Kogi begins disbursement of N646.8m bursary to 20,347 students

Education, Politics

LOKOJA, Nigeria (Agency Report) — Kogi State Governor Ahmed Ododo has commenced the disbursement of N646.8 million in bursary allowances to 20,347 verified students of tertiary institutions across the country.

The disbursement was launched on Thursday at the Banquet Hall of the Government House, Lokoja, during an event tagged “Gov. Ododo Students Support Season 2”.

Executive Chairman of the Kogi State Scholarship Board (KSSB), Mr Afolabi Joseph-Raji, said the administration had revived the bursary scheme, which was last paid in 2019, and recommenced payments in 2024.

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Joseph-Raji said the bursary had been increased from N12,000 to N30,000 per undergraduate, while medical students would receive N75,000 each, compared with the previous N18,000.

He said the governor had also abolished the N650 scratch-card fee previously required for students to access the bursary portal.

According to him, the application process is now free, paperless, online and transparent.

Joseph-Raji said that during the 2024/2025 academic session, the board disbursed N256.4 million to 8,549 undergraduates at N30,000 each, while N60.3 million was paid to Law School students at N300,000 each.

He added that other scholarship interventions during the period amounted to N261 million.

The chairman said 20,347 students had been screened and verified for the 2025/2026 bursary, with the total financial commitment standing at N646.8 million.

He explained that the payment would be made in phases, beginning with students studying in tertiary institutions within Kogi State.

“Students in more than 300 institutions outside the state will be paid in the second tranche,” he said.

Joseph-Raji said the first tranche of N403 million would cover 13,157 students studying in tertiary institutions within the state.

Speaking on behalf of the governor, the Commissioner for Education, Mr Wemi Jones, commended the National Association of Kogi State Students (NAKOSS) for its patience and peaceful conduct during the delay in disbursement.

Jones said education received the highest allocation in the state budget at 30 per cent, describing it as evidence of the administration’s commitment to the sector.

He also acknowledged former Governor Yahaya Bello’s role in establishing the Confluence University of Science and Technology (CUSTECH), Osara, and Kogi State University, Kabba.

The commissioner described the increase in beneficiaries from about 8,000 in Season 1 to more than 20,000 in Season 2 as a significant expansion of the programme.

He urged students to take advantage of the Federal Government’s Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) scheme, noting that only a few students at the event indicated that they were benefiting from it.

Responding on behalf of the students, the outgoing President of NAKOSS, Mr Sunday Simon, thanked the governor for the intervention, saying it demonstrated the state government’s commitment to students’ welfare.

Simon appealed to the state government to ensure that Kogi students studying outside the state, including those at the Nigerian Law School, were captured in the disbursement.

He said this would ensure that no eligible student was left behind in the bursary programme.

(NAN)