NEWS RELEASE

June 28, 2001
Albert Hannans
(703) 924-1474

- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -

PEACE CORPS ALUMNI LAUNCH SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM IN NIGERIA

WASHINGTON, DC, -- The Peace Corps Nigeria Alumni Foundation (PCNAF) held a reception June 26 at the Stewart Mott House on Capitol Hill to launch a scholarship program for girls in Nigeria.

A diverse crowd of returned U.S. Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs), Nigerians, and others interested in African development heard PCNAF President Albert Hannans and board member Sandra Frazier outline plans for the newly-formed foundation. PCNAF is in active discussions with a Nigerian non-governmental organization that will administer the secondary school scholarship program in-country. The foundation hopes to award the first scholarships in time for the 2002 school year.

Kunle Soyombo, a minister at the Nigerian embassy, welcomed PCNAF's initiative and pledged his embassy's support. Jesse Jones, a former Peace Corps Volunteer, presented a check for $2,000 collected from members of his "Nigeria 24" training group. PCNAF expressed appreciation to corporate sponsors Exxon Mobil and Citizens International, and to the Peace Corps and the National Peace Corps Association for their cooperation and assistance.

PCNAF was organized by men and women who served as Peace Corps Volunteers in the 1960s, when the newly independent country was host to the single largest Peace Corps program in the world. The Peace Corps subsequently withdrew while Nigeria suffered through civil war, military rule and political mismanagement.

Now, a generation later, some of these RPCVs decided that the time is ripe to restore their connection to the people of Nigeria. Collaborating with prominent Nigerians in the Washington area, they decided to devote their first program efforts to the key area of female secondary education. PCNAF invites the support and participation of all who share its commitment to the ongoing needs of Nigeria development.