Two of the survivors of the 2014 Boko Haram mass abductions in Chibok, Borno State – Patience Bulus and Mercy Ali Paul – have graduated from colleges in the United States of America (U.S.A).
Miss Bulus graduated from Dickinson College with a degree in Gender Studies while Miss Paul graduated from Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) with an associate degree in Social Science.
A joint statement by the Murtala Muhammed Foundation (MMF) and Victims Support Fund (VSF) said the duo’s journey to graduation was facilitated by a partnership between MMF and VSF to provide full scholarships and personal growth opportunities to the rescued Chibok girls, enabling them to pursue higher education in the U.S.
Miss Bulus was also inducted as an Honourable Member of the National Society of Leadership and Success at Dickinson College in 2021.
Speaking at Miss Bulus’s graduation in Carlisle Pennsylvania, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the foundation, Mrs. Aisha Muhammed-Oyebode noted that more girls in Chibok and other conflict-affected communities deserved the opportunity to learn.
She sought an immediate action at the local and global levels to enable the victims have access to quality education and build self-reliance in conflict-affected communities.
“The abduction of 276 schoolgirls 10 years ago from their boarding school signalled the urgency of action to secure education for girls in Nigeria.
“As an organisation with a vision to advance positive education and social outcomes for women, we celebrate Patience and Mercy’s achievements today as a powerful example of resilience and we celebrate their determination not to be defined by the past but focused on the future,” she said.
The graduates urged other girls not to give up, while advocating for girls’ rights and education worldwide.
MMF is a non-for profit organisation focused on engendering self-reliance and fulfilment by working on policy and advocacy for issues that impact ethics, equity, good governance and economic empowerment, among others.
The Presidential Committee on Victims Support Fund (PCVSF) was set up in July 2014 at the peak of the Boko Haram insurgency as a non-military response to the terror activities.
