Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, on Friday, reiterated the importance of education, even as he announced a personal donation of N100 million to support the educational and empowerment initiatives of the Senator representing Enugu West, Senator Osita Ngwu.

Ngwu announced on Friday a scholarship and bursary award of N250 million to approximately 5000 students of Enugu West Senatorial District under his Enugu West Academy (EWA).

Akpabio, who was the special guest at the event held in Enugu, described himself as a “proud and passionate in-law” of Enugu State.

Akpabio, visibly moved by the scale of the “Enugu West Academy”—which reportedly trains nearly 9,000 participants—pointed out that such grassroots investments are the remedy to criminality and poverty.

“I came here thinking I would leave within an hour for another function, but seeing the magnitude of what is happening, I told my pilot to stand down,” Akpabio told the cheering crowd. “This is an uncommon project. While some are giving out clay pots and burial materials, implying their people should die, Osita is doling out hope and telling children to go to school”, he said

Akpabio used the occasion to reaffirm his deep ancestral and academic ties to the state, stressing that his late uncle, Dr. I.U. Akpabio, served as the Minister of Education in the former Eastern Region and played a pivotal role in the founding of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN).

“I am an honorary scholar and a PhD holder from the University of Nigeria. There is a hall named after my family there,” he stated. He also acknowledged his wife’s role in the state’s development, noting that as a daughter of the soil, she was currently on the ground preparing for the upcoming visit of the First Lady of the Federation, Senator Oluremi Tinubu.

In a lighthearted yet firm address to the Speaker of the Enugu State House of Assembly, Akpabio urged the legislature to codify a “Marriage Account” law. He joked that all prominent in-laws of the state, whether in business or politics, should be mandated to return annually to give an account of their contributions to the state’s development.

“I come every year to give an account of my marriage. Let all our in-laws do the same. We have good products in Enugu, and they are very marketable. Please, when you pass that law, add my name as the first to comply,” he remarked, drawing laughter from the dignitaries, including the Deputy Governor of Enugu State.

He said he had completed several road projects in Enugu, including a 1.6km asphalted road to a monastery, a 1.5km road in Opi, Nsukka, and the upcoming 2025 Delta Water Scheme aimed at providing potable water to several communities.

Reflecting on his own journey, Akpabio shared how he began his scholarship program in 1988, immediately after graduation. He challenged the beneficiaries of the Enugu West Academy to pay it forward, citing a story of a pilot he once trained who later flew him on a commercial flight.

Senator Ngwu noted that the 2024/2026 scholarship distribution was part of efforts to improve knowledge and investment in the young people of the zone.

He said the most important investment any leader can make is human capacity development, stressing that education empowers citizens to think, innovate, and lead.

He said that in 2024, no fewer than 18 exceptional students studying across Universities in Nigeria received scholarships totalling N81 million through his Academy.

While congratulating those who benefited from the exercise this year, he assured that he would continue to contribute to his philosophy: “Leave no child behind in Enugu West Zone”.

The University of Mkar, Benue State, has established a Students Innovation Hub aimed at empowering students to develop practical solutions to societal challenges.

The initiative followed a challenge issued by development expert, Dr. Jeffrey Kuraun, during the institution’s 19th Distinguished Public Lecture held recently in Gboko.

Speaking at the lecture themed “Navigating an Uncertain Future: Courage, Creativity and Responsibility in Times of Crisis,” Kuraun urged students to move beyond passive learning and embrace innovation, creativity and problem-solving.

He stressed the need for universities to establish Student Innovation Labs where young people can transform ideas into practical solutions capable of addressing Nigeria’s pressing development challenges.

Responding to the call, the university community set up the Students Innovation Hub as a collaborative space where students can meet, exchange ideas and develop projects with real-world impact.

The hub is designed to promote creativity, teamwork and interdisciplinary collaboration among students, while also providing mentorship opportunities from faculty members and industry experts.

According to the concept presented during the lecture, such innovation labs allow students to work on real challenges within their communities while gaining practical skills that complement classroom learning.

The space will also encourage collaboration between students, entrepreneurs and development partners to help transform academic ideas into viable initiatives.

Carrying the motto “Think. Imagine. Create”, the hub seeks to inspire students to see themselves as solution-builders rather than mere observers of national problems.

Kuraun further challenged students to acquire practical competencies such as digital literacy, entrepreneurship, agriculture and data analysis to better prepare for an uncertain future.

He urged young people to apply knowledge to community problems, build financial resilience and work across disciplines to create scalable solutions.

The newly established hub is expected to serve as a platform where ideas developed by students can evolve into impactful projects that contribute to national development.

University officials said the initiative could serve as a model for institutions across Nigeria seeking to promote innovation, ethical leadership and problem-solving among students.

The Federal Government has renewed a collaboration with a private firm to tackle persistent literacy gaps in Nigerian schools by strengthening reading instruction in Colleges of Education.

The partnership, coordinated through the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE), seeks to deepen the use of structured phonics-based methods for teaching reading among teacher educators across the country.

The renewed collaboration, according to a statement on Friday by the firm, followed the signing of a reviewed Memorandum of Understanding between the Commission and Universal Learning Solutions at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

The statement noted that the initiative focuses on equipping lecturers and teacher trainers in Colleges of Education with skills in systematic synthetic phonics, an evidence-based approach to teaching early reading, with the goal of improving how trainee teachers are prepared to teach literacy in classrooms.

The collaboration between the NCCE and the firm began in 2013 with the training of directors and desk officers within the Commission on the principles of synthetic phonics.

The programme later expanded in 2016 with a pilot initiative involving academics and students from six Colleges of Education drawn from Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones.

The pilot programme was designed to build the capacity of teacher educators and ensure that future teachers receive training based on globally recognised methods for early literacy instruction.

That same year, both institutions formalised their collaboration through a Memorandum of Understanding and worked together to incorporate phonics-based reading instruction into the minimum standards guiding teacher education programmes in Nigeria.

According to the statement, under the renewed partnership, the firm has proposed a fresh phase of collaboration aimed at strengthening the capacity of lecturers in Colleges of Education in partnership with the Committee of Provosts.

It said the next phase of the initiative is expected to deepen expertise in synthetic phonics among academics, improve consistency in literacy instruction and strengthen teacher preparation across the country’s teacher-training institutions.

Chief Executive Officer of Universal Learning Solutions, Gary Foxcroft, commended the leadership of the Commission for sustaining the collaboration aimed at improving reading instruction and teacher education.

The Executive Secretary of the NCCE, Prof. Paulinus Okwelle, expressed optimism that the renewed partnership would further enhance teacher training and contribute to better literacy outcomes in Nigerian schools.

“Over the past decade, the partnership between ULS and NCCE has demonstrated the power of institutional collaboration in driving educational reform. By investing in teacher educators and aligning with national standards, the initiative supports long-term transformation in how reading is taught across Nigeria”, the statement said.