It is a reprieve for some university and college students who hail from humble backgrounds after an insurance firm donated a whooping Ksh12 million to cater for their fees.
Prudential Life Assurance Kenya (PLAK) made the donation through Kenya Education Fund (KEF) to cushion needy students as well as those whose parents/ guardians suffered loss of income as a result of Covid-19.
KEF is a non-governmental organisation that gives high school scholarships to financially challenged students.
Speaking at Oloolaiser National School, in Ngong, Kajiado County, PLAK Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Gwen Kinusu said the funds were aimed at enabling these students to get education.
She said a majority of Kenyan students hit rock bottom after high school and fail to join colleges and universities for lack of funds to take them through higher education.
“It really is unfortunate for students to struggle through primary and secondary school education, and just when they are about to join college – where many lives are transformed – they meet financial roadblocks that prevent them from proceeding,” she said.
At the same time, Francis Ng’ang’a, the KEF’s Country Director said the organisation receive an overwhelming number of applications for financial support every year, and lauded Prudential for its continued support.
“We receive thousands of applications from across the country and were it not for the support of well-meaning institutions like Prudential, we may not have the capacity to honour many of them,” he said.
PLAK has an ongoing partnership with the KEF that started back in 2014.
The partnership has seen over 180 students receive full scholarships for their secondary school and university education, supported by previous donations from the Covid Recovery Fund.
By Vostine Ratemo
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