LAFIA (Sundiata Scholar) – The Nasarawa State Government has begun the disbursement of N394.55 million bursary allowance to 10,000 students of the state origin in different tertiary institutions in the country.
Gov. Abdullahi Sule declared the official commencement of the disbursement on Friday at the Isa Mustapha Agwai Polytechnic, Lafia.
Sule, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Ubandoma Aliyu, said that the disbursement was for 2022/2023.
He said that the gesture was part of his administration’s sustained efforts to ease the financial burden on parents and students.
He said that the government was determined to ease the financial burden on parents and assist those in dire need of support in their various fields of study.
He recalled that at least 8,000 students benefitted from the 2020/2021 exercise.
He further said that the state scholarship board had adopted the e-payment method for the disbursement of the allowance in order to entrench probity and guard against fraud occasioned by cyber crime.
The governor reiterated his administration’s commitment to prioritising the education sector.
“This is based on our conviction that building sound and quality education enhances socio-economic development of any society,” he said.
He urged the beneficiaries to make judicious use of the allowances to support their educational pursuit for the betterment of the country.
In a remark, the Executive Secretary, Nasarawa State Scholarship Board, Hajiya Sa’adatu Yahya, thanked the governor for sustaining the regular provision of the bursary allowance.
“This benevolence will continue to add value to the educational pursuit and go a long way to cushion the hardship faced by students,” she said.
Yahya said that the board adopted the e-payment system in order to guard against the cases of impersonation that characterised the 2020/2021 exercise.
“This is why we are adopting another robust data protection method in order to safeguard sensitive information about the beneficiaries and for ease of disbursement,” Yahya said.
Responding, the President, Nasarawa State Students Association, Hussein Abubakar-Eya, also thanked the governor for his fatherly support to students and prioritising education in the country.
He said that the disbursement of the bursary demonstrated that he had the interest of students at heart. (NAN)
