By Abiola Olawale (The New Diplomat’s South West Bureau)
A.G. Leventis Scholarship foundation, an Egba Scholarship scheme, has announced that 55 Egba students were awarded the scholarships under its 2020 programme.
The foundation annually provides grants for the students of Egbaland, Abeokuta, Ogun State in the Nigerian universities and polytechnics. The scholarship scheme covers various disciplines, including Human and Veterinary Medicines, Education, Basic Sciences, Social Sciences, Agricultural Sciences, ICT and Pharmacy, among others.
However, at the award ceremony, which held at the Ake Palace Ground, the foundation disclosed that 55 Egba sons and daughters bagged the scholarship award, under the year in review.
Speaking at the award ceremony, the Paramount Ruler and Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, commended the board members of the scheme for their efforts and commitment in the younger generation of the Egbaland.
The Alake of Egbaland also supported the foundation with his donation of N1million.
He also called on the well-meaning Egba sons and daughters to support the foundation financially.
Additionally, the Egba chiefs also followed suit, as they donated various sums of money in support of the A.G Leventis Foundation.
Chief Sikirullah Atobatele, the Balogun Egba, and Chief Bode Mustapha, the Osi Egbaland, donated N500,000 each towards the fund.
They were joined by Chief Soyooye, the Chairman, Egba Science Foundation, who donated an undisclosed amount and Chief Akanni Akinwale, the Chairman of Egba General Title Chiefs, that also pledged collective financial support of the Group for the AG Leventis Scholarship Award Scheme.
Oba Gbadebo also commended the Balogun of Egba Christians, Chief J.B Oke, for his patriotic zeal that had sustained the scholarship scheme over the years.
Speaking, Professor Ajao Adelekan, Secretary of the Board’s Awards Scheme disclosed that the 55 awardees were chosen from various categories.
According to him, 29 beneficiaries of the chosen 55 are undergraduates, while 10 are pursuing Masters degrees; six students are for the PhD degrees and 11 beneficiaries in the Higher National Diploma (HND) cadre.
The breakdown also disclosed that Abeokuta South and North LGA had 11 awardees each; Odeda 3, Owode 3, and Ewekoro LGA’s in the undergraduate cadre.
In the Master’s degree, Abeokuta South and North had six and three slots respectively. In the Doctoral degree, Ifo had three slots, while Abeokuta South and Odeda LGAs had one each. Besides, Abeokuta North, South and Odeda LGAs had six, four and one respectively.
Chief G.O Soyooye, a Board member of the A.G Leventis Scholarship Scheme, commended the Alake’s quality leadership of the Egba Community, especially his love for the education of the youth.
He also admonished the awardees to consider the Leventis Scholarship Scheme as a call to reciprocity to reenact what Mr AG Leventis epitomizes and charged young sons and daughters to enrol in academic disciplines that would make them practically useful to themselves and the society at large.
It would be recalled that, the A.G. Leventis Foundation was established in 1979, in honour of late Anastasios George Leventis, a Greek Cypriot businessman who founded a major merchandise trading firm in Nigeria and other West Africa countries.
Leventis, who died on October 25 1978, was awarded the title of Babalaje of Egbaland by Late Alake of Egbaland Oba Ladapo Ademola, for his dominant contributions in the economy of Egbaland and Nigeria as a whole.
Additionally, the A.G Leventis Scholarship scheme awards study funds to both undergraduate and postgraduates students of Egba origins.
