By Princess-Ekwi Ajide, Abuja
The Federal government of Nigeria has urged awardees of the Erasmus plus scholarship programme to be ambassadors of their respective institutions and Nigeria.
The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, David Adejo, who made the plea at a pre-departure orientation programme for the awardees in Abuja noted the scholarship scheme has promoted academic excellence and innovation as well as encouraged the exchange of knowledge and best practices among participants.
About 800 Nigerians have benefited from Erasmus Masters Study programme since 2014 with 500 in the past 4 years this the Permanent Secretary says has demonstrated that, with a shared commitment, Nigeria and Europe can nurture educational excellence and foster cultural exchange in a mutually benefiting partnership.
He reminded the awardees that this achievement is a testament to their hard work, dedication, and exceptional academic abilities and urged them to use the opportunity to positively shape perceptions and foster stronger ties between Nigeria and Europe so as to inspire countless others and contribute to the growth and development of Nigeria.
Earlier, the European Union Ambassador to Nigeria and the ECOWAS, Ms Samuela Isopi, disclosed that the EU will invest over €45 million in grant to support basic education, particularly in the Northwestern part of Nigeria affected by insecurity.
According to her, they will pay particular attention to girls’ education as an essential pre-condition to achieving women empowerment and gender equality and more prosperity for all.
She said EU wants Nigeria to be number one in the world and will work together with the Ministry of Education, the National Universities Commission and Nigerian Universities, to achieve that.
In his speech, the Acting Executive Secretary National Universities Commission, NUC, Chris Maiyaki, reechoed the need for the awardees to be worthy ambassadors of the country and urged them to take advantage of the opportunity to soar higher.
Some of the beneficiaries, including Gift Onyinyechi Opara, Gwadewole Antonio Oladayo and Clinton Ikechukwu gave insight into how they got the scholarship and their countries of study.
