First Lady of Nigeria Senator Oluremi Tinubu says she is working towards achieving more scholarship platforms for Nigerian youth with a view to ensuring greater opportunities for them to get educated.
She was speaking when the management team of Merck Foundation, a German Non-Governmental Philanthropic organization paid her a visit.
The First Lady while acknowledging the contributions of the Foundation in the Education and Health Sectors in Nigeria, reemphasized that education remains a top priority of the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“I appreciate your impact in Africa and I will work for you, I feel honoured by your visit. I believe once you have an educated population, the country will grow in bounds”.
“ I believe It will be such a disaster to hand over the future to an uneducated generation”.
Highlighting some of the interventions of her pet project, Renewed Hope Initiative RHI in the education sector, the First Lady of Nigeria pointed out that an educated population is much needed for the country to record great growth.
Senator Oluremi Tinubu also commended the Foundation for providing scholarships to Nigerian Students to study Medicine especially reproductive and fertility medicine.
“Infertility and stigmatization are still a huge problem in Africa”.
The Chairman, MERCK Foundation, Prof. Frank Strangenberg-Haverkamp in the company of members of the Management, informed the First Lady that due to her various efforts and contributions especially to women, girls and education, the Foundation was appointing her as the “ More Than A Mother” Campaign Ambassador.
He appealed to the First Lady to partner with the Foundation to fulfill its vision which he said focuses more on women empowerment.
“Nigeria is a very important country, the MERCK Foundation was set up in 2012 when I was still a chairman of a commercial organisation. Due to my love for Africa, we set up the organisation in order to give back to the society, the idea with the main focus on women”.
“It gives young girls the opportunity to have a better life, to overcome the stigma of not having children.”
Dr Rasha Kelej, the Chief Executive Officer of the Merck Foundation had earlier informed the First Lady of Nigeria that the Foundation wants to establish a partnership with the First Lady through her Initiative, Renewed Hope Initiative.
She said part of the Foundations vision is on women empowerment, medical outreach, education programme specifically scholarship for girls.
“We emphasise on the importance of girls’ education, women empowerment, ending child marriage, at all levels through the MERCK Foundation”.
“ In you, the Foundation finds a worthy partner, willing and able to expand the frontiers of a shared cause”.
Merck Foundation scholarships are provided for nationals of African countries and underserved communities, leveraging the Office of the First Lady.
