In a recent announcement, the Senior Special Assistant to the President of Nigeria on Students Engagement, Hon. Comrade Sunday Dayo Asefon, revealed plans to collaborate with public and private sectors to create opportunities such as local and foreign scholarships, as well as international exchange programs for Nigerian students.
Amb. Timothy Nwachukwu, Technical Assistant on Communication for the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Students Engagement, conveyed Asefon's commitment while addressing a visually impaired student from the University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) who reached out on behalf of visually impaired colleagues.
Asefon emphasized the importance of education in combating poverty and highlighted initiatives such as the students' loan Act and directives to public tertiary institutions to suspend arbitrary fees. He stated that these efforts aim to meet the needs of financially challenged but academically brilliant young Nigerians.
"The Renewed Hope Administration of President Tinubu recognizes education as the most potent and lethal arsenal against poverty," Asefon stated, outlining ongoing engagements with stakeholders in the education sector and foreign embassies to secure scholarships for indigent Nigerian students.
He encouraged students to explore federal government scholarship opportunities for undergraduate and postgraduate studies through platforms like the Federal Scholarship Board (FSB), Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), and Nigeria Liquified and Natural Gas (NLNG).
Asefon acknowledged the contributions of companies and foundations, including MTN Foundation, Jim Ovia Foundation, David Oyedepo Foundation, Gani Fawehinm Foundation, Agbami, NNPC/Total, Exxon-mobil, Agip, and NNPC-ADDAX, for offering scholarships as part of their corporate social responsibility initiatives.
Quoting Nelson Mandela and Allan Bloom, Asefon emphasized the transformative power of education, declaring his office's commitment to aggressively pursue the educational welfare of Nigerian students through scholarships and foreign exchange programs.
