Mandera County bids farewell to first batch of students to Turkey for scholarship

Some of the students and their parents during the Farewell dinner at a Nairobi Hotel. [Mohamed Saman, Standard]

Mandera County on Friday bid farewell to the first batch of 18 students headed to Turkey for a scholarship programme.

The 18 are part of 30 students who were selected to study in various universities in Turkey through a partnership plan by the County government.

The scholarship initiative was unveiled earlier in the year by Governor Mohamed Khalif.

The programme dubbed 'Elimu kwa Wote' (Education for All), is meant to assist the students who will in return offer free services to residents of Mandera, for the first two years, upon completion of their studies.

The farewell party aimed at offering valuable guidance on the diverse educational opportunities and sharing experiences to the beneficiaries.

Governor Khalif said Education is a fundamental priority for everyone and it aligns with his commitment to drive socio-economic transformation as outlined in his manifesto.

"My administration is committed to covering the full tuition fees for our scholars throughout their study period, we believe in investing in the future of our youth, and we look forward to seeing them succeed in their academic pursuits," the governor said.

His sentiments were echoed by Deputy Governor Ali Mohamud who said the county's unwavering