By Mashe Umaru Gwamna
The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP), yesterday gave out 2 million Naira scholarship grants to 300 beneficiaries.
It said the grant was part of a strategic approach of the Project to improve human capacity development in Ogoniland.
The beneficiaries comprised of 200 Masters and 100 PhD students selected through a painstakingly transparent process that started in October 2024, following an announcement of the scheme by the Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Professor Nenibarini Zabbey.
The 100 PhD beneficiaries received N1,000,000.00 each while 200 Masters students got N500,000.00 each.
Speaking at the award ceremony in Port Harcourt, Professor Zabbey, said beneficiaries were selected based on merit which further demonstrates HYPREP’s commitment to fairness, transparency and inclusivity in its interventions in Ogoniland, adding that the Project believes that education is a transformative tool that can unlock new opportunities and create sustainable alternative sources of livelihood for oil-impacted communities in the area.
The Project Coordinator, while congratulating the beneficiaries, acknowledged their roles as critical stakeholders and agents of change in the communities, charging them to contribute to HYPREP’s ongoing environmental and livelihood restoration by bringing to bear their expertise to promoting peace and development at the community level and communicate the cleanup mandate.
”Your role as postgraduate students is beyond academia, You are peacebuilders who must promote unity, collaboration, and peaceful coexistence within Ogoni communities and beyond. Your work and influence will serve as bridges to further connect Ogoniland, fostering continuous dialogue, mutual understanding, and collective action in the public interest” he stressed.
Prof. Zabbey, while attributing the successes recorded by the Project to the cooperation of the Ogoni community and commitment of all Project stakeholders, informed that a significant number of the projects will be completed this year.
The projects include soil and groundwater remediation, shoreline cleanup and mangrove restoration, the Centre of Excellence for Environmental Restoration (CEER), the Ogoni Specialist Hospital, Buan Cottage Hospital and the Ogoni Power Projects. He disclosed that more water projects will be commissioned this year and various livelihood enhancement activities to be rolled out as well.
Additionally, the PC disclosed the Project will launch new projects this year to create more jobs and strengthen the employability capacity of Ogoni youth and women, stating that digital ICT facilities will be installed in select secondary schools in Ogoni to aid learning.
In the same vein, Head Sustainable Livelihood, Mrs Josephine Nzidee reeled out the various livelihood intervention programmes of HYPREP and announced that the Project will this year, support 2000 Ogoni farmers towards ensuring food security, provide research support grants for 200 Ogoni final year students and establish 20 more Environment Club ‘Green Frontiers’. The members of the Green Frontiers will be trained to nurse and plant economic, fruit trees and vegetables in Ogoni communities as part of the Project’s beautification efforts. People living with disabilities are not left out as the Project will also be out rolling training for the group following the needs assessment collated from them.
Furthermore she disclosed that HYPREP will carry out specialized skill training in the following areas viz seafaring, creative arts, mechatronic, commercial diving, cyber security among other, this is in addition to the planned support for over 500 nano businesses, SMEs and cooperatives targeted at growing the local economy.
Managing Director, Multilinks Consulting, Edwin Baa the consultant for the scholarship grant reiterated the transparency of the process.
Recipients of the scholarship grant who also included persons with disabilities poured encomiums on HYPREP for the initiative.
The Director, Technical Services, Professor Damien-Paul Aguiyi and AIG Emmanuel Effiom (Rtd.) as well as HRM King (DR.) T.Y Suanu Baridam, Gbenemene Ancient Bangha Kingdom and Chief Stephen Kpean were among prominent dignitaries that graced the occasion.
