By Sam Kayode
Governor Babagana Zulum has said that all deserving post graduate students who excel in their studies will be given automatic scholarships to complete their doctoral degrees.
He made this announcement today during the flag off ceremony of the award of local and foreign scholarships of over 4 billion naira to 524 post graduate students in Maiduguri.
Amidst cheers in the multi purpose hall of the Government House, Maiduguri, Zulum said that he would set the criteria for excellence by such deserving students and ensure that they are awarded scholarships accordingly after their masters degree.
The Governor stated that all school fees of foreign students would be paid directly to their respective institutions instead of to their individual accounts to avoid mismanagement which used to occur in some cases.
“This is because we don’t want a situation in which students are given scholarships and they will go and use the funds for other purposes.
” I had a strange experience when I was a student in the Ramat Polytechnic in which students were given scholarships and one of them went to buy a house and abandoned his academic programme”, said Zulum.
“I want special emphasis to be made towards technical and vocational studies (one or two years prog). We need a system that will create jobs more than just paper qualifications
The Governor revealed that the government has allocated a total of ₦4,582,955,000 for scholarships, broken down as follows: N241,000,000 for the tuition fees of 241 Master’s degree candidates in Nigerian universities.
“₦141,000,000 for the tuition fees of 94 PhD candidates in Nigerian universities.
₦1,105,500,000 for the tuition fees of 147 Master’s degree candidates studying abroad.
“₦286,350,000 for the tuition fees of 42 PhD candidates studying abroad.
It is imperative to emphasise that with great opportunities come great responsibilities.
“This dedication is crucial to ensuring that the benefits of your education contribute directly to the development and progress of our State. We trust that you will honor this commitment and use your knowledge and skills to make a meaningful impact on our community.” said Zulum
Over N8 billion has been spent on scholarships from 2019 till date while about 129m naira was spent on rescue mission for the safe returns of students from Sudan.
