The Metropolitan Catholic Archbishop of Onitsha, Most Rev. Valerian Okeke, is sustaining his passion for promotion of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) with the organisation of 2022 annual Archbishop Valerian Okeke Science Competition (AVOSCO) and presentation of prizes, as well as awards to 2022 deserving senior and junior secondary school students and teachers in the Archdiocese.

Part of the ways the Archbishop has been promoting science education in schools is through the yearly AVOSCO, organised by the Education Department of the Catholic Archdiocese of Onitsha at the Basilica of the Most Holy Trinity, Onitsha, Anambra State, where prizes and awards were given to deserving schools and teachers.

Speaking at this year’s event, Okeke said the gesture is in line with his belief in encouraging students to dream big and expect it to happen through hard work.

The archbishop advised participating schools not to feel deterred as, according to him, “there are schools in the country that score nine Alphas (9As), but are not brighter than them.”

Contributing, the Onitsha Archdiocesan Education Secretary, Fr. Paschal Onwugbenu, thanked the archbishop for his support and encouragement of education in the archdiocese, stressing that the competition has helped to bring the best out of students.