Scholarships Help Nigerian Students Ease Family Burden, Build Businesses

For Ijeh Rebecca Ene-Ayi, an MTN Foundation scholarship did more than help her stay in university.

The support also enabled the Political Science undergraduate of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, to help her younger sister complete her university education and later establish a small business.

Ene-Ayi, who received the scholarship twice from 2019, said the first payment helped her settle the school fees of her younger sister, who was then in her final year at Benue State University.

“Life was tough, but with the scholarship, I was able to scale through. It has been useful in sorting out school fees,” she said in an account published by The Guardian, adding “When I received the first payment in 2019, I was able to settle the school fees of my younger sister, who was in her final year at Benue State University at the time.

“After the second payment, I was able to register a business with the Corporate Affairs Commission. I am now running a better business. I deal in the production of coconut oil, honey, and other beauty products for organic use. I am the owner of Benecence Enterprise.”

Her experience illustrates how financial support directed at one student can sometimes ease pressures beyond the immediate cost of that student’s education.

For Malomo Tolulope, a Computer Science undergraduate of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, the immediate benefit was a reduction in the financial pressure on her parents.

“I’ve been a recipient of the scholarship for about half a year now, and it has been a huge help to me,” she stated.

And, continued “It has reduced the financial burden on my parents and made schooling easier for me.”

The two accounts point to different ways student financing can affect households — from helping a beneficiary meet educational expenses to freeing family resources for other obligations.

For students with disabilities, the consequences can be even more significant.

Damilare Ishola, a Guidance and Counselling student at the University of Lagos, told BusinessDay in November 2025 that he stayed at home for four years after losing his sight.

Coming from a financially constrained family, he said returning to university appeared difficult until he obtained the MTN Foundation Scholarship for Blind Students.

“With MTN’s help, my condition remarkably improved. I don’t even think I’m blind anymore. I do things the way everyone else does. I’m getting there,” Ishola said.

Another beneficiary, Opeyemi Adewale Kikelemo, also told BusinessDay that the scholarship made life easier during her time at the University of Lagos.

After graduation, she secured a graduate internship with PricewaterhouseCoopers, while her mother said Kikelemo was subsequently able to contribute financially to the household.

The Foundation itself cites Kikelemo, now Opeyemi Igbinoba, among alumni whose educational journey continued into professional development. It also identifies Irewole Komolafe, who supported three others while an undergraduate and later secured an internship before becoming a full-time employee of PISCES Offshore Limited.

The individual accounts, however, do not establish that the scholarship alone caused the beneficiaries’ later outcomes. They show what some recipients say the financial support enabled them to do while pursuing or after completing their education.

That distinction is important as financial pressure continues to affect access to tertiary education.

A September 2026 study by the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria Commission, based on 1,022 University of Ibadan students, found that 83.7 per cent of NELFUND beneficiaries surveyed said institutional-fee support had helped them remain in school significantly or moderately.

The study also found that 65.1 per cent of beneficiaries said the upkeep component had significantly or moderately improved their ability to meet daily living expenses and concentrate on their studies.

The findings relate to NELFUND, not the MTN Foundation scholarship, but provide wider evidence of the role student financing can play in keeping students in school.

Education expert and founder of Scholarships Cafe, Olumuyiwa Igbalajobi, has also pointed to barriers that occur before students even receive scholarship support.

A survey conducted by his organisation between November 2025 and March 2026, involving 250 students and recent graduates from Nigeria and other African countries, found that nearly two-thirds of respondents lacked the confidence and knowledge required to complete international scholarship applications.

The survey also identified application-related costs, including fees and passport expenses, as barriers, while respondents cited limited access to reliable information and structured mentorship.

For students with disabilities, the challenge extends from gaining admission to having the support needed to participate in higher education.

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board said 536 blind candidates and other candidates with special needs participated in the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination through 11 designated centres.

According to the Chairman of the JAMB Equal Opportunity Group, Peter Okebukola, candidates were offered Fully-Braille or Fully Read-Aloud examination formats, while support included accommodation, transportation, feeding and assistance for candidates and their guides.

In the 2025 admission cycle, JAMB said 252 of 483 candidates with disabilities who applied for tertiary education secured admission.

Against that wider backdrop, the MTN Foundation scholarship programme has expanded in both scale and scope.

The Foundation currently operates three scholarship categories: the Science and Technology Scholarship, the Scholarship for Blind Students and the Top 10 UTME Scholarship.

According to the Foundation, it has awarded 15,764 scholarships to 5,741 students since inception, with more than ₦3.3bn invested in the programme.

The annual scholarship is currently worth ₦300,000 and is renewable until graduation, subject to the relevant academic requirements and completion of required digital courses.

In 2026, the Foundation increased the number of new scholarship opportunities from 400 to 500, with 100 additional slots allocated to medical students.

The programme has also moved beyond a purely financial award, with digital courses incorporated into the scholarship requirements and the Foundation highlighting mentorship, career and internship opportunities for beneficiaries.

For Ene-Ayi, the immediate result was a degree pursued with less financial pressure, a sister whose education received additional support and a business that became formally registered.

For Tolulope, it meant less pressure on her parents.

For Ishola, it helped reopen an educational path after four years at home.

And for Kikelemo, the scholarship became part of a journey that continued from university into professional work.

The experiences are individual rather than a comprehensive independent assessment of the programme’s long-term impact. But they illustrate a wider dimension of student financing: keeping one young Nigerian in school can sometimes affect the finances, opportunities and choices of people around them as well.

For a country where the cost of tertiary education continues to test household finances, the question is therefore not only how many scholarships are awarded, but what beneficiaries are able to do with the opportunity once the support reaches them.