How NDDC’s Foreign Scholarship Scheme Is Making A Difference

By Ifeatu Agbu

Cynthia Ebi Farka, cherishes her days as the face of Coventry. She attended Coventry University in the United Kingdom as one of the beneficiaries of the post graduate scholarship scheme of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC.
For many months, Cynthia’s face welcomed prospective students at the Coventry train station as part of a project called “guide to campus” in Coventry University. She recalled with pride: “My face was used to showcase the good features of the university and I did this as an NDDC scholar.”

Cynthia, who hails from Bayelsa State, studied oil and gas engineering and described her experience in UK as life-changing. Out there, she said, “everything is computerized and if you don’t work hard, you are basically not going to get anything. There is this software called ‘turn-it-in’ which is used whenever an assignment or course work is given to check plagiarism,” she said.

“With a background in petroleum engineering, I had the opportunity to deepen my knowledge in oil and gas engineering. I also had opportunity to go for an excursion in Glasgow, Scotland. It was a flow measurement course which exposed me to practical experiences outside the academic sphere. Altogether, I can say that I am well equipped for the future.”

Looking back, Cynthia said the Master’s degree programme in Coventry was challenging. “But you know, challenges come with their own good part,” she said, adding: “when I got to the United Kingdom, it took me some time to adjust to a new system of learning. It’s kind of totally different from what we are used to here in Nigeria. In a nutshell I will say it was a wonderful experience.”

However, the NDDC scholar said she would be fulfilled when her studies translates to benefits for the people of the Niger Delta. For this to happen, she said she was looking forward to getting a platform to demonstrate her skills. “I need an opportunity to transfer my knowledge to others. Apart from oil and gas engineering, I also got involved in a media presentation project where I learnt presentation and communication skills,” Cynthia said.

Given her exposure to a more modern society, Cynthia would want to see a Niger Delta that would compare with the United Kingdom in terms of development. She acknowledged that it may take a while and a lot of work.

Cynthia cautioned that blaming all our woes on the Government was unhelpful because, in her view, we all must play our different roles. She explains: “You need to see Nigerians in the United Kingdom. They behave themselves, you don’t see someone eat and throw the waste on the roads but they do that in Nigeria. So, is it the government doing that? Every individual has a part to play. You have the zebra crossing in the UK and when there are people on it, cars stop, but here in Nigeria they will run you over.

“I see a Nigeria that will in future be like the United Kingdom where you pay for electricity and you get light in a system that works generally. I want the Niger Delta to be a peaceful environment where the youths can realize their potentials. We have boys and girls that have prospects but the environment limits them. My wish is that people who have passion for certain things should be encouraged? They should go for it and not give up.”

While thanking the NDDC for giving her the opportunity to improve herself, Cynthia advised the Commission to help the scholars to surmount the initial funding challenges which they face in foreign land. According to her, the major obstacle is late release of funds. ”For me, I got to Coventry in September and the money came in December. So, you have to be able to struggle and foot your bills at the initial stage. I wish the Commission could give the scholars something to support themselves before getting there.”

On the positive side, Cynthia commended the NDDC for keeping track with the performance and wellbeing of its scholars. She enthused: “I was glad that the Deputy Director from the directorate running the scholarship programme came for my graduation. That is good because they check on their students. Even before I got details of my result, it was already sent to NDDC and that is also good.”

Like Cynthia, Mr Ubong Peters, a PH D student in Australia, was another worthy ambassador of the NDDC foreign post graduate scholarship. He was celebrated for winning a three- minute thesis competition in his university.

The excellent performance of Peters was among the success stories shared by the NDDC Managing Director, Mr Nsima Ekere, at the 5th Niger Delta Dialogue which took place at the Hotel Presidential, Port Harcourt on February 2, 2017.

It was a proud Chief Executive who extolled some of the shining lights of the scholarship programme. He said that apart from Peters, “Mr Augustine Osarogiagbon, of Memorial University is so brilliant he completed his Ph.D. in less than the stipulated time and has been offered a dual Ph.D. programme with two graduate assistants to work with him and a post-doctoral fellowship lined up.”

The NDDC boss also highlighted the exceptional contributions of Mr Charles Igwe, a Ph.D. scholar in Construction Engineering at Concordia University, Canada. He said that his unique design saved the Montreal Area Municipality over $1 billion, noting that he achieved the feat by redesigning the TURCOT interchange road construction project costing $3.67 billion.

Obviously, the NDDC education programmes were the kind of good stories that the Mr Ekere loved to share. He said: “A total of 1,411 students have received scholarships since 2010 of which 1,066 were supported in M.Sc and 345 in Ph.D programmes. Five (5) of the M.Sc students graduated with distinction from Coventry University, England and one (1) from Aberdeen University.”

He stated further: “These positive results show the depth of talent within the Niger Delta and what can happen if we just encourage the younger ones to stay focused on their education. We also have to create an enabling environment for them to return to and be productive citizens.”

