ZNS: THE STORY AND MOTIVATION

The ZNS is a token of appreciation for the various scholarship/funding supports I have received. Ironically, this scholarship initiative was conceived long before I ever got a scholarship. Growing up, my father always told me about his desire for me to study abroad on scholarship. On several nights we discussed this subject and his own experience – sometimes up to 02:00 AM in the morning. This was sometimes tough, especially because on some of those days I had just returned from the city Aba (or the boarding school) and would have preferred to just go to sleep. But I enjoyed his narratives; he was an excellent storyteller and most often I actually prompted those conversations. He told me how beautiful it was in the 1960s to get a scholarship and the very elaborate send-off ceremonies that followed. Over time I fell in love with the concept of scholarship and earnestly desired it. I also realized the need for such a program, especially as I watched helplessly as some of my friends could not go to school in the city or proceed to the university due to financial constraints.

A touching experience I had in Nigeria in 2019 was an encounter with a young boy who was not registered in a primary school. “How is he doing in school?” I asked his mother. “Which school? He is not in any school,” she replied. “I don’t have the money to pay for his school fees,” she said. Then I asked, “how much is his school fees?”. In other words, how much do we need to register him in a school? Her reply, to keep it simple, was that about $50 would be sufficient. I took the young man’s education as my project going forward, but also realized his story is just one out of very many. Many primary and secondary school level kids are unable to access education or other vocational training due to lack of funding/support. This is a waste of pristine talents. Humanity must invest in educating itself in order to prepare for the challenges of tomorrow. There is no other way.

The ZNS is thus a justified mission to help improve literacy and expand the ladder of opportunities. The aim is to help and inspire motivated students to pursue their academic goals and aspirations. It is my earnest desire that the ZNS will help someone realize his or her career dreams and inspire them to be a ‘helping hand’ to others. Although the award will be mainly merit-based, priority may be given to meritorious applicants who are already enrolled but have difficulties self-funding their studies. The expected overall impact will include helping awardees to progress in their career and hopefully inculcate in them the culture of giving back to the next person who needs support. I look forward to such a ripple effect.

FORMAT

Calls for the ZNS application will open on January 1 every year and awardees will be announced on August 1. The scholarship will focus on Nigeria for the foreseeable future. Calls and selection criteria will be posted on this page and other platforms. The number of awardees and the amount will vary depending on the availability of fund. ZNS has two main categories:

            1. Secondary School to University Transition Phase

            2. Undergraduate to Postgraduate Phase

Whether one or all of the above categories will be covered in a year will be announced at the opening of each application round (i.e., on January 1). The scholarship also has plans to support children at the very early stage (primary school to secondary) and will evaluate the possibilities in the near future. As mentioned on the Foundation webpage, all applicants and the public are advised that application for ZNS is free. 

BENEFIT

Besides getting a funding support, the main benefit of receiving ZNS is the totality of support that the ZNF Administration Team will provide to awardees in the medium to long term. Where applicable, we will support in recommending schools, exams, and advice on relevant skill sets based on our own experience. We will prioritize our scholars in all seminar series, mentorship initiatives or guidance in pursuing external opportunities, and will help them to network with Team members or external experts in their area of study.

FUNDING 

ZNS is currently self-funded. In due course donations will be welcome from any individual, company or agency that wishes to support the initiative and hence help to expand the number of awardees. Intending donors should please contact me using the address contact@zeribenwosu.com or the contact form. Individual and or aggregate donations or sponsorship will be announced on a dedicated page on this website and will be acknowledged in our annual report. 

To visitors, thank you for reading. To prospective applicants, good luck in your endeavours.

Zeribe Nwosu