Outliers College, Surulere, has defeated Best Gift Comprehensive College, Ejigbo, in the second debate of the Lagos regional finals of Nigeria Info 99.3 FM’s I Beg to Differ Season 10.
Outliers scored 79.8 points against Best Gift’s 76.2 in a debate on whether cultural diversity has been an economic advantage for Nigeria, held on Monday, November 9.
While Best Gift argued in support of the motion, Outliers opposed it, arguing that ethnic divisions, communal conflicts and insecurity had prevented Nigeria from fully benefiting from its cultural diversity.
The result was based on scores from three judges, who awarded Outliers a combined 76 points against Best Gift’s 70, alongside an audience vote worth 10 points.
Best Gift secured 6.2 points from the audience vote, representing 62 per cent of the votes cast on YouTube, while Outliers received 3.8 points, or 38 per cent.
However, Outliers’ six-point advantage in the judges’ assessment was enough to secure the overall victory by 3.6 points.
Opening for Best Gift, 15-year-old Richmond argued that Nigeria’s more than 250 ethnic groups give the country a cultural identity that attracts international attention and creates economic opportunities.
He highlighted the contributions of cultural diversity to entertainment, regional trade, tourism, employment and agriculture.
Richmond said the blending of languages and cultural styles had helped shape Nigeria’s entertainment industry, while trade across regions allowed businesses to exchange goods within the country and internationally.
He also argued that tourism generates revenue and jobs, while differences in regional soil and agricultural resources support the production of crops such as cocoa and palm oil.
During the rebuttal, Best Gift argued that herder-farmer conflicts in northern Nigeria should not be blamed on cultural diversity, maintaining that tribalism and cultural differences were separate issues.
The team also cited a figure of N99 billion in tourism income in 2021, attributed to UNICEF.
Closing for the proposition, 15-year-old Olu said Nollywood and Afrobeats help take Nigerian stories to international audiences, while competition among ethnic groups encourages trade and employment.
“Take away cultural diversity and take away Nigeria itself,” he said.
Opposing the motion, 14-year-old Kiara of Outliers College questioned whether Nigeria had translated its cultural diversity into meaningful economic benefits.
She argued that ethnic and communal conflicts disrupt agricultural activities, citing agriculture's contribution of 25.93 per cent to Nigeria’s gross domestic product in the second quarter of 2026, according to figures she attributed to the National Bureau of Statistics.
Kiara also cited an estimated N347 million in lost internally generated revenue in Benue, Kaduna and Plateau states, which she linked to violence.
She further argued that insecurity discourages investment, claiming that all states in the Northeast except Adamawa received no foreign investment in 2023.
Kiara also linked ethnic-based politics to regional inequality, citing a figure of 133 million Nigerians living in multidimensional poverty.
During the rebuttal, 14-year-old Hauwa argued that cultural diversity offers economic possibilities but does not automatically translate into prosperity.
She cited a claim that conflict in the Northeast had left Nigeria’s economy 2.5 per cent smaller than it could have been, as well as a figure of 35.7 million internally displaced people attributed to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Hauwa argued that the international success of Afrobeats and other cultural products benefits selected industries rather than the majority of Nigerians. She challenged the proposition team to demonstrate how diversity had improved the economic conditions of most citizens.
In her closing argument, Kiara said, “a resource untapped is just wasted potential,” adding that Nigeria must distinguish cultural popularity from economic productivity.
The host, Femi Obong-Daniels, announced that Outliers College would face Platform College in the next round. Platform College will argue in support of the motion, following a draw conducted during the programme.
The debate followed an earlier contest between Platform College and Rochester College on whether social class matters more than talent.
The programme is scheduled to return at 4 p.m. on Tuesday as the Season 10 competition progresses towards its national finals in August 2027.
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