The NDDC Director for Education, Health and Social Services, EHSS, Mr. Frank Eke-Spiff, explained that the Foreign Post-Graduate Scholarship Scheme was meant to equip Niger Delta youths with relevant training and skills for effective participation in the local content programme of the Federal Government. He added: “It aims to empower the indigenes of the Niger Delta by building their capacity, especially in the oil and gas sector because this area is oil and gas driven. The objective is to equip our people so that they can compete favourably with others in terms of employment in the oil industry and also in entrepreneurship in the region.”

He noted that emphasis was placed on science disciplines because of a noticeable deficiency in the oil industry, which made it difficult to employ young graduates from the region in that critical sector.

According to him, there was need to position young graduates from the region to compete globally in various professional fields, noting that before now, the oil and gas industry had discriminated against the fresh graduates whom they dismissed as not possessing requisite qualifications. “We also need to encourage our youths to show interest in engineering for the sake of our projects. We need qualified engineers that can manage our projects just as in agriculture, environmental science and other science related courses,” the director said.

Eke-Spiff stressed that the foreign scholarship scheme was designed to expose the graduates to other developed environments outside the country. “It is our belief that the skills they acquire will add value to the development of the Niger Delta. So far, we have been proved right as those that benefited from the programme in the previous years have justified the need for the advanced training programme,” he said.

He expressed delight that the oil and gas sector has employed some of the NDDC scholars who had returned to the country, adding that some were employed abroad last year. “I am aware of three scholars that were employed in the UK after their Master’s programme. Moreover, A couple of them have gone into entrepreneurship,” he said.

Eke-Spiff’s predecessor in the EHSS, Dr. Solomon Ita, recalled the outstanding performance of one of the beneficiaries who studied in the United Kingdom in 2012. He said that the star NDDC scholar of that year, Miss Francisca Chiedu, was elected as President of the United Kingdom University Student Union.

That feat, he said, demonstrated that Nigerian youths could lead innovative changes within and outside the country. “Her success was indeed a victory for the NDDC. It is a testimony of the capability of the new generation of Nigerians to be the change they seek and champion worthy causes”.

Dr. Ita said that he was optimistic that the transparent process adopted in selecting beneficiaries of the foreign scholarship scheme would continue to produce first class performers. “it will guarantee the Niger Delta region and Nigeria at large, the likes of Francisca Chiedu, the Information Engineering and Network Management student in the Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, who brought glory to NDDC, the region and nation.”

Miss Chiedu, a University of Benin Computer Science graduate, showed appreciation for what the NDDC did for her. She wrote back to the Commission to say that “truly life presents us with different opportunities. For me, every moment in our life offered a door, all I had to do was choose, I chose to dream, I chose to think, I choose to move, I chose to act and I chose to win.”

The EHSS director said that NDDC was considering broadening the scope of the foreign scholarship to include special disciplines that would address the needs of the entertainment industry. He said:

“The entertainment industry in Nigeria by our estimation is valued at close to 200 billion naira and Nollywood is the second largest after Hollywood. We want to bring in the entertainment industry, so we will be looking at disciplines like directing and production. We are also looking at the hospitality industry. The reason why we are thinking along those lines is that we are having the international hotels coming into Nigeria, like the Mario the Sheraton and Intercontinental. We want to introduce a Master’s degree in Hotel Management, Tourism and Aviation management. These are the key areas we want to introduce and hopefully the board will approve.”

The plans to broaden the scope of the scholarship programme would answer the prayers of some past beneficiaries who had been urging the NDDC to do more for the numerous graduates of the Niger Delta.
For Mr. Lenin Francis, who benefitted from the 2014 scholarship programme, earning a Masters’ degree in petroleum engineering, the NDDC should also extend the scholarship to other students at the undergraduate level as well as increase the number of beneficiaries.

Francis, from Bayelsa State, agreed with the view that the programme was a good capacity builder that would equip the youths to join in developing the Niger Delta. “I pray that the NDDC will continue with this laudable programme which has helped many youths in the region.” he said.
He said that the foreign scholarship was a boost not just for the beneficiaries but for the entire Niger Delta, because it would give the youths the opportunity to develop themselves and acquire technical expertise for the benefit of the people of the region.

According to him, the NDDC made the right decision to build the capacity of the youths, rather than focusing only on infrastructure. “After all, human resource is more important than physical infrastructure.”

He further said that the scholarship scheme needed to be expanded. “It is clearly insufficient for the teeming youths of the region. Currently, the scholarship scheme is enjoyed by less than 15 per cent of qualified applicants, with some states getting only 10 slots. Surely, the NDDC can improve on this number,” he said.

Giving her own perspective, Miss Amaka Uchendu, who studied at the University of Essex in the UK, said that the youths often found it difficult to start their lives after their first degrees. She said: “With this scholarship programme, it will be easier for us to go for the opportunities which we may not otherwise have been able to pursue on account of not having money.

So, the NDDC has helped us to kick start our lives and we say a big thank you to the commission for giving us the opportunity to move forward and make our lives better.”

*Agbu sent this from Port Harcourt*