Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has awarded scholarships worth N47 million alongside brand-new laptops to 47 undergraduates through her Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI), reaffirming her commitment to education and youth empowerment.
The beneficiaries, drawn from universities and colleges across the country, each received N1 million and a laptop to support their studies. They included students in medicine, law, engineering, sciences, education, and the humanities, spread across different academic levels — from ND II to final-year degree programmes.
Speaking at the award ceremony, Mrs. Tinubu emphasized that the programme was founded on service to humanity rather than politics. She encouraged the students to take full advantage of the support, not just to excel academically, but also to build personal skills and explore opportunities that could make them more productive.
“This is not about politics, it’s about lives,” she said. “We want to raise successful students who can contribute meaningfully to society. Some of you have two more years before graduation. Use this period wisely, think outside the box, and explore opportunities that won’t hinder your studies.”
She urged the beneficiaries to consider entrepreneurship or vocational skills as additional paths to self-reliance. “If you have started a small business, keep at it and grow it,” she advised.
Also present at the event was Hajia Nana Shettima, wife of the Vice President and National Vice Chairman of RHI, who reminded the scholars of the rarity of such opportunities and encouraged them to remain focused on their education. The wife of Imo State Governor, Mrs. Chioma Uzodimma, advised them to adopt the habit of saving and staying consistent in their ventures, while Kwara State’s First Lady, Ambassador Olufolake Abdulrazaq, urged those not inclined to business to consider academic support roles such as research assistance.
Minister of Education, Dr. Olatunji Alausa, applauded the initiative, describing it as a strong complement to government efforts. He highlighted ongoing federal support for students, including bursaries and scholarships worth billions of naira. According to him, over 12,000 students have received bursary awards in recent years, while more than 8,500 benefited from federal scholarships valued at N4 billion.
Dr. Alausa also underscored the administration’s push for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), noting that more than half of the RHI beneficiaries were pursuing courses in medicine, nursing, engineering, and food science. He further pointed to the Nigeria Education Loan Fund, which has disbursed nearly N100 billion to over 500,000 students nationwide.
Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Abdullahi, described the RHI scholarship package as transformative, stressing that it would not only change individual lives but also help close educational and technological gaps across the country.
