N200m Scholarship: HYPREP Supports 300 Ogoni Postgraduate Students.

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The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) has awarded N200 million in scholarship grants to 300 postgraduate students from Ogoniland in a bid to improve human capacity development in the area. 

Nenibarini Zabbey, HYPREP’s project coordinator, disclosed this in a statement, highlighting that the beneficiaries were selected through a transparent process that began in October 2024.¹

“The 100 PhD beneficiaries received N1 million each, while 200 Masters students got N500,000 each,” Zabbey said, emphasising that the selection was based on merit, demonstrating HYPREP’s commitment to fairness, transparency, and inclusivity.

Zabbey noted that education is a transformative tool that can unlock new opportunities and create sustainable alternative sources of livelihood for oil-impacted communities. He urged the students to contribute to HYPREP’s ongoing environmental and livelihood restoration efforts, saying, “Your role as postgraduate students is beyond academia; you are peacebuilders who must promote unity, collaboration, and peaceful coexistence within Ogoni communities and beyond.”

HYPREP plans to unveil new projects in 2025 to create more jobs and strengthen the employability capacity of Ogoni youths and women. The project will also install digital ICT facilities in selected secondary schools in Ogoni to aid learning.

Josephine Nzidee, head of sustainable livelihood at HYPREP, announced that the project will support 2,000 Ogoni farmers towards ensuring food security. Additionally, HYPREP will provide research support grants for 200 Ogoni final year students and establish 20 more environment clubs, known as ‘Green Frontiers,’ in 2025.

“The members of the Green Frontiers will be trained to nurse and plant economic fruit trees and vegetables in Ogoni communities as part of the project’s beautification efforts,” Nzidee said. “People living with disabilities are not left out, as the project will also provide training for this group following a needs assessment.”

HYPREP will also conduct specialised skill training in areas like seafaring, creative arts, and cyber security, among others. “This is in addition to the planned support for over 500 Nano businesses, SMEs, and cooperatives targeted at growing the local economy,” Nzidee added.

Edwin Baa, managing director of Pa-Ed Multilinks Consulting, emphasised the transparency of the scholarship grant process. “HYPREP has continued to place a premium on the human capacity development of Ogoni youths, and it would continue to drive a people-centred, sustainable, and fit-for-purpose cleanup programme,” Baa said.

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