By Diran Laolu

The Literary and Debating Society, University of Ibadan (TLDS UI) has unveiled plans for the 2026 edition of “Jaw War,” the largest inter-hall and inter-faculty public speaking competition in Sub-Saharan Africa.

This took place at the press conference held at the Infinix Resource Center on Friday, May 8, 2026.

Speaking at the event, TLDS UI President, Akinloye Goodness announced the theme for the 12th edition of the public speaking tournament  as “Africa and the Burden of Tomorrow: Power, Identity, and the Future of Freedom.”

According to him, this year’s competition is aimed at critically examining the state of Nigeria and the African continent amid global political and cultural shifts shaping contemporary society. 

He also added that the competition would feature over 40 debate topics across various sectors and industries to stimulate conversations capable of contributing to Africa’s development and global relevance.

Speaking on the restructuring of the competition, he disclosed that Jaw War 2026 would introduce several modifications as the society seeks to build on the competition’s reputation as one of the biggest student events at the University of Ibadan, alongside matriculation and convocation ceremonies.

He explained that the tournament would retain its “second-leg” format across all categories, bringing the total number of rounds to seven.

The official schedule for the competition was also released, with activities beginning with the press conference and city qualifiers on May 8, followed by the Jaw War Rally on August 30. 

The opening ceremony and first-leg rounds across all categories are scheduled for September 1, while the first round of the faculty category will be held on September 3. 

The second-leg rounds across all categories will take place on September 5, followed by the second round of the faculty category on September 9. Quarter-final fixtures for both faculty and all-category contests are expected to be held on September 12.

The first-round fixtures for the hall category include Mellanby versus Awo Hall, Bello Hall versus ABH, Zik Hall versus Kuti Hall, Indy Hall versus Idia Hall, and Tedder Hall versus Queens Hall.

For the faculty category, the opening fixtures include Veterinary Medicine versus Technology, Public Health versus Economics, Science versus Law, Basic Medical Sciences versus Renewable Natural Resources, Environmental Design and Management versus Pharmacy, Agriculture versus Computing, Social Sciences versus Dentistry, Clinical Sciences versus Education, and Nursing versus Arts.