Monday, 9th September 2024, will continue to be a day to reckon with in the attainments of the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau I. Jibrin, as appreciation and praises continue to be showered on him courtesy of his foresight to offer scholarship to 70 Kano State indigenes.
The postgraduate foreign scholarship initiative saw the sponsorship of 70 candidates – 65 males and five females – from the three senatorial districts of Kano State to pursue higher degrees in Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Robotics Science in reputable institutions of higher learning abroad.
Speaking at the epoch-making event, Senator Barau I. Jibrin, who began by congratulating the beneficiaries, said the initiative is one of the cardinal programmes of the Barau I Jibrin Foundation (BIJF).
He explained that all the beneficiaries were selected based on merit and were devoid of any form of nepotism, personal relations, or familiarity.
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“None of them is personally known to me or related to the organising committee members. It is imperative to note that this programme is designed to showcase our unwavering commitment to the educational development of our youths, who we consider as the pillars of societal development. At the Jibrin Foundation, we give pride of place to the overall development of the youths, who are responsible for reshaping and energising our society.
“What we are doing is a demonstration of the hallmark of our political ideology aimed at building and empowering the youth to secure our future and society.
“Our joy is always to see that we are impacting the lives of the people positively, not necessarily because of political party or geographical affiliations but as a duty to humanity. We shall continue to facilitate programmes and projects that will improve our people’s lives in all circumstances.
“The Foreign Scholarship programme has been designed as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to identify and support the gifted and talented youths from across Kano State to acquire postgraduate degrees in carefully selected fields that will give them competitive advantage to contribute to the socio-economic development of Nigeria,” he said.
Senator Barau, therefore, called on all and sundry to support the efforts of the government in addressing the challenges in our educational system, especially at the basic education level.
“Let me use the opportunity to thank President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for assenting to the bill to establish the North West Development Commission (NWDC). He has laid the foundation to address the region’s challenges. He likes us in the North, and he is our hero.
“Please let us continue to pray for our country and support Mr President to implement his lofty ideas for the development of our beloved country. This is our country. Let’s work together to return our country to the path of progress and prosperity,” he said.
Minister to Senator Barau: You are an ambassador of education
The Minister of Education, Professor Tahir Mamman, has extolled the leadership qualities of the Deputy President of the Senate as well as his passion for the promotion of the educational sector.
The minister, who was represented by the Minister of State for Education, Dr Yusuf Sununu said, “I would not have been happy if I were to miss the opportunity to come and see first-hand what a committed individual is doing to support the educational development of his people and by so doing assisting the government in delivering the dividends of democracy to the people.
“I must confess that I am not surprised that Senator Barau Jibrin is doing this today, because I have always known him as a great ‘Ambassador of Education’ and a unique politician, always looking for ways to empower the people, especially the youth. I recall his tremendous contributions to the education sector as a frontline member of the National Assembly, when he served as the Chairman, Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETfund in the 8th Senate and his support to the infrastructural development of educational institutions in Kano State over the years.”
On his part, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFund, Senator Muntari Dandutse (APC, Katsina South), said that the selection of specialised fields such as Artificial Intelligence, Robotics Technology, Cybersecurity, and Forensic sciences is a testament to Senator Barau’s dedication to addressing the workforce shortages in these critical areas in our country.
“This is a novel initiative that deserves commendation and the support of all. When these beneficiaries return to our country after completing their studies abroad in about 18 months, they will be well-equipped to fill the existing gaps in these vital sectors. Their expertise will significantly contribute to the technological development of our nation.
“To the beneficiaries, I extend my heartfelt congratulations and best wishes as you embark on this academic journey. I urge you to be exemplary ambassadors of our country, to take your studies seriously, and to strive for excellence. Your success will not only honour the Deputy President of the Senate, but will also bring pride to Kano State and our beloved nation as a whole.”
Fascinated by the scheme, invited guests contributed about N30 million to support the upkeep of the beneficiaries abroad.
