Gombe State Governor and Chairman of the Northern States Governors’ Forum, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, on Thursday joined Vice President Kashim Shettima, policymakers, development finance institutions, global education advocates and captains of industry at the formal launch of the Aliko Dangote Foundation’s N100 billion annual Education Support Programme at the Eko Hotel in Lagos.
The new scholarship programme has over N1 trillion expected to be injected into Nigeria’s education system over the next decade.
The ceremony also featured the unveiling of Dangote Vision 2030, a 100 billion dollar development blueprint.
In his address, Vice President Kashim Shettima applauded the initiative by the Dangote Foundation as a strategic intervention that is in tune with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, particularly its priorities on education, skills development and lifting vulnerable Nigerians out of poverty.
Shettima praised Alhaji Aliko Dangote as a patriotic Nigerian whose philanthropy continues to inspire confidence in the nation’s future, and urged other private-sector leaders to emulate his leadership and generosity in supporting national development.
Delivering his keynote speech, Aliko Dangote, Chairman of the Dangote Group, explained that the scholarship programme was designed to close the financial gaps that force many brilliant Nigerian students to abandon their education.
He described education as the strongest engine of social mobility and the clearest path to national development.
The initiative, he said, will support 45,000 students annually in the first year,155,000 beneficiaries per year by its fourth year, and 1,325,000 students cumulatively by 2036.
A major component of the programme is the Aliko Dangote STEM Scholars, which will provide annual tuition support to 30,000 undergraduate students studying science, technology, engineering and mathematics in public universities and polytechnics nationwide.
Speaking on the sidelines of the event, Governor Inuwa Yahaya commended Alhaji Aliko Dangote for what he called avisionary investment in the young people who are the nation’s most valuable assets.
He emphasized that the scale and design of the programme is in line with ongoing efforts across northern states to reduce the number of out-of-school children, improve school retention, strengthen teacher capacity and expand access to quality learning at all levels.
Governors of Borno, Nasarawa, Kano, Niger and Lagos States were in attendance. Also, Ministers of Finance and Education as well as members of National Assembly, Traditional Rulers attended the event.
Ismaila Uba Misilli
Director-General
( Press Affairs)
Government House
Gombe
