);
• Relevance to the national, regional and/or international context; and
• Policy suggestions, proposals and/or pathways for improving the creative economy

Application Deadline

June 20, 2025

How to Apply

Interested and qualified? Go to World Intellectual Property Organization(WIPO) on surveys.wipo.int to apply