Peter Mbah, governor of Enugu State, has expressed satisfaction with the MTN Social Corporate Responsibility activities that strive to encourage Nigerian youths through yearly scholarship programmes.
Mbah said this at the MTN 2025 Foundation Scholarship Award Ceremony and Alumni Induction held in Enugu recently with over 200 students from the South-East zone awarded scholarships to study different courses in various Nigerian universities.
The governor, represented by Sam Ugwu, commissioner for Environmental and Climate Change, commended MTN for always being there for Nigerians and for choosing Enugu State for this year’s event.
“We know that MTN came to Nigeria under Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, and since then, there has been revolution everywhere, both in educated, urban areas and in the villages, even the bushes we get MTN, it is everywhere. We commend them for what they have done for this country,” he said.
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The governor emphasised his satisfaction with the contributions of MTN in the social media and social development of the life of Nigerians. “Your strive to encourage our youth through your scholarship scheme is a veritable instrument of impacting on the people, apart from other social services you render, especially communication,” he said.
Enugu State, he said, is obvious in its education sector with the green smart schools that have taken off September this year, that the philosophy behind the green smart school was to expose the children to 40 years experiential learning that will appeal them to compete in the global ecosystem aligning it with what MTN is also doing.
He said that since 2023 the state emphasised on the importance of education and constantly raising the budgetary allocation to education in the states to 33 percent every year.
“We have launched Enugu State education transformation plan with a clear goal to move from a system of root learning to experiential learning, innovation and productivity, building a seamless pipeline of human capital from over 260 mandate schools through technical and educational training institutions.
“Doing this, we have MTN, one of the big companies in the telecommunication industry, in mind, because all these schools need clear communication and other services from MTN,” he said.
“We are happy that we share the same philosophy in seed education as a catalyst for national improvement and national development as you continue with your corporate social responsibility”.
He said that the government of Enugu Stated is disposed to cooperate and collaborate with MTN as it serves the people for their needs.
He advised the students to always appreciate their source of education.
“It is not easy to get a scholarship in Nigeria and other places, so you should appreciate your source of growth and source of inspiration,” he said, while calling on other multinational companies to emulate MTN CSR programmes.
“When you go into the global society, you remember that you are coming from somewhere. Always remember that you must give back to society. Giving back to society is very important. That is what MTN is doing now,” he said.
Earlier Calina Inino, general manager, regional operations (East) sales and distribution, MTN Nigeria, said that MTN Foundation Award, and alumni ceremony, was a celebration of excellence, residence and boundless potential of the Nigerian youth.
According to the general manager, the scholarship initiative was built on the belief that every state has the capacity and since inception over 20 years ago it has supported over 5000 scholars, and awarded nearly 50,000 scholarships.
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“I think sometimes what we call numbers, we monetize them. N5000 is more money, but we are talking about 5000 human beings, 50,000 human beings. We are not stopping here because we remain committed to expanding this district, deepening our support and driving inclusive development across Nigeria, one student at a time. We believe driving inclusion across all the local countries of Nigeria, wherever you are from Nigeria is one, and we believe that everyone in Nigeria deserves the benefit of a modern, connected life, and this is what we have been driving for the past 20 years”.
“I am deeply honored to share a defining location, a moment that brings together aspiration, perseverance and purpose. Today is more than a former ceremony of awarding scholarships, it is yet another declaration of our belief in the incoming inductees, the nearest members of the MTN Foundation scholarship family.
“You are not here by chance. You are here not only for your academic performance, but because you have demonstrated excellence in your character, resonance and ambition whether you are joining us as a science and technology scholar or one of the top UTM scholars in the country, or as a group of blind scholars know this, your journey matters. As you begin, I urge you to carry on with pride and purpose, with the foundation you assess world-class learning tools through the MTN Skills Academy and our ecosystem designed to shape lead your digital skills, leadership potentials and career readiness”.
