OPay Empowers AAU Students: Awards Scholarship to 20 Undergraduates, Signs 10-Year MOU

By Esosa Omorogbe

OPay, a multinational online digital banking platform, has awarded a N300,000 annual scholarship to each of the 20 students of Ambrose Alli University Ekpoma.

The scholarship, part of OPay's 10-year Corporate Social Responsibility initiative, was facilitated by the office of the Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on Sustainable Development Goals.

At a ceremony to launch the scholarship program in Ekpoma, Ikponwosa Kolawole Odiase, OPay's Head of Partnerships, said, "We at OPay Digital Services Limited are committed to supporting quality education and investing in the future of our children, despite the challenges facing our national economy. We believe in empowering these students to actualize their full potential."

Odiase revealed that Ambrose Alli University Ekpoma is the 13th university to benefit from the initiative, which aims to extend to more universities, enabling more students to benefit.

In her address, Sally Suleiman, Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on Sustainable Development Goals, stated, "This partnership with OPay Digital Services Limited on scholarship for our students aligns with Governor Monday Okpebholo's policy drive to empower the average Edo child through education. This is evident in the governor's one billion naira bursary award to Edo State students."

The Acting Vice-Chancellor of Ambrose Alli University Ekpoma, Prof. Sunday Olowo Samuel, expressed gratitude to the Edo State Government for its progressive interventions in the university. He noted, "AAU is undergoing progressive repositioning, courtesy of Governor Monday Okpebholo's initiatives."

Prof. Samuel thanked OPay management and the Office of the Special Adviser for selecting AAU as one of the few institutions worthy of the scholarship.

Prior to the presentation of a dummy cheque, a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding was signed between AAU, OPay Digital Services Limited, and the Office of the Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on Sustainable Development Goals, formalizing the 10-year scholarship program.