Governor Alex Otti of Abia State has approved automatic lecturing jobs and postgraduate scholarships for first-class graduates of Abia State University (ABSU), alongside a ₦200 million fund to support young entrepreneurs.
The governor announced the package on Friday at the university’s combined 30th to 32nd convocation ceremony in Uturu.
Under the initiative, first-class graduands will be employed as graduate assistants after completing their National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). The offer also covers the best graduating students in each department with a minimum cumulative grade point average of 4.25.
“I am glad to announce that approval has been given to the university management to immediately commence the process of retaining all first-class graduates as graduate assistants,” Otti stated.
Otti said the beneficiaries would also receive postgraduate scholarships up to doctoral level in any public university of their choice within Nigeria, provided they accept the teaching appointments.
The governor directed the State Head of Service to identify vacancies for the employment of 100 outstanding graduates from the combined sets, with priority given to education, computer science, statistics, and health-related courses.
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To support entrepreneurship, he set aside ₦200 million for up to 100 graduates with viable business ideas in agriculture, ICT, and clean energy. Applicants are to submit their proposals electronically on or before April 30, 2026.
In a separate gesture, Otti awarded ₦5 million to the overall best graduating student, Mrs Oluchi Etumsi.
He also congratulated honorary award recipients, including Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Allen Onyema, and Stella Okoli, urging them to sustain excellence and service.
Otti reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to repositioning ABSU to compete globally, noting that investment in education remains critical to societal development. He also flagged off the reconstruction of the ABSU International Secondary School.
Earlier, during an inspection of projects on campus, the governor inaugurated a 5-megawatt power substation built to address longstanding electricity challenges in the institution.
In their remarks, Chancellor Mrs Catherine Uju-Ifejika, Pro-Chancellor Rt Hon. Agwu U. Agwu, and Vice-Chancellor Prof. Ndukwe Okeudo commended the governor for improved staff welfare, regular salary payments, and ongoing infrastructural development.
A total of 69 graduands earned first-class degrees across the three sets. Another 3,973 and 4,764 obtained second class upper and lower divisions respectively, while 195 graduated with third-class honours. Only one graduand had a pass, out of 10,255 graduates, including 690 postgraduates.