There are strong indications that the Federal Government may have jettisoned the Presidential Special Scholarship Scheme for Innovations and Development (PRESSID).The development is linked to the dearth of funds to run the project which was initiated by the immediate past administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan. Government sources disclosed to The AUTHORITY that the scheme is not listed among the priorities of President Muhammadu Buhari's administration.It was learnt that because of the poor disposition of the government to the scholarship scheme, the PRESSID Implementation Committee has not called for applications for the next edition.The AUTHORITY also learnt that over 102 candidates who the last administration selected for the scheme were yet to be placed in any foreign university.

This has fuelled speculations that the government had caved in to pressure from some politicians, who called for the scrapping of the project because their zones could not meet the merit criterion for selecting beneficiaries.The scholarship scheme, under which Nigerian graduates with First Class honours degrees are sponsored to any of the top 100 universities in the world, was established in January 2012 and has awarded a total of 307 scholarships under three editions.Checks by The AUTHORITY revealed that entries for ap­plications which normally open in September are yet to com­mence, even as the website for the scheme, http://scholarship.nuc.edu.ng appear to be dormant.

Attempts to speak with the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Julius Okojie, who doubles as PRESSID Implementation Committee chairman, were not successful as the commission's Director of Information, Mallam Ibrahim Yakasai was evasive. He also failed to answer calls or text messages sent to his phone.However, an official of the NUC, who craved anonymity, expressed doubt if applications for this year's edition would be opened.The official said the Federal Government was still having challenges in placing some of the successful candidates from the last edition into the relevant universities abroad.
The official said: "We have not opened applications for this year's PRESSID and I don't know when that will be because there are some issues on ground. We are still having some issues with the last beneficiaries.

"So, anytime we hear from the Presidency on this year's PRESSID, we will open applica­tions. For now we are waiting for the Presidency."
The list of the 102 successful candidates for the last edition of PRESSID, who emerged through a Computer Based Test (CBT), was released in the twilight of former President Goodluck Jonathan's administration.The uncertainty over the presidential scholarship comes on the heels of the recent review of the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) overseas scholarship scheme, due to a change in the policy direction, that include a partial or outright domestication of the scheme in Nigeria in line with the Local Content Policy of the Nigerian government.The PRESSID scheme pro­vides tuition fees, accommodation, transportation, living expenses and local travels to benefiting students and also offer them opportunities to pursue different courses of study up to PhD level in top universities abroad.

Some of the beneficiaries of the first edition of the scheme, who are mainly from the southern part of the country, had recently rounded off their studies while the fate of the recent graduates to benefit from the programme now hangs in the balance.
The Federal Government instituted PRESSID as part of efforts to develop a critical mass of professionals who would serve as catalysts of change and agents of scientific and technological advancement, as well as sustainable economic development.

did your friend vote in the dulllard ?

CCsurplus007:


Mehn i have a friend who won the 3rd edition of pressid and resigned from his job( he was earning above 200k) to take up a graduate assistant job in a Fed university cos he really wants to be a prof . He was hoping to go for his masters and Phd and come bck to add his acquired knowledge to the sytem. He has been demoralised ever since. I thank God of late he got something better. There are others without any hope now. This country has a way of killing one's dream.

neocortex:
For more than a decade, China and India have sent thousands
of students to the west for higher education, they are
now enjoying the benefits of those projects.

It is wrong for Buhari to scrap PRESSID for political
reasons. The program if sustained has the potential to
place Nigeria into the league of industrial and scientific
powerhouses.

lalasticlala

CCsurplus007:


[b]There are strong indications that the Federal Government may have jettisoned the Presidential Special Scholarship Scheme for Innovations and Development (PRESSID).The development is linked to the dearth of funds to run the project which was initiated by the immediate past administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan. Government sources disclosed to The AUTHORITY that the scheme is not listed among the priorities of President Muhammadu Buhari's administration.It was learnt that because of the poor disposition of the government to the scholarship scheme, the PRESSID Implementation Committee has not called for applications for the next edition.The AUTHORITY also learnt that over 102 candidates who the last administration selected for the scheme were yet to be placed in any foreign university.

This has fuelled speculations that the government had caved in to pressure from some politicians, who called for the scrapping of the project because their zones could not meet the merit criterion for selecting beneficiaries.The scholarship scheme, under which Nigerian graduates with First Class honours degrees are sponsored to any of the top 100 universities in the world, was established in January 2012 and has awarded a total of 307 scholarships under three editions.Checks by The AUTHORITY revealed that entries for ap­plications which normally open in September are yet to com­mence, even as the website for the scheme, http://scholarship.nuc.edu.ng appear to be dormant.

