Bon Voyage

Hello and welcome to edition III of the OSF Newsletter.

Quite unbelievable that it's almost a year since my last post. So much has happened and when I think of it, 2024 was one of those years, you know the ones where you blink once and its gone.

Whilst it was not without challenges, this year gave us some intense moments but also some wins. These are a few of mine in no particular order; Klay Thompson left the Golden State Warriors-who would’ve thunk it? Steph Curry went to Paris and put the French to bed, #nuitnuit; the Israeli Gaza with its severe humanitarian crisis continues to worsen; the Russian war sadly still rages; the economic situation in Nigeria worsens and another election has come and gone in the US, vice president Kamala Harris went toe to toe with former president Donald Trump and lost. Although that one still hurts, we say a big well-done, KH. They certainly didn’t see you coming.

On the personal side, in December last year my family took a trip to the magical Hamilton Island where my wife and I reaffirmed our wedding vows before our closest friends and family as part of our 10th marriage anniversary. It was a wonderful week on the beach and sun, and we sailed off to the Great Barrier Reef afterwards to scuba dive and a bad attempt at snorkeling. One more memorable moment in December this year we all became citizens of Australia and swore the pledge of allegiance.

"Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi!"

At OSF we’re just getting into swing. For our second year we have welcomed 10 new friends to sail with us on this journey. A bright spot I’m proud to call out here is the effort by the previous cohort of scholars to integrate this new set into the OSF community. They showed exemplary leadership in taking on mentor roles, coordinated calls and group messages to share information needed amongst the newcomers. We can say we had a remarkable ceremony because of their contributions. Bravo, torchbearers!

Final to note here, is that OSF is celebrating her very first graduate. How exciting! Proud parents moment for sure. Endurance's story is one of incredible strength and commitment. From almost dropping out of school, hearing about our foundation and beating many others to win a slot in 2023, she has kept her spirit up and her GPAs even higher. She graduates from the department of Pure & Industrial Chemistry at the top of her class, and we are truly proud and happy for her journey that's now about to begin.

Unsurprisingly, the applications sent in this season (March - April) were in excess of 5,300 and while we are humbled at this ever-growing interest, it hasn’t passed our notice that this is a bad indicator of where we are as a nation. Rising costs of living and severe hardship has seen parts of the middle class lose economic status, plunged into a depth of struggle and survival that has never been experienced in Nigeria before now. Not even during the military regime of Sani Abacha when families were forced to get creative and cook meals with saw dust and the likes, was it this bad. But that is a topic for another post.

Our new 10 - the Encore. Meeting and getting to know them has been very rewarding. Bisi and I always say watching them develop in the early stage of their journey to the top, is a good vantage point that inspires us to keep going. Although, these young scholars have come from diverse backgrounds and life experiences, one thing they all have in common is an inherent brilliance that shows in their dedication to academics.

Customarily, we have placed our mission of gender equity front and center in ensuring that the girl child receives a levelling opportunity. For our flagship grant there were 6F and 5M, this season there are 6 ladies and 4 gentlemen, bringing us to a current total of 12 ladies and 9 gentlemen. A metric we maintain is to discuss semester/session reports during individual 1:1/catch up organized in order to maintain their scholarships annually. It is during these sessions we gain even more insight to character development and growth taking place, more importantly, there has been a lot of laughs and great conversations alongside.

With all of this, our goal at OSF is to build a community of well-rounded people who become keen professionals by ensuring that they receive the right guidance. In the course of the year, we have been fortunate to have industry volunteers from around the world share their experiences in mentorship. From company founders in tech to global health scholars, professors in academia to automobile geniuses and leaders in the technology industry. Bisi and I are grateful to have your support.

Standing here on the last day of the year looking back on our challenges and wins, I am reminded of our family, friends, partners and supporters who have all helped in one way or another, some even as far as ensuring that we have access to internship opportunities for some of our scholars.

A rising tide truly lifts all.

Evidently, you all believe in these young people as much as we do, in what they can achieve and accomplish in their time. One thing we are most certain of, is that these ones will individually or collectively touch and improve the lives of many. As we have shared, these 21 could not have been better selected. We hope they continue to be led by God's light and lead with same.

Until next time, bon voyage.

Happy New Year!

First Oars

Greetings,

I extend a warm welcome to this latest edition of our newsletter. It has been some time since our last newsletter and we've named this edition with the belief that the journey of a thousand nautical miles begins with a single stroke of the oars. So, what have we been up to?

Our inaugural annual undergraduate scholarship program took off even better than our best expectations. When we initially called for applications, my partner Bisi and I were uncertain about how we would be received. In a society with low trust, we wondered if people would see us as just another entity. But, to our surprise, we received well over a thousand applications. We are grateful for the trust in our vision.

