The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU) chapter, has awarded scholarships worth N6.2 million to 31 indigent students of the institution as part of efforts to promote equity and expand access to education.
The Chairperson of ASUU, OOU chapter, Dr Ganiyu Yinusa, disclosed this in a statement issued on Sunday, noting that the intervention reflects the union’s sustained commitment to student welfare and inclusive education.
According to Yinusa, each beneficiary received N200,000, bringing the total value of the scholarship support to N6.2 million. He explained that the financial assistance is meant to support the payment of school fees and other approved charges for the 2025/2026 academic session, thereby easing the financial burden on students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.
“The financial support is intended to assist the students in the payment of school fees and other approved charges for the 2025/2026 academic session,” he said.
Yinusa further explained that the Indigent Students Scholarship Scheme was funded largely through voluntary donations of sitting allowances accrued from several University Council meetings by internal members of the council, complemented by direct financial contributions from ASUU–OOU as a branch.
He described the initiative as a reflection of collective sacrifice, underscoring the union’s deep sense of responsibility, solidarity and commitment to the welfare of students within the university community.
The ASUU chairperson noted that the scholarship scheme forms part of the union’s broader efforts to promote inclusive education, prevent student drop-out due to financial hardship and support academic excellence. He reiterated the union’s belief that no qualified student should be denied access to university education on the basis of financial constraints.
ASUU also commended the internal members of the University Council for voluntarily donating their sitting allowances earned over several meetings, describing the gesture as a rare and commendable demonstration of personal sacrifice in support of education and human capital development.
The union congratulated the beneficiaries and urged them to remain focused, disciplined and committed to their academic pursuits, stressing that the scholarship serves both as a support mechanism and a call to excellence.
According to the statement, the intervention reinforces ASUU’s role not only as a defender of staff welfare and university autonomy, but also as a key stakeholder in student development, social justice and sustainable access to quality education within the Nigerian university system.
Meanwhile, poverty has been identified as one of the major factors limiting access to quality education in Nigeria. Speaking recently, the Managing Director of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Akintunde Sawyerr, said the scheme was designed to ensure that no eligible Nigerian student is denied higher education due to financial constraints.
Sawyerr disclosed that as of December 2025, NELFUND had disbursed a total of N154.3 billion in loans to 788,947 students across the country since the scheme began 19 months ago. He added that the beneficiaries were selected from 1,265,509 applications received since disbursements commenced on May 24, 2024.
Of the total amount disbursed, N82.34 billion was paid as institutional fees, while N72.02 billion was allocated to students’ upkeep allowances across 262 tertiary institutions nationwide.