Attempts to speak with the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Julius Okojie, who doubles as PRESSID Implementation Committee chairman, were not successful as the commission's Director of Information, Mallam Ibrahim Yakasai was evasive. He also failed to answer calls or text messages sent to his phone.However, an official of the NUC, who craved anonymity, expressed doubt if applications for this year's edition would be opened.The official said the Federal Government was still having challenges in placing some of the successful candidates from the last edition into the relevant universities abroad.
The official said: "We have not opened applications for this year's PRESSID and I don't know when that will be because there are some issues on ground. We are still having some issues with the last beneficiaries.

"So, anytime we hear from the Presidency on this year's PRESSID, we will open applica­tions. For now we are waiting for the Presidency."
The list of the 102 successful candidates for the last edition of PRESSID, who emerged through a Computer Based Test (CBT), was released in the twilight of former President Goodluck Jonathan's administration.The uncertainty over the presidential scholarship comes on the heels of the recent review of the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) overseas scholarship scheme, due to a change in the policy direction, that include a partial or outright domestication of the scheme in Nigeria in line with the Local Content Policy of the Nigerian government.The PRESSID scheme pro­vides tuition fees, accommodation, transportation, living expenses and local travels to benefiting students and also offer them opportunities to pursue different courses of study up to PhD level in top universities abroad.

Some of the beneficiaries of the first edition of the scheme, who are mainly from the southern part of the country, had recently rounded off their studies while the fate of the recent graduates to benefit from the programme now hangs in the balance.
The Federal Government instituted PRESSID as part of efforts to develop a critical mass of professionals who would serve as catalysts of change and agents of scientific and technological advancement, as well as sustainable economic development.
[/b]
source: http://www.authorityngr.com/2015/11/Austerity--Presidential-scholarship-scheme-threatened/#

Cc: lalasticlala , seun

boujaye:
dat is what happen when an uneducated who has no value in education is the head and secondly because 90% of d beneficiaries are southerners.

CCsurplus007:
The question is If president Buhari can continue with PTDF and NITDA scholarship which uses quota system why is there no funds for the pressid scholarship?The fact is some people feel threatened because Pressid does not use Quota System... Too bad

CCsurplus007:
The question is If president Buhari can continue with PTDF and NITDA scholarship which uses quota system why is there no funds for the pressid scholarship?The fact is some people feel threatened because Pressid does not use Quota System... Too bad

IGBOSON1:


^^^When i say the core muslim north is holding back the South people will say it's a bigoted assertion!

All this rubbish is why i want either a restructured political-economy in Nigeria or we all go our separate ways!

Right from the 70s there's been all sorts of affirmative action in favour of the north, with the excuse that it has to be done this way because the north is poor or because the north is educationally disadvantaged! Nobody is thinking that this is unfair to the south who have had to slow down for more than 4 decades so the north can catch up!

Now, my question is: does this quota-system, nannying and pampering bestowed on the north have a termination date? Or are we going to continue with it ad-infinitum! Because if the latter is the case then i may just as well give up on Nigeria right now!

We can't be carrying on with this primitive way of doing things and expect to catch up with the Asian Tigers! In fact, if care is not taken even little Ghana sef will overtake us on the highway to socio-economic prosperity, leaving us spluttering and coughing in their wake as we forlornly watch them disappear into the distant horizon!

CSTR2:
The only thing done on merit in that country has been cancelled. And some people still foolishly think that country is going anywhere.
My younger sister who won the nuclear physics foreign postgraduate PRESSID scholarship is almost through with her studies.
A pity though, as many bright student would not be that fortunate.

IGBOSON1:


^^^When i say the core muslim north is holding back the South people will say it's a bigoted assertion!

All this rubbish is why i want either a restructured political-economy in Nigeria or we all go our separate ways!

Right from the 70s there's been all sorts of affirmative action in favour of the north, with the excuse that it has to be done this way because the north is poor or because the north is educationally disadvantaged! Nobody is thinking that this is unfair to the south who have had to slow down for more than 4 decades so the north can catch up!

Now, my question is: does this quota-system, nannying and pampering bestowed on the north have a termination date? Or are we going to continue with it ad-infinitum! Because if the latter is the case then i may just as well give up on Nigeria right now!

We can't be carrying on with this primitive way of doing things and expect to catch up with the Asian Tigers! In fact, if care is not taken even little Ghana sef will overtake us on the highway to socio-economic prosperity, leaving us spluttering and coughing in their wake as we forlornly watch them disappear into the distant horizon!

CCsurplus007:


Dont mind them. when a policy doesnt favour them they scream marginalisation and less disadvantaged states. Lets see how long their propanganda would take them. When other nations are breaking grounds we are still battling with trival issues. The North needs to upgrade not slowing other regions down. Ptdf and Nitda scholarship are going on as we speak and thats because they use quota system. We cant get anywhere with this kind of biased system. Its either true federalism or we keep going in circles