Though she scored 412 marks in last year’s Kenya Certificate of Primary Education, Beth Moraa’s hopes of joining her dream school had been dashed. Her mother could not raise school fees.
But the 13-year-old girl reports to Alliance Girls High School Monday, thanks to a non-governmental organisation that has pledged to pay her fees.
The former pupil of Kibos Prison Primary School, Kisumu travelled last night to join Alliance Girls this morning after Nyanza Initiative for Girls’ Education and Empowerment (NIGEE) came to her rescue.
Earlier on, Moraa had unsuccessfully applied for a bursary in a leading banking institution.
“I cried a lot and was discouraged after learning that I was not among the beneficiaries of the scholarship. My mother even asked me to repeat Standard Eight since she never had money to take me to Alliance,” said Moraa.
But Sunday when The Standard caught up with her in their house in Kisumu’s Kibuye estate, where her mother Eunice Bosibori runs a small business of tailoring, an elated Moraa could not hide her joy as she prepared to set off for Alliance. “The organisation has settled all my school fees and I have a slip of fully paid first term fees of Sh49,813,” she said.
Her mother termed the move as a miracle. “When I conceived this child, her father disowned her and fled. I kept praying to God to bless her schooling since she has been a bright child. NIGEE came at a time I was giving up. Now apart from school fees, her uniforms worth Sh14,600 have been paid for, shopping worth Sh15,000 and fare of Sh3,000 fully provided,” said Ms Bosibori.
“I am very happy and thank God that NIGEE has promised to pay for my secondary education in entirety and is willing to help me pursue my dream to become a lawyer. I will not let them down,” said Moraa.
NIGEE’s patron and founder Kawango Agot told The Standard that Moraa is among the more than 300 girls they are supporting.