15-year-old Ekiti girl wins national playwriting prize

By Boye Oyeyemi

A 15-year-old student from Ekiti State, Ayodele Angel Oluwafisayomi, has won the 2026 StarGirl Playwriting Prize with a play challenging gender stereotypes and advocating equal opportunities for girls in science and technology.

Angel, an SS3 student at Divine Touch International School, Ado-Ekiti, emerged winner with her play, Before You Say No, which explores how societal expectations and gender-based assumptions can discourage girls from pursuing careers in science and innovation.

The play follows Bose, a science enthusiast whose ambition to become an inventor is challenged by her father, who believes science is unsuitable for girls. With encouragement from her brother, Tola, and her teacher, Mrs. Adebayo, Bose prepares for a science fair to demonstrate that ability and determination, rather than gender, should determine success.

The founder of the prize, Dr. Tosin Kooshima Tume, said the competition began in July with a call for submissions. She disclosed that 14 entries were received, from which five finalists were selected to participate in a three-day writing residency at The Farm, Iworoko Road, Ado-Ekiti, from September 2 to 4.

Tume, an associate professor in the Department of Theatre and Media Arts and director of the Centre for Gender Studies at the Federal University Oye-Ekiti, said the residency was designed to equip participants with playwriting skills and mentorship to transform their initial story ideas into complete plays.

She said the training sessions were facilitated by Miss Ann Adedeji, Mr. Emmanuel Kalu, Terhemba Tume and herself. Tume also expressed appreciation to Senator Babafemi Ojudu for providing the venue for the programme.

Reacting to her achievement, Angel said the initiative had strengthened her writing skills and boosted her confidence in expressing herself through creative writing. “I appreciate the StarGirl Playwriting Team for helping young girls like me to find our voices and learn the basic elements of a play. This is an experience I would like to relive over and over again,” she said.

The StarGirl Playwriting Prize is a community service initiative established by Tume to identify and nurture young female creative talents across Nigeria. Through its focus on playwriting and mentorship, the initiative seeks to provide girls with a platform to develop their creative abilities.