Otuaro (middle) in a group photograph with the PAP foreign scholarship students in the United Kingdom after an interactive session in London on Saturday, 25 October, 2025.
The federal government says it has expanded its amnesty scholarship to benefit more local and abroad recipients.
Dennis Otuaro, administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), said the move is driven by a commitment to ensure more indigent students and communities in the Niger Delta benefit from the scholarship initiative.
The PAP boss addressed beneficiaries of the scheme during an interactive session in London on Saturday.
The PAP was initially created in 2009 for the disarmament, demobilisation, and reintegration of militants in the Niger Delta.
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Its education unit, which administers the scholarship scheme, was established in 2011 for the formal education of delegates.
The expansion, Otuaro said, involved increasing the in-country scholarship deployment from 3,800 in the 2024/2025 academic year to 3,900 in the 2025/2026 session, and deploying about 200 foreign scholarships.
Otuaro said the expansion is aimed at increasing formal education opportunities for poor students and building a huge manpower base in the region.
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The engagement, which was at the instance of the PAP administrator, provided an opportunity for the students to discuss issues pertaining to their welfare and challenges.
Otuaro attributed the increase to the massive support of the presidency and the office of the national security adviser (ONSA).
He stressed that he was greatly encouraged by the President and the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, adding that both of them are impressed with the PAP initiatives, which align with the Renewed Hope Agenda.
“We want the scholarship programme to impact more students and communities in the Niger Delta. That’s why we have expanded it and increased formal education opportunities,” Otuaro said.
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The PAP helmsman asked students to justify the federal government’s investment through hard work and achieving good grades.
He also urged them to conduct themselves as responsible ambassadors of Nigeria while in the UK, stressing that “you will be adding value to your families and communities when you complete your programmes successfully.”
“The knowledge you are receiving in your institutions today is to enable you to plan for yourself and prepare for the future. Whatever knowledge you gain cannot be taken from you,” he said.
“So as PAP scholarship students, we expect responsible and good behaviour from you. The government is investing heavily in you, and you have the obligation to justify the investment. Be agents of change and avoid acts of mischief while in the U.K.”
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