Lagos Increases Students’ Bursary by 100%

Funmi Ogundare​

Governor Babajide​ Sanwo-Olu has approved an increment of 100 per cent on bursary payable to the students of state origin in tertiary institutions across the country.

According to the Lagos government, the increment would​ ​ take effect from the 2022/ 2023 academic session.

Executive Secretary of Lagos State​ Scholarship Board, Mr Abdur Rahaman Lekki, disclosed​ this recently at a meeting with representatives of the National​ Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Lagos State Chapter, and National Union of Lagos State Students (NULASS)​.

The meeting was held at the instance of the Special Adviser to Governor Sanwo- Olu on Education, Tokunbo Wahab.​

The bursary increment and other benefits, Lekki, said, were aimed at supporting the educational needs of students of Lagos State origin to help them cope with the present economic reality, adding that​ ​ at the just concluded​ state​ economic summit, tagged ‘’Ehingbeti​ ​ Summit’, the government​ had also approved the resolutions on the​ establishment of​ Lagos Diaspora​ Scholarship Funds, to provide scholarship and bursary benefits​ generally​ to all​ Lagos state resident students​ in tertiary institution in any part of the country to support their education.

While appealing to the students for the​ little delay in the payment of the remaining 2020/ 2021 and 2021/2022 bursary/ scholarship benefits, the​ ​ board secretary explained that the delay was necessitated by the ongoing data-cleansing/ verification exercise across all institutions by the state government, to ensure that only qualified students of the Lagos State origin benefited from the scheme.

He explained that the​ Lagos State Scholarship Board, through the​ ongoing verification and data cleansing​ exercise,​ discovered that some people who​ either​ were no more students​ or​ were not students of any higher institutions were benefiting from the scheme​ fraudulently at the expense of the​ original students of the​ state.

“For the avoidance of doubt, effective from Monday, October 17, 2022, students of the Lagos State College of Health Technology (LASCOHET)​ ​ would get their outstanding payments for the 2020/2021 academic year as their​ ​ management had completed​ ​ their verification exercise and forwarded a list of its authentic students to the board,” he said.

In their response, the leadership of​ the two students bodies, NANS and NULASS represented by their presidents,​ ​ Olusesi​ Tolulope​ ( NANS) and​ Shasanya​ Akinola ( NULASS) and other exco members​ dispelled the rumours making the rounds that their members planned to block the Third Mainland Bridge on Monday, October 17 in​ protest​ of​ the delay​ in the​ disbursement​ of​ the​ outstanding​ benefits for the​ 2020/2021 and 2021/22​ academic sessions.

The student union leaders presented a letter of assurances to the Lagos government, lauding Sanwo-Olu. The students also commended the governor for paying all the backlogs inherited by his administration.