US Govt. Supports IDPs with N160million

Michael I Harvey
Mission Director USAID

As part of efforts to provide assistance to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the North Eastern part of Nigeria, the United States Government, on Tuesday, 1 September, 2015, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), supported the IDPs with the sum of N160 million grant through the American University of Nigeria (AUN), Yola, for the training of IDPs in Adamawa State, on ICT and mobile education. The signing of the grant by the USAID Mission Director, Mr. Michael T. Harvey, and AUN President, Dr. Margee Ensign, was a major highlight of the Two-Day Conference on TechnologyAssisted Learning, organised by the National Universities Commission (NUC), AUN and the Digital Promise Foundation, at the Barcelona Hotels, Abuja. The signing ceremony was witnessed by the Executive Secretary of NUC, Professor Julius A. Okojie, OON, the U.S. Chargé d'Affaires, Ms. Maria Brewer, and a host of other participants at the Conference. In his remarks, the NUC Scribe commended the AUN for not forgetting to fulfil the institution's mandate to its host community. He expressed joy that the Conference attracted a good number of ViceChancellors and academics, whom he encouraged to emulate the AUN. The Executive Secretary assured the USAID Mission Director and the U.S. Chargé d'Affaires that, going by the antecedents of the AUN, the Institution would effectively deploy the grant by ensuring that the IDPs benefitted holistically from the project. Speaking on the significance of the grant to AUN, the USAID Mission Director stated that the Agency and the University had been working on the details of the grant for over one year because the United States was concerned about the growing number of IDPs in the 7 September, 2015 US Govt. Supports IDPs with N160million Michael I. Harvey Mission Director USAID Dr. Margee Ensign V.C. AUN country. He observed that the award would ensure a major rollout of technology to some of the IDPs in the remote areas and bring the children in the IDP camps up to the level of education that the country desperately needed. Mr. Harvey noted that Nigeria was very fortunate to have intelligent citizens who were willing to learn and contribute to the development of the country, adding that the U.S. really looked forward to the partnership. The Mission Director stated that the grant would equip some of the young people of the country with the knowledge they needed to drive the nation's economy.

Dr. Margee Ensign
V.C. AUN

While noting that, “you can take technology into a bare classroom and get dramatic results in terms of improvement in literacy”, Mr. Harvey informed participants that if the AUN Project was successful, the U.S. would roll-out the programme nationwide. In her remarks, Ms. Maria Brewer disclosed that last, year, the U.S. Government, through USAID, awarded $100,000 to AUN to provide humanitarian assistance to children of displaced families in Yola, adding that AUN had been a good partner in that endeavour. The award of an $801,000 (N160 million) grant by the USAID in humanitarian assistance for IDPs in Jimeta and Yola in Adamawa State, would, therefore, support the activities of the AUN to improve access to education services for the IDPs. With the new funding, she noted, the total U.S. humanitarian assistance grants to the AUN since the start of the insurgency crisis in the region, stood at nearly $901,000. The U.S. Chargé d'Affaires, who remarked that, “where education is lacking, people are less likely to attain economic opportunity”, informed the Conference that the U.S. Government had, through USAID, supported several h u m a n i t a r i a n , tr a n si t i o n a l a n d longer-term development activities in North Eastern Nigeria, totalling $87.1 million, in collaboration with the Nigerian Government at the Federal, State and Local Government levels. M s . B r e w e r expressed the hope that the AUN would u s e i ts S t u d e n t E m p o w e r m e n t through Language, Literacy, and Arithmetic (STELLAR) Programme to improve literacy and numeracy for 20,000 vulnerable, at-risk children, orphans of IDPs and host communities in Adamawa State. She informed participants that the AUN's STELLAR Programme engaged university students enrolled in service learning courses, to write children's books in English and local languages and to tutor children in reading and mathematics after school. The U.S. Chargé d'Affaires noted that the new funds would help expand STELLAR to include radio instruction, set up learning centres and mobile classrooms, and provide IDP beneficiaries with remote instruction via radio. She recalled that Nigeria's President, Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, had reiterated that his Administration would make education a key focus 8 MONDAY BULLETIN - A Publication of the office of The Executive Secretary 7 September, 2015 area. She informed participants that the U.S. would support the President in his efforts to make education available to all Nigerians. In his remarks, the Deputy Executive Secretary of NUC and Chairman of the Local Organising Committee (LOC), Professor Chiedu F. Mafiana, on behalf of the Government and people of Nigeria, expressed gratitude to the U.S. Government for continuously seeking ways to contribute to Nigeria's development. He commended the AUN for doing its best to fulfil the third part of its tripartite function of teaching, research and community service. The LOC Chairman called on other universities to emulate the AUN and contribute to the development of their host communities.

Ms. Maria Brewer
US Charge d' Affaires