An operator in the oil and gas sector, Newcross Exploration and Production Ltd, says it will give scholarship to secondary school students in 10  communities in Akuku-Toru and Degema Local Government Areas of  Rivers.

Chief Alapuye Elekiye-Okpara, the company’s consultant for the 2017/2018 NNPC/NewcrossEP Scholarships, disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Port Harcourt on Wednesday.

Elekiye-Okpara said the tests for the secondary school scholarship had already been conducted in the host communities within the company ’s area of operations.

“The primary aim of the company is to ensure that the home-based students in its area of operations benefit from the scholarship.

“This is the reason why the tests were written in the communities that the students reside in.

“ However, in situations beyond our control,  special arrangements are made for the tests to be written outside such a community,” he said.

According to the consultant, specific numbers have been assigned to the various oil-fields with respect to the secondary, undergraduate and post-graduate scholarships.

“In the Awoba Oil-fields, 30 secondary school students will benefit from the scholarship while 10 students will benefit in each of undergraduate and post-graduate category.

“In the Ekulama Oil-fields, there are 50 for secondary schools, 16 for undergraduates and 14 for post-graduate students.

” The scholarship awards are given to the various host communities according to the oil-fields they fall into,” he said.

Elekiye-Okpara also said that the forms for the scholarship were given to the leaders of the various communities for distribution.

“The process has been transparent and the communities we have gone to for the conduct of the tests have been very cooperative.

“The results will be out one week after the conduct of all the tests for the various categories,” he said.

He commended the company for evolving the scholarship scheme as a way of fulfilling its corporate social responsibility to the host communities.

“Even though the host communities are saying that the quota is small, I believe this is just the beginning and the company could increase the quota in future,” he said.