The Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Dr. Dennis Otuaro, has described the programme’s scholarship scheme as a major vehicle for securing a better future for the Niger Delta region.
Otuaro made the remark 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). The event was held on Thursday at the Nigerian Army War College, Abuja.
Declaring the workshop open, Otuaro said the large-scale deployment of PAP scholarship beneficiaries to universities within and outside Nigeria was informed by the need to use formal education as a foundation for sustainable development in the Niger Delta.
According to him, the programme’s strong emphasis on education reflects a deliberate investment in young people to prepare them as drivers of peace, stability, socio-economic growth and long-term development in the region.
“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. This year, in-country deployment stands at 4,500,” he said.
“These are deliberate efforts to prepare our region for tomorrow. We must equip the next generation to meet the challenges of peace, development, security and socio-economic growth. If we fail to invest in the education of our youths today, the future cannot be assured.”
Otuaro expressed confidence that scholarship beneficiaries would appreciate the opportunity, noting that the PAP has, within the last two years, reached nearly all communities in the Niger Delta through the scholarship programme.
He explained that the capacity-building workshop was designed to consolidate the peacebuilding gains of the PAP in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda. He urged participants to recognise their responsibility as stakeholders and community leaders in deepening peace across the region.
The PAP administrator stressed that the time had come for Niger Delta stakeholders to resolve regional issues internally without external interference, urging participants to act as peace ambassadors of President Tinubu and role models for stability.
He reaffirmed that peacebuilding must remain the guiding principle for all stakeholders going forward.
Otuaro also expressed appreciation to President Tinubu for his unwavering support for the Presidential Amnesty Programme, noting that the President is pleased with the prevailing peace and stability in the Niger Delta. He commended the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, for his strategic guidance and oversight of the programme.
He further thanked the management of the Nigerian Army War College, the resource persons, and the leadership and members of AANDEC for their partnership with the PAP in strengthening peacebuilding efforts in the region.
