Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State has assured that over 50 qualified youths would be sent abroad to study in universities of their choice before the end of this year under a Scheme of Abia State Scholarship Board.
Ikpeazu handed down this assurance during a meeting he held with the Chairman and the Executive Secretary of Abia State Scholarship Board as well as 28 beneficiaries of the overseas scholarship programme at Government House, Umuahia, stating that the exercise was to ensure that as many Abia youths with aspiration were provided opportunities and avenues to express themselves and realize their ambitions.
He cautioned the beneficiaries not to see the gesture as an opportunity for them to abscond but to make them better persons with the potential of improving humanity after their studies and reminded them that they would be under constant supervision by the Board which would also demand periodic reports of their academic records.
Dr Ikpeazu stated that he thought it wise to sponsor the beneficiaries in the midst of global economic challenges, adding that apart from his huge investment in infrastructure, there was the need also for investment in human capital development.
The governor also disclosed that the state had a huge gap in Medicine, Nursing, as well as in Engineering fields hence, the need to undertake overseas training to fill in the gap.
He thanked the Australian and Indian High Commissions for ensuring that Visas were released despite the covid-19 pandemic and also thanked the Abia State Scholarship Board for resuscitating the once-moribund Board.
According to the governor, the overseas scholarship was a manifestation of his administration’s numerous interventions abroad and congratulated the beneficiaries on the milestone.
“If you do well, you have opened the door for other people to come. But if you do not do well, you would have shut the door against your brothers and sisters who will come afterwards.
“The premium that is attached to the very difficult decision to invest in your education at a time like this can only be justified by a commensurate hard work and dedication you put in. Anything short of that will amount to crass ingratitude and we will not be happy with that”, the Governor concluded while assuring that the scholarship scheme would be a continuous exercise.
Earlier, Chairman of the Abia State Scholarship Board, Ambassador Empire Kanu said that the reasons for the choice of the universities in Australia and India were based on reputable records, adding that the development would give the beneficiaries the opportunity to leverage the technological advancement and academic excellence of the institutions.
Presenting the beneficiaries to the Governor, the Executive Secretary of the Board, Mr Chukwuka Daniel, said they were currently working on a total number of 74 beneficiaries while those whose Visas were ready were having online lectures and would soon depart to Australia and India respectively.
Speaking on behalf of other beneficiaries, Ekele Nnaemeka and Esther Okezie thanked Governor Ikpeazu for the opportunity to further their education abroad and promised that they would study hard to justify the confidence reposed in them as well as remain, good Ambassadors of the state.
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