Etisalat Earmarks N30m For Varsity Scholarship …Doles Out N2m To 20 Students

Etisalat Communication Company has released the sum of N2 million to 20 students from University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) and Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST) who are beneficiaries of the first phase of the 2010 Etisalat Scholarship award, which is expected to gulp N30 million.

Releasing the millions to the 20 students Wednesday at Protea Hotel in Port Harcourt, the Chief Executive of the company, Mr. Steven Evans, said the N30 million is for 300 students across 26 universities in the federation.

Evans said the students will receive N100,000 each being the best students in Business Administration, Information Technology and Electrical Engineering, the chosen fields of this award.

“This company has decided to invest in education because education is the beginning of life and the foundation of development,” he said, adding that the project is done annually and “this is the second year Etisalat is embarking on this project.”

Responding to the award, the Governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon.Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, said Etisalat scholarship scheme is one of the company’s social responsibility strategies designed to empower the society through knowledge, acquisition and promotion of merit among young people and urged the students to use it to better their educational pursuit.

The governor who was represented by the State Commissioner for Education, Dame Alice Lawrence Nemi, commended the company, stating that government sees “Etisalat Scholarship Award Scheme as worthy and encouraging towards achieving the overall objectives of credible and sustainable development.”

Also speaking, the manager of Corporate Social Responsibility in the company, Mr. Ishmael Omamegbe, said the award is a success story of the company, in its views of partnering   with students as other phases will soon be released.