The Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) has awarded a full academic scholarship to Fatima Abedoh, the Best Fellow of the maiden PRNigeria Young Communication Fellowship.

The announcement was made by NIPR President Dr. Ike Neliaku on Friday at the Abuja office of Image Merchant Promotions Limited (IMPR), owners of PRNigeria, Economic Confidential, Tech Digest and other titles.

24-year-old Abedoh, the best cohort member of the one-month fellowship, is an Information and Media Studies graduate of Bayero University, Kano (BUK). Ramot Ikeoluwa Ibrahim was named the Most Disciplined Fellow.

A jury chaired by Mr. Francis Enoboro, ex-spokesperson of the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), selected Abedoh after all 10 fellows made separate oral presentations in various areas of public relations.

Neliaku, the special guest of honour, hailed the young citizens on completing the training in journalism, PR, social media, and artificial intelligence. He said Fatima would get an all-expense paid scholarship to the NIPR Finishing School in Nasarawa State.

“Fatima will be participating in a one-month summer training on PR and other aspects of communication. On behalf of my management team, I’m excited to also announce that the Best PRNigeria Fellows in the next five years will receive the same prize,” he disclosed.

Addressing the cohort, the NIPR President stressed the importance of having a good reputation for personal, organizational and national growth as it is “a core asset” companies globally hold in high esteem.

“Reputation is now an important part of our life. So, you need to start cultivating it because it grows over time. It is a core asset to any organization and a determinant of how people reckon with you as a person, an establishment or a country.

“Reputation without hard work does not yield results; hard work and commitment are its drivers. Meanwhile, we must acknowledge Alhaji Yushau Shuaib’s contributions to Nigeria, especially in crisis management and communication, where he has devoted time and resources.

“His mentorship of younger generations is equally impressive and deserves recognition. Having consistently demonstrated this commitment and escalated it into a Fellowship is worthy of commendation,” Neliaku added.

In his remarks, Mr Shuaib, IMPR CEO and PRNigeria Editor-in-chief, congratulated the fellows and wished them well in future endeavours. He said the training will be conducted at PRNigeria Centres in Ilorin and Kano in October and December.