Head of Overseas Scholarship at the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), Mrs Bolanle Kehinde Agboola, has disclosed that 8,196 Nigerians have benefited from the PTDF scholarships over the past 20 years.
  
This is just as the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to President Bola Tinubu on student engagement, Sunday Asefon, commended PTDF for its sustained investment in education, training, and human capital development in Nigeria.
   
The duo spoke at a one-day sensitisation workshop for students at the University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom. Agboola said the scholarships aim to build human capacity for the oil and gas industry.
   
“We are here to sensitise students on the activities of PTDF as a government agency under the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, charged with developing capacities for the oil and gas industry,” she stated.
    
Agboola outlined PTDF’s three-pronged approach: institutional capacity building, human capital development through scholarships, and technology transfer. The agency offers overseas scholarships at top global universities and in-country scholarships at Nigerian institutions. Since PTDF’s establishment in 2001, it has supported tertiary and secondary education, targeting technical skills for the oil sector.

She, however, expressed concern over beneficiaries not returning to Nigeria due to limited job opportunities, urging oil companies to collaborate to retain talent.
     
She encouraged Akwa Ibom and South-South students to seize PTDF opportunities, advising researchers to commercialise their work to address industry challenges. 
     
Senior Special Assistant to President Tinubu on Student Engagement, Asefon, on Sunday, noted the workshop aligns with Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, emphasising PTDF’s role in education and national progress.