… Governor AbdulRazaq hails milestone, urges more private sector, community support for education
The Kwara State Education Trust Fund (Kwara-ETF) has awarded its first set of scholarships to 12 outstanding pupils from public schools, who will have their entire secondary school education fully sponsored under the scheme.
The development, described by Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq as a “dream come true” for the state, comes barely two years after the Fund was established to support public education.
Speaking at the orientation programme for the inaugural beneficiaries, Governor AbdulRazaq said education funding is too important and expensive to be left to government alone. He called on philanthropists, corporate bodies, and individuals to support the Trust Fund by sponsoring students or investing in school infrastructure.
“Education belongs to all of us. It is our business. But we have seen over the years that governments alone can’t fully fund education. We need to engage through other means,” the Governor said.
“What you have seen here today is a model where some students were selected through a very rigorous and transparent process to benefit from a scholarship. I am truly excited that these pupils are from humble backgrounds and did not cut corners to make the list. This is just the beginning. We will keep tracking them to the university level.”
He added that his administration will continue to donate to the Trust Fund to strengthen its impact.
The Executive Secretary of Kwara-ETF, Oluwadamilola Amolegbe, explained that the beneficiaries were selected from an initial shortlist of 640 top-performing pupils drawn from the KwaraLEARN digital literacy programme. From that pool, 180 pupils were supported to sit for the National Common Entrance Examination, out of which 36 excelled. The final 12 were then picked based on merit, local government spread, and admission into Unity Schools.
Programme Manager, Zainab Abdulsalam, said the ETF will continue to track and monitor the scholars’ performance to ensure that the state’s investments in education through KwaraLEARN, the Trust Fund, and the Ministry of Education deliver visible results.
“These pupils represent the face of an average Kwaran. They now have the opportunity to access life-changing exposure and opportunities,” she said.
Parents express joy
One of the parents, Maxwell Kolawole from Ekiti Local Government, commended the Governor for easing the financial burden of school fees and other expenses.
“This is truly a pro-masses initiative. The process was transparent and impressive, and we are grateful to the Governor and his administration,” he said.
The Kwara Education Trust Fund was established in 2021 through legislation and is managed by trustees drawn mainly from the private sector and community stakeholders. It has since attracted contributions from philanthropists and development partners, with the inaugural scholarship awards marking a new milestone in its mission to support quality education for Kwaran children.
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