Abia Governor Offers Automatic Employment, Scholarships to First-Class Graduates

Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has approved automatic lecturing appointments for all first-class graduates of Abia State University, Uturu, as graduate assistants.

The governor announced the initiative on Friday during the institution’s combined 30th to 32nd convocation ceremony. He also approved postgraduate scholarships up to doctoral level for all first-class graduates from the affected sets.

“I am glad to announce that approval has been given to the university management to immediately commence the process of retaining all first-class graduates as graduate assistants, subject to the completion of their National Youth Service,” Otti said. He added that the privilege would also be extended to the best graduating students across departments with a cumulative grade point average of at least 4.25.

In addition, the governor directed the state Head of Service to identify vacancies in the civil service that could accommodate 100 exceptional graduates from the three convocation sets, with priority given to fields such as Education, Computer Science, Statistics, Health and Medical Sciences.

Otti further disclosed that N200 million has been set aside to support up to 100 graduates with innovative business ideas, particularly in agriculture, information technology, and clean energy. Proposals are to be submitted electronically by April 30, 2026.

He congratulated the graduands and presented a personal cash gift of N5 million to the overall best graduating student, Oluchi Etumsi.

The governor reiterated his administration’s commitment to repositioning the university, noting that investment in education remains critical to societal development. He also flagged off the reconstruction of the institution’s international secondary school.

Speaking at the event, the Chancellor, Catherine Uju-Ifejika, commended the governor for his support, while the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ndukwe Okeudo, lauded improvements in staff welfare, including the prompt payment of salaries.