Aruna Amirthanayagam, counselor on public affairs, U.S embassy Nigeria, made this known on Monday during a visit to the university in Ilorin Kwara State.
John-Paul drowned in a water fall on June 25, 2016 while hiking near Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. The 24-year-old was participating in the 2016 Mandela Washington Fellowship in the United States.
The Fellowship, designed to train young students and graduates for a specified period of time is awarded annually to 1,000 students in Africa, including 100 Nigerian Students. John Paul was studying civic leadership as a 2016 Mandela Washington Fellow.
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The U.S embassy also donated books worth about $20,000 to the university’s library.
Amirthanayagam said the books and the prize were for young Nigerians working in the areas of Mr. John-Paul’s interest, namely Peace, Child Rights and Sustainable Development.
The diplomat, who was accompanied who was accompanied by the embassy’s coordinator of the Mandela Fellowship, Diran Adegoke, described Mr. John-Paul as a young man who spent a short but meaningful life.
The duo condoled with the family of Mr. John-Paul and the university, while advising the students to join the Young African Leaders Initiative Network online for several benefits that await them.
The Vice-Chancellor of the University, AbdulGaniyu Ambali, commended the United States for its contribution to humanity, saying the demise of John-Paul will not affect the relationship between the university and the United States.
Father of the late John-Paul, Mr. Usman, who was also present on the occasion, said his son told him he would set up an NGO to cater for the less privileged.