Nigeria’s Ambassador to Spain and former Abia State Governor, Dr Okezie Victor Ikpeazu, has announced plans to establish a scholarship scheme for exceptional first-class students as part of efforts to promote academic excellence and youth development.

He disclosed this at the fifth Okezie Victor Ikpeazu Colloquium, held to mark his 62nd birthday and organised by the Pa Ismael Ikpeazu Library and DOVI Scientific Leadership Centre.

Ikpeazu said the proposed DOVIS Scholarship Scheme would reward sustained academic excellence rather than one-off outstanding performance. He added that beneficiaries would lose the award if their academic standards declined.

The colloquium, themed “Empowerment Beyond Handouts: Building Responsible, Skilled and Self-Reliant Young People for Sustainable Development,” focused on practical ways to prepare young Nigerians for productive lives.

The ambassador argued that sustainable empowerment must go beyond distributing cash and material items. He identified education, skills acquisition, mentorship and enterprise support as essential tools for building self-reliant young people.

Reflecting on his tenure as Abia State governor, Ikpeazu cited youth-focused agricultural programmes as examples of practical empowerment.

He said his administration established poultry clusters with pens, feed stores and veterinary clinics. Expert instructors also provided classroom teaching and practical training in farm management.

According to him, the initiative equipped young participants with the experience needed to establish and manage their own poultry businesses.

Ikpeazu maintained that beneficiaries needed training, mentorship, practical exposure and access to resources to succeed in their chosen ventures.

The keynote speaker, Professor John Uzoma Ihendinihu of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, said empowerment should be measured by the capacity built in beneficiaries rather than the value of items distributed.

He called for a stronger focus on education, vocational training, mentorship, entrepreneurship support and market access to promote sustainable youth development.

Ihendinihu also highlighted youth-oriented initiatives associated with Ikpeazu’s administration, including the Made-in-Aba campaign, international training for local artisans, the Enyimba Automated Shoe Company and the Enyimba Automated Garment Factory.

He said efforts to secure institutional markets for Aba-made products also helped shift attention towards local production, job creation and productivity.

The professor described Ikpeazu’s career as evidence of the role education, discipline and public service could play in shaping effective leadership.

Earlier, the event moderator and former Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman, Kimiebi Ebienfa, described Ikpeazu as a scholar, statesman, diplomat and public servant.

Ebienfa said the annual colloquium had consistently addressed economic development, entrepreneurship and sustainable empowerment, with its latest edition examining why some empowerment programmes fail.

He said the focus was now on developing lasting solutions to human capacity challenges and promoting self-reliance among young Nigerians.

Ikpeazu also thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for appointing him as Nigeria’s ambassador to Spain and commended the President’s economic reforms.

He expressed appreciation to his family, friends and political associates for their support throughout his academic, professional and political career.

Guests who attended physically and virtually from different parts of the world paid tribute to the former governor, praising his contributions to public service, education and youth development.

The event ended with goodwill messages and birthday tributes to the ambassador.