A former Vice Chancellor of the Bayero University Kano (BUK), Professor Muhammad Yahuza Bello, said the fields selected by the Deputy President of the Senate are the foundation of the knowledge economy.
“What India has been generating in foreign currency by exporting knowledge (knowledge economy) is more than what Nigeria has been getting from oil in the last t. Therefore, these are the foundation of what we need to develop this country,” he said.
Beneficiaries emotional, pledge commitment to studies
Speaking shortly after receiving their admission letters, the students, majority of who are the sons and daughters of the less privileged, thanked Senator Barau for the gesture while assuring him of commitment to meet expectations by graduating with flying colours that will call for further celebration.
Speaking, one of the beneficiaries, Surajo Nuhu Umar said, “We are really grateful for this gesture. We wish the Senator well in his endeavours.
“I have never gone to any foreign country but now I have the opportunity. The farthest I have gone in pursuit of education is Zaria.
“We will go and come back but we are assuring everyone, especially our sponsor, that we will commit to what we are sent to do and come back to make him and everyone proud.”
Also speaking, Ahmad Isah Usman said, “We thank God. When I applied for this I didn’t know anybody and we were selected without anyone asking us for anything. I have never been to any foreign country, not even Niger. I have been in Nigeria throughout my life.
“Words are not enough to describe the feeling right now because it’s a rare opportunity I have ever imagined. God willing, we will come back with good results and make him proud and also contribute to our society.
“We shall come back and pass on the education we acquired to our younger ones and those who are not opportune to go and learn.”
For Ibrahim Inuwa, his opportunity came through a friend who always wished him goodwill.
“I have no words to thank this Senator. I was sent the link by a friend who asked me to try and fortunately for me, I got it without knowing or reaching out to anybody.
“I studied at Kano University of Science and Technology, Wudil and the farthest that I have gone to is Adamawa where I served.
“God willing I shall come back to my state and also give my quota to the development of the society. It is a privilege we were opportune to benefit from, so we shall also contribute our part.”
Among the female beneficiaries, Mariya Sunusi Abdullahi explained that it was just a trial that came to reality as she first saw the opportunity on social media.
“First of all, we thank God and the Senator who gave us the opportunity to go and study in a foreign country. I first saw the link going round on social media and I just gave it a try.
“I was shocked when I got it because it was against the norm. I prayed and it is here.
“I have never boarded a flight, the farthest I have gone is Abuja and via road transport. All my studies were in Kano from primary to tertiary education level.
“I will be an ambassador of my country and my state and above all, shall come back with a good result to make everyone and the Senator proud.”
Also, another female beneficiary, Aisha Rabiu Ibrahim said, “I have never gone to any country in my life. I studied at Bayero University, Kano and I have been in Kano all my life except during my youth service year when I went to Sokoto.
“God willing, we will go and study hard not to disappoint anyone, especially the Senator. We shall come back with flying colours.
“I first saw the flyer on Facebook and I tried then God helped me through,” Aisha said.
Earlier, while welcoming esteemed guests at the event, the Chief of Staff to the Deputy President of the Senate, Professor Muhammad Ibn Abdullah, highlighted some of Senator Barau’s commitments to education to include the establishment of Federal Polytechnic, Kabo, with 17 approved programmes of Science, Engineering and Health sciences, provision of teaching and learning materials in primary and secondary schools in Kano State, payment of N50,000 to each undergraduate student of Kano North studying in Bayero University, (BUK) Kano, establishment of 13 National Open University of Nigeria study centres in all the 13 local governments of Kano North and full undergraduate scholarship to 13 candidates to study various courses at Azman University, Kano.
Other successes recorded in the educational sector are the establishment of six satellite campuses of the Federal University Dutsin-Ma in six local government areas of Kano North to ease studies, payments of complete registration fees for 650 students of the Federal University Dutsin-Ma of Kano North Constituency, payment of 2024 NECO registration fees for the less privileged who could not scale through the state government’s arrangement, payment of 2024 JAMB registration fees for Kano North indigenes and payment of scholarship of all Kano North indigenes in all Kano State higher institutions.
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