We aimed for a selection process that was both transparent and thorough, conducted by individuals other than ourselves, the founders. Our dear friends and mentors of the Foundation stepped in and meticulously reviewed the submitted essays, academic records, identification documents, and other criteria as shared with them. After days of careful deliberation, the initial shortlist of 30 emerged, a result of diligent assessment and discussion among the judges. Next came the interviews, where we had the privilege of meeting these enthusiastic young individuals and hearing their stories and aspirations. The task of selecting the final 11 scholars was demanding, but with Faith, we made the decisions. Each of the 11 recipients could not have been better chosen as torchbearers of our mission. During the Awards and Onboarding ceremony, which we chose to broadcast on television and publish in newspapers across the Niger Delta region, we had the opportunity to meet some of their families. It was an emotional moment when the mic was passed to family & friends present and we heard the impact of the scholarship and the relief it provided to their families. For some of the beneficiaries with younger siblings, it meant that the younger ones could now receive academic support. My wife and I agreed to ourselves and everyone present at the event, that we are humbled and inspired to do more. While our primary focus remains on facilitating access to tertiary education, we also extend our support to younger scholars. This year, we've supported other projects, including the 2023 Bayelsa Expo facilitated by Dr. Michael Tarerefa in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Nigeria. This science and math fair showcased our brilliant young students from Primary Six to Senior Secondary School, demonstrating the possibilities of curious and collaborative minds. Notably, many of the top prize winners were female students, underscoring our commitment to support girls in education and technology. Also this year, one of our three scholarship beneficiaries at DSC Technical High School in Ovwian Aladja achieved remarkable success by securing a record third victory in the highly competitive Omafuru Foundation Spelling Bee, an annual competition aimed at improving students' literacy in Delta State.

We are equally thankful to have been able to facilitate access to the AlteSchool AFRICA for two of our beneficiaries, offering them a valuable opportunity to embark on careers in technology. We firmly believe that a victory for one is a victory for all. I must also express our deep appreciation to those who have supported us on this journey. Gossy Ukanwoke and his team at SVGaming, owners of BetKing Naija, provided not only timely support but also a morale boost with their unwavering commitment. We are equally grateful to Ikechukwu Uyagu for his generous financial and personal support, for standing by us without hesitation, regardless of the time or place. We salute you, dear friend. Our heartfelt thanks extend to our support network and mentors, including Ejiro Akem, Ikenna Okonkwo, Adedire Adesiji, Emenike Chukwuma, Manasseh Egedegbe, Tamunokuro Braide, Rex Ihute, and Oke Foghi. Thank you for volunteering your time, immense talent, and wealth of experience to help in shaping the futures of the next generation. God bless you all. To continue this voyage and reach even more destinations swiftly, we remain open to individual and corporate partnerships with those who share our vision of positively impacting the lives of Nigerian students.

Warm regards, Batarhe Foghi Founder, Ojah Scholarship Foundation.

Ready, Steady, Sail!

Happy New Year!

First, I want to say thank you for your support. We are grateful for your constant support that has come in many wonderful ways; from Nana who worked with us to get the Foundation registered to people like Ikenna and Ikponmwosa who provided useful feedback, Eloho for her support, Sam Hart for his encouraging words and for everyone else who has cheered us on, Bisi and I sincerely thank you.

What a bunker year 2022 was! With the number of unprecedented events that it brought; War hit Ukraine, Australia terminating the Nuclear Submarine agreement with the French; the UK saw all of three Prime Ministers within two months, and lost HRH the Queen, who reigned decades longer than I have been alive, to name a few. Another major highlight of the year of course is Lionel Messi owning the '22 FIFA World Cup.

A truly fantastic way to end it!

To bring it home, Nigeria saw an inflation increase of around 21%, severe floods that led to hundreds of deaths, state gubernatorial elections, presidential primaries, banditry, massacres, the lynching of a Christian student, Deborah up in the north, train attacks and kidnapping, church attacks and killings. 2022 is also the year we saw our very own record holder Tobi Amusan break a 16-year record for women's 100m hurdles at the Commonwealth Games. Fist pump!!

Undoubtedly, these are some severe headwinds, yet we’re optimistic and look ahead with purpose and action.

Thus, I am delighted to share our very first newsletter with you.

This past year was a busy year for us at the Foundation. What we thought was a simple vision has taken on a life of its own, superbly driven by my lovely wife and partner on this journey. While we’re keen to make a mark on people’s lives, we’re also working to ensure that we have systems in place for this to be a long and consistent venture.

Hats off to Bisi for her doggedness in running Operations. I must also praise the team whom we have worked with (special shout out to Tolu, Tammy, Ogaga, Oke) to get us to this point, salute!

This year we hit the ground running with a lot of official firsts. From getting the Ojascholarships.org website up, sending out our first ever Invitations to Apply, to selecting beneficiaries and eventually tracking their performance. We also have a couple of little projects lined up and we look forward to working with you our partner . Kindly keep an eye out for our monthly newsletter as it will update and keep you informed of what we are doing.

It is our vision at The Ojah Scholarship Foundation that this and other academic contributions towards advancing STEM education in the Niger Delta will see the current gap begin to close and ultimately lead the industry in Nigeria.

Once again, thank you for coming on this journey with us and I thank God Almighty for this seed, He is with us and we set sail.

Batarhe Foghi

Founder