The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) has awarded postgraduate scholarships to 300 Ogoni indigenes, urging them to prioritize peacebuilding as a foundation for sustainable development in the region.
Speaking at the cheque handover ceremony in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on Thursday, HYPREP Project Coordinator, Prof. Nenibarini Zabbey, reassured the beneficiaries that the selection process was fair, transparent, and inclusive.
He encouraged the scholars to form community clusters to promote unity, collaboration, and peaceful coexistence, emphasizing the importance of civic responsibility and constructive engagement in Ogoniland.
“Protecting HYPREP’s image, facilities, and sites from negative tendencies is the civic duty of all Ogonis. We will soon launch civic education and engagement initiatives to address misinformation and other challenges hindering progress in the region,” Zabbey stated.
He further stressed that unity and reconciliation are crucial to Ogoni’s development, urging the scholarship recipients to use their platforms for dialogue, innovation, and solutions to community challenges.
Providing insights into the selection process, Edward Baa, Managing Director of Pa-Ed Multilinks Consulting, the firm facilitating the scheme, revealed that over 1,200 candidates participated in the initial sensitization program. Of those, 837 registered, 766 took the aptitude test, and 474 advanced to the verification stage.
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Baa noted that Khana LGA had the highest success rate at 45%, followed by Gokana (29%), Eleme (15%), and Tai (10%).
“The selection of the 300 recipients ensured a fair distribution across the four LGAs, with 100 PhD students and 200 Master’s students benefiting from the scheme,” he added.
This initiative aligns with HYPREP’s broader mission to foster education, environmental restoration, and sustainable development in Ogoniland.
