UNIQUE AMASS TO CAPE COAST: HELP US BRING THE NSMQ TROPHY TO WA!

For the first time ever, UNIQUE AMASS has qualified for the National Science and Maths Quiz 2026 Prelims, set to take place in Cape Coast. The team will represent the Upper West Region on Ghana’s biggest academic stage. The qualification, confirmed after the 2026 Regional Qualifiers, marks a turning point for the school and for STEM education in the Upper West Region.

The news hit the campus of T.I. Ahmadiyya Senior High School, Wa like a wave. Students poured out of classrooms. Teachers hugged each other in the staff common room. Old students on WhatsApp groups began sharing screenshots and voice notes. For a school that has spent years knocking on the door of NSMQ, the door has finally opened.

The National Science and Maths Quiz is not just a competition. It is a national ritual. Every June to July, Ghana stops to watch some of the brightest young minds battle in science, mathematics, and general knowledge. It is where reputations are made, scholarships are earned, and dreams of becoming doctors, engineers, and researchers begin. For decades, schools from Accra, Kumasi, and Cape Coast have dominated the stage. Schools in the north have watched, learned, and waited.

T.I. Ahmadiyya’s journey to this point has been long. The school was established by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission with a clear mission: to provide quality education rooted in discipline, faith, and excellence. Over the years, UNIQUE AMASS has built a reputation for moral upbringing, sports, and steady academic performance in WASSCE. But NSMQ remained the missing piece. Year after year, the team would enter zonal contests, win a round or two, and then fall short against better-resourced schools. Each loss was followed by a promise: “Next year we will come back stronger.”

That promise was kept in 2026. The road to qualification was not easy. The team had to go through intense zonal and regional stages. They faced schools that had buses to transport them to training centers, schools with fully stocked labs, and schools that had been on NSMQ television for years. T.I. Ahmadiyya had none of that. What they had was time, commitment, and teachers who refused to give up.

A senior science teacher who has been with the team for 4 years described the preparation. “We started in September last year. Every evening after prep, the NSMQ team would meet. We solved past questions from 1994 to 2025. We timed ourselves. We practiced riddles until students could answer in under 5 seconds. We had no projector, so we wrote questions on the board. When there was no light, we used torchlights and continued.” Students on the team say they sacrificed social life, weekend outings, and even some sleep. “We told ourselves, if we don’t make it this year, who will?” one student said.

The moment they won the regional slot, the entire school went silent for 3 seconds, and then exploded. The Headmaster addressed the assembly the next morning. He reminded them of the school motto: “BE GOD’S BEST”. “Today you have shown that when you put God first and work hard, He makes a way. But this is just the beginning. Cape Coast is waiting.”

And Cape Coast is exactly where the ambition now lies. This is not a team going to make up numbers. The NSMQ patron was direct in his statement to the press. “We are not going to participate. We are going to compete and we are going to win the ultimate prize in NSMQ 2026.” It sounds bold, but those who have watched the team train say the confidence is earned. The students have mastered speed. They can calculate without calculators. They have built a culture of teamwork where no one is afraid to buzz in. They have also studied the style of past champions. They know how PRESEC handles the problem of the day. They know how Mfantsipim approaches riddles. Now they want to beat them at their own game.

Winning NSMQ 2026 would mean more than a trophy for T.I. Ahmadiyya. It would mean the first national academic trophy for the school. It would mean the first NSMQ trophy for the entire Upper West Region. It would mean that a child in Wa, in a classroom without air conditioning, can look at the TV and see someone who looks like them, speaks like them, and comes from the same streets, holding the trophy. That image alone could change the trajectory of STEM enrollment in the region for the next 10 years.

But there is a reality that cannot be ignored. T.I. Ahmadiyya is going to compete in a science and mathematics quiz with serious infrastructure deficits. The contrast is painful.

