By FUNMILAYO ADEYEMI

The Queen’s College Old Girls Association (QCOGA) has pledged to raise an endowment fund of N10 billion by the end of 2029 to support the infrastructural development of the school.

The President, QCOGA, Ifueko Okauru, said this in Abuja on Saturday at a Fundraising Walkathon to celebrate the 95 years of existence of the school.

Okauru said that the association was committed to assisting the government to uplift the school to become a world class institution.

According to her, this year, the school is 95. So, we’re celebrating the school. We’re celebrating togetherness, but we’re also launching a massive fundraiser for the school..

Okauru said: “We believe that we need to forge hands with government to uplift the school and truly make it a world class institution.

“As women who have gone through the school, you will find that it has made us who we are. The school has helped to create that foundation, that confidence in us as women to be leaders in every sphere of society.

“And we want to pass that unto those unborn generations and put in place solid infrastructure to be able to do that and infrastructure will be hard and soft.

“So we’re launching on the October 10 the N10 billion endowment fund which we hope to raise by 2029.

“So, we’re encouraging everyone to please join hands with us to set the standard for girl child education, set the standard for women development and ensure that the seat of leadership does not start when you finished university,” she said.

She said that the N10 billion fundraising drive was achievable, saying, ”the drive is taking place simultaneously in different states in Nigeria and outside the country and in the diaspora.”

Okauru called on well meaning Nigerians to key into the idea so as to give the school a face-lift, to bolster effective teaching and learning.

“The endowment fund is the first of its kind to ensure that we can sustain what we start on an ongoing basis, we can maintain infrastructure that we put in place, while also raising funds for direct immediate needs.

“For example, we want to put a mini grid power infrastructure in the school, we want to support technology and science infrastructure.

“We want to help further improve on our water projects and ensure that children who go to the school can feel safe and secured,” she added.

Okauru also commended the government for the role it played in helping to maintain the school in the last 95 years.

She urged the government to continue the giant strides of putting education at the forefront of development.

An old girl, Mrs Maryam Uwais, Special Advisor to the President on Social Investments said that the move would transform the school, as well as boost the educational development of the country.

”My chest is full because Queens College has done a lot for us, you know, it imbibed so many values and a lot of what we are today is because of the discipline that we were able to get.

“It’s great to be with many of my colleagues here. There’re some that of course, I don’t know.

“There’s a senior that I didn’t meet, but even yesterday, one of our classmates became the Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos (UNILAG).

“So, Queens College has done great things and so we remember all our classmates and schoolmates that have departed, but we really feel very proud of what the school has done for us,” she said.

A member, Board of Trustees, QCOGA, Prof. Christine Ofulue, said that the Walkathon was a unifying force bringing the women together from all fields to contribute to the educational development of the school.

Ofulue, who is also the Chairperson, Education Committee of the association, said it was important to take serious the education of the girl-child for the purpose of having a brighter future.

According to her, the Walkathon is a unifying force that had brought women from all walks of life together to champion a course.

“We believe in the education of the young child and that is very important and for us we passed through the school and got good education.

“And we want to see that more girls have that opportunity of good education in a conducive environment, in an environment that is digitally compliant and with teachers that are with competencies, knowledge and skills of the 21^st century,” Ofalue said. (NAN)

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