Wife of the Ekiti State Governor, Dr Olayemi Oyebanji, has awarded scholarships worth N10 million to 100 orphaned and indigent students in tertiary institutions across the state as part of efforts to improve access to higher education.
The scholarship disbursement, which took place in Ado-Ekiti on Wednesday, provided N100,000 each to the beneficiaries drawn from the 10 higher institutions in Ekiti State.
Speaking during the event, Oyebanji said the intervention was designed to ensure that financial hardship does not prevent young people from pursuing their educational goals.
According to her, education remains one of the most effective tools for empowering individuals and creating opportunities for social and economic advancement.
“No child should be denied educational opportunities because of poverty or difficult life circumstances,” she said.
“Education remains one of the most powerful instruments for personal transformation and societal progress. Through this intervention, we are contributing our quota towards ensuring that financial constraints do not prevent our young people from pursuing their dreams.”
Oyebanji explained that the scholarship programme is implemented through her humanitarian foundation and forms part of an annual intervention targeted at vulnerable students across the state.
She noted that beyond tertiary education support, the foundation also runs a Back-to-School Programme for pupils and students in primary and secondary schools, providing learning materials and other educational resources.
The Coordinator of the Widows, Aged, Orphans and Hope (WAOH) Project, Dr Kemi Dairo, said the beneficiaries were selected based on their financial challenges and demonstrated need for support.
Dairo explained that the funds would help students meet critical academic expenses, including tuition payments, purchase of study materials, research work and other education-related costs.
She commended Oyebanji for sustaining the scholarship initiative and urged the beneficiaries to take advantage of the opportunity by remaining committed to their studies.
Also speaking at the event, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Students’ Engagement, Mr Sunday Asefon, encouraged the students to remain focused and disciplined throughout their academic journey.
He urged them to become worthy ambassadors of their institutions and communities through academic excellence and responsible conduct.
Other government officials present at the ceremony described the scholarship scheme as a strategic investment in the future of young people in Ekiti State.
They noted that supporting vulnerable students through education not only improves individual outcomes but also contributes to the development of future leaders capable of driving progress within their communities and beyond.
