About us
Ebonyi State Scholarship Board was founded with the intention of providing training for the future leaders of our country which needs to have a prosperous tomorrow.
Brief history
Ebonyi State was created in 1996 and the young State realized that Education is a solid foundation that will enable her develop rapidly in both infrastructure and human resources. At the inception of the state, over 90% of her citizens were subsistent farmers. The Government in order to create a solid educational foundation for her citizenry conceived the idea of State Scholarship Board to enable the State directly assist intelligent and less privileged students to have qualitative education. Thus, on November 30th 1998, the then military administrator (MILAD), Commissioner of Police, Simeon Oduoye inaugurated the State Scholarship Board with Chief Anthony Ekoh as Chairman, Mr. David Egbu, Secretary and three other members.
The MILAD in his inaugural speech noted as follows “You are aware of our status in this country as an educationally disadvantaged state. This unenviable status is not a function of intellectual laziness. It is the dynamic of our inglorious past; a past characterized by domination, marginalization and criminal neglect. The effect is today’s poverty, ignorance and un-exposure to western education and tomorrow’s unprepared ness for the 21st century.
My administration, no matter how short the tenure is going to be, is determined to erase this stigma; knowing that education is going to be a passport into the next millennium, we are now more determined to make sure that Ebonyi State entered the next century with the greatest advantage of education”. To match words with action, he further stated- I want to assure the Board of Government’s assistance to enable it function optimally. Ebonyi State must be empowered to face the challenges of the future. As a practical step to bring this about, the state government will pay the entrance examination fee of 52,601 pupils presently in elementary six and preparing to sit for the secondary school entrance examination”.
Therefore, the main mission of the Ebonyi State Scholarship Board is to advance the educational level of Ebonyi State through scholarship awards thereby erasing the name of Ebonyi State from the list of educationally disadvantaged states to educationally advantaged state. Though the board was constituted as a parastatal under the Ministry of Education on 30th November, 1998, it was dissolved in June, 1999 along with other boards and commissions.
In 2000, under the administration of the Executive Governor, Dr. Sam O. Egwu, Mrs. Ezeoke Blessing was appointed the Executive Secretary to man the affairs of the board but the board was not fully constituted. The Board was operated initially as a unit in the Ministry of Education. The tenure of Mrs. Ezeoke lasted till 2001, thereafter the board was dormant for over two years. However, on October, 5th 2004, Elder Mrs. Grace O. Anyim ude was appointed the Executive Secretary of the Board with the mandate to revitalize the board, which she took to heart and was able to revitalize the board and made it functional to enviable height and the tempo was maintained by the successive leaderships till date in which Hon. Deacon Elijah O. Ituma is currently the Acting permanent Secretary/Executive Secretary with a number of achievements in the development of the State courtesy of His Excellency, the Governor of Ebonyi State, Chief Martin N. Elechi, CON.
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