By Tony Okafor, Awka
The next round of tertiary education scholarships being sponsored by the Senator representing Anambra Central Senatorial District, Chief Victor Umeh, is expected to gulp about N75 million.
Umeh disclosed this while speaking with journalists at his campaign office in Udoka Housing Estate, Awka, Anambra State, where he reaffirmed his commitment to investing in the education of young people despite challenges associated with funding of constituency projects by the Federal Government.
The senator said he had remained consistent with the scholarship programme, which covers students drawn from the seven local government areas in his constituency, adding that the financial commitment had continued to increase over the years.
According to him, the best way to empower young people and secure their future is through education, stressing that he would not allow delays in government funding to derail the initiative.
“For three years now, I have been consistent with our scholarship programme, and the cost runs into tens of millions and we are still continuously paying.
“The coming session’s fees amounts to about N75 million, and these are things I put in the budget, and government has a way of delaying the funds, but for us, we must pay,” he said.
Umeh’s scholarship programme has become one of the major components of his intervention in the education sector, with hundreds of students benefiting from financial assistance to pursue their academic programmes in various tertiary institutions.
The initiative, which predates his entry into partisan politics, began in 1999 when he started using his personal resources to assist brilliant but financially disadvantaged students whose families could not afford the cost of higher education.
It was subsequently formalised in 2007 through the establishment of the Senator Victor Umeh Education Foundation (VUMEF), which has continued to provide educational support to students across different communities.
His intervention expanded significantly in 2018 when he first entered the Senate and introduced a dedicated scholarship scheme for students from the seven local government areas of Anambra Central Senatorial District.
Under the initial arrangement, 76 students were selected from the district, with 10 beneficiaries drawn from each of the seven local government areas and six others included on account of special needs.
Umeh subsequently sustained the sponsorship through his foundation even after leaving the Senate, ensuring that the beneficiaries completed their university education.
Following his return to the Senate in 2023, he expanded the constituency scholarship programme, increasing the number of beneficiaries to 223 before raising it further to 326.
In January 2026, the senator disbursed N64 million to 326 undergraduate and postgraduate students for the 2025/2026 academic session.
The beneficiaries were selected through community structures, including town union executives, with representation from communities across the senatorial district.
The programme has produced more than 2,000 graduates in various fields, including medicine, law, engineering, pharmacy, nursing and other professional disciplines.
Beyond the Anambra Central constituency scheme, the Victor Umeh Education Foundation has also supported students from other parts of the South-East, extending its reach beyond the senator’s immediate political constituency.
Umeh has consistently maintained that educational sponsorship is a more sustainable form of youth empowerment because it equips beneficiaries with the knowledge and skills to become economically independent and contribute meaningfully to society.
The proposed N75 million commitment represents a further increase from the N64 million disbursed in January 2026, underscoring the growing financial demands of sustaining the scholarship programme.
The senator, however, expressed determination to continue funding the initiative, irrespective of delays in the release of government funds allocated for constituency interventions.
