Gilbert Ekugbe
The Paradigm Initiative (PIN) has announced plans to empower youths in the Ajegunle area of Lagos State with scholarships and mentoring programmes on a yearly basis.
According to PIN, the move is aimed at changing the negative perceptions people have about the Ajegunle community while also giving back to the society it started its operations.
Speaking on the sidelines of a ceremony to officially present the first beneficiaries of its Ajegunle Legacy Scholarship initiative, the Executive Director, PIN, Gbenga Sesan, said the whole idea of the programme is to honour all its roots, pointing out the need to help youths in the community achieve their dreams and lifetime aspirations.
“We started in 2007 and set up our first office in Ajegunle in 2012. We decided that we are going to give scholarship to people in the Ajegunle community where we started from and some of the biggest needs we heard were people who wanted to go for software training, but did not have the funds to achieve it and also there were people who got admission every year and kept deferring their admission because of no funds,” he said.
Speaking, Gideon Roberts, one of the beneficiaries of the scheme, commended PIN for the laudable youth empowerment programme, noting that it would go a long way to change the perceptions people have about Ajegunle community.
“Criminality or whatsoever bad things you have heard about Ajegunle, is not only happening in Ajegunle, but everywhere. If I make use of this opportunity properly and excel in the future, I will be able to give back to the community by sorting out youths, empowering them with digital skills, providing support and mentorship advice to them and where they can have these skill set and build entrepreneurship brands on their own,” he said.