The first major challenge is transportation. The school does not own a bus. For every inter-school competition, for every training workshop in Wa, and now for the trip to Cape Coast, the school must rent a vehicle. Renting costs between 2,000 and 4,000 cedis per trip depending on distance. That is money that should be used to buy lab equipment or pay for extra classes. A bus is not a luxury for UNIQUE AMASS. It is a basic need. It will ensure the safety of students, reduce costs, and give the school mobility to attend more academic programs.

The second challenge is worse because of what the competition is about. The science and ICT laboratories are ill-equipped. Walk into the physics lab and you will find gaps. There are not enough meters, cells, or resistors for students to do electricity experiments in groups. The chemistry lab has a shortage of reagents. Some chemicals expired years ago and have not been replaced. There is limited glassware, and safety equipment like fire extinguishers and eye wash stations are inadequate. In the biology lab, there are only a few microscopes. In a class of 40, students have to share, which means many of them only watch while one or two do the practical.

The ICT lab tells the same story. The computers are old. They take 10 minutes to boot. They cannot run modern software for data analysis, coding, or NSMQ simulations. Internet connectivity is unstable. Yet these are the same students who will go to Cape Coast and be expected to answer questions on modern applications of science and technology.

Teachers have become experts at improvisation. A chemistry teacher will draw the setup of a titration on the board and explain every step because there are not enough burettes. A physics teacher will use a torchlight and a mirror to explain reflection because there is no ray box. A biology teacher will bring pictures of cells because there are not enough slides. This is why the qualification is so remarkable. The students have learned theory without enough practicals and still beaten schools with better facilities.

That fact leads to the core of the appeal. The talent is in Wa. The discipline is in Wa. The will to win is in Wa. What is missing are the tools.

Because of this, the school management, the PTA, and the Old Students Association are making a public and urgent appeal for support. The Headmaster, speaking in his office, put it plainly: “We are grateful to God for this milestone. We are proud of our teachers and students. But we cannot go to Cape Coast and compete with one hand tied behind our back. We need help.”

The school is requesting three main areas of support. First, a school bus. A 33-seater or 65-seater bus will solve transportation problems for the NSMQ team, for sports, and for all academic excursions. Second, a full upgrade of the science and ICT laboratories. This includes microscopes, physics apparatus, chemistry reagents and glassware, biology specimens, and modern computers with internet. Third, sponsorship for NSMQ 2026. The team will need funding for accommodation in Cape Coast, feeding, training materials, T-shirts, and logistics for supporters who want to go and cheer the team.

The appeal is directed to several groups. To the Government of Ghana and the Ministry of Education: T.I. Ahmadiyya has shown that with little support, it can produce results. This is the time to invest. Equip the labs and provide the bus. Let this qualification be the start of a long-term STEM program for the school. To the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission and the Old Students Association: This is your school. This is your moment. A fundraising drive can change everything. To Corporate Ghana and NGOs: Sponsor this team. Put your brand behind a story of resilience. To all people of goodwill in Wa, Upper West, and across Ghana: Share this story. Pray for the team. Come to the send-off.

The PTA Chairman added: “When you support T.I. Ahmadiyya, you are not just supporting one school. You are telling every child in northern Ghana that their dreams are valid. You are telling them that where you come from does not determine where you can go.”

Education experts in the region agree. A retired director of education in Wa said the qualification should be treated as a case study. “For years we have talked about bridging the educational gap between north and south. Here is proof that the gap can be closed. But proof alone is not enough. We must follow it with resources. Otherwise we will celebrate once and then go back to the same cycle.”

As of this week, the NSMQ team is back in camp. Morning prep starts at 5am. Evening classes go until 9pm. They are doing past questions, practicing buzzer speed, and building team chemistry. The goal is clear and written on the board in the classroom: WIN NSMQ 2026.

The entire Upper West Region is watching. Markets in Wa are talking about it. Radio stations are discussing it. Parents are praying for it. The weight is heavy, but the students say they are ready to carry it. T.I. Ahmadiyya SHS, Wa has made history. But the story cannot end at qualification. The next chapter must be about winning, and winning requires support.