The Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Dr. Dennis Otuaro, has described the programme’s scholarship scheme as a critical instrument for securing a better future for the Niger Delta.
Otuaro made the assertion on Thursday in Abuja at the opening ceremony of the fifth batch of the two-day Leadership, Alternative Dispute Resolution and Mediation Training for PAP Stakeholders, organised by the Office of the Presidential Amnesty Programme in collaboration with the Alumni Association of the National Defence College (AANDEC) at the Nigerian Army War College.
Declaring the workshop open, the PAP Administrator said the large-scale deployment of scholarship beneficiaries to universities within and outside Nigeria was a deliberate strategy to leverage formal education as a foundation for sustainable development in the region.
According to him, the programme’s strong emphasis on education reflects a conscious investment in the youth, aimed at preparing them to drive the future prosperity, peace, stability and development of the Niger Delta.
“We have seriously focused on education, and the scholarship programme is a proper vehicle for a better tomorrow for our region. Between 2024 and 2025 alone, we have deployed over 9,000 scholarship students to universities within and outside Nigeria, with 4,500 in-country deployments this year,” Otuaro said.
He noted that the initiative was designed to equip the next generation to effectively address challenges related to peacebuilding, socio-economic growth, development and security.
“If we do not equip our youths today with education, tomorrow will not be assured. This is a deliberate investment to prepare our region for the future,” he added.
Otuaro expressed confidence that beneficiaries would appreciate the opportunity, noting that the scholarship programme had impacted nearly all communities across the Niger Delta over the past two years.
He explained that the leadership and mediation training was organised to further consolidate the PAP’s peacebuilding efforts in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
The PAP helmsman urged participants to take ownership of the peace process, stressing that stakeholders in the region must unite to resolve internal issues without external interference. He called on them to serve as role models, peace ambassadors and agents of stability in the Niger Delta.
He also expressed gratitude to President Tinubu for his continued support of the PAP, noting that the President was satisfied with the prevailing peace and stability in the region.
Otuaro further commended the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, for his strategic guidance and oversight, and thanked the management of the Nigerian Army War College, resource persons, as well as the leadership and members of AANDEC for partnering with the PAP to strengthen peacebuilding initiatives in the Niger Delta.
