Ex-FUTO VC to give out N5m to indigent students

From Stanley Uzoaru, Owerri

The Professor Cyril Asiabaka Human Development Foundation has announced that it will disburse N5 million in financial aid to indigent students from higher institutions across Imo State.

The pledge, made by Foundation President Dr Ogbonnaya O. Aja during its 5th Annual Lecture in Owerri, marks a shift from a purely lecture-based programme to a broader human capital development initiative that also includes a revolving microfinance fund for vulnerable community members.

He said the upcoming student-aid scheme will target selected higher-learning institutions within Imo and its environs, providing direct cash support to help needy students stay in school.

To fund the ₦5 million package, the foundation, according to Aja, will reach out to philanthropists, corporate sponsors and public-spirited individuals.

He expressed gratitude to the foundation’s principal, Professor Cyril Asiabaka, former Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO), and his wife, Professor Ihuoma Asiabaka, for covering over 80 per cent of the event’s costs, and paid tribute to late pioneer president, Chief Dr Emeka Obioha, for laying the groundwork of the organisation.

The lecture for this year featured Professor Chiedozie Eze, Acting Vice-Chancellor of Imo State University of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, who delivered a talk on agricultural economics and development with the theme “Hand-in-hand for better foods and a better future”.

Eze, in his high-profile lecture, while regretting African leaders not investing much in agriculture, urged African heads of state to shift from mere pledges to concrete execution by earmarking at least 10 per cent of national budgets for agriculture, in line with the Maputo and Malabo declarations.

The lecturer warned that without this fiscal commitment, the continent will remain vulnerable to escalating food insecurity, which currently threatens over 30 million Nigerians and millions more across Africa. He emphasised that meeting the 10 per cent target is not a “favour” but a continental obligation that will unlock productivity, create jobs and build climate-resilient food systems.

Also speaking at the event, the chairman of the occasion, Professor Fredoline Anunobi, expressed concern that the nation is losing out in agriculture, appealing to the relevant authorities to invest and make it a top priority.