Governor Uba Sani has introduced policies at the Kaduna State Scholarship and Loans Board, which have enabled students from humble backgrounds to obtain sponsorship with ease.
The Executive Secretary of the board, Prof. Yahya Ibrahim, who spoke to newsmen on Sunday, disclosed that the Governor had ordered the removal of tax clearance as a requirement for accessing scholarship.
Ibrahim also said that although the writing of essays was still a requirement to access scholarship, it was however done to determine areas of students’ weakness that required support.
He further disclosed that Sani had created seven Scholarship Awards Zonal Units to make it easier for the students in rural areas to be screened.
According to the executive secretary, these zonal units have eased the burden of coming to the board’s headquarters in Kaduna and the associated congestion.
He said that the governor had also provided 30 computers to the various units to simplify the application process.
The don added that the units comprised Zaria, Kafanchan, Kachia, Pambegua, Makarfi, Kaduna-North and Kaduna South zones.
He also said that the Blboard now conducts on-the-spot scholarship enrolments for the indigenous citizens across tertiary institutions, adding,”this effort had enlisted over 4330 potential beneficiaries awaiting disbursement.’’
Ibrahim disclosed that a total of 3,397) students had been awarded local scholarships from May 2023 to date.
Similarly, thirty students had benefitted from the third-party ‘Tertiary Education Loans’.
He said, “The Board had also secured 50 scholarships for Secondary School students, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, for indigent students from the Indomie Noodles DOFIL Company Kaduna.
According to him, the inclusion of government special scholarship intervention programmes for innovation, aviation, meritorious, underprivileged, and People with Special needs (PLWD) students, in the state was in the heart of Sani’s agenda.
The executive secretary maintained that Sani had given employment to the six medical students that recently graduated from Cuba and 14 of their counterparts who passed out from Uganda.
Ibrahim further said that the 14 Nursing graduates from Uganda were all automatically employed into the state’s civil service by Sani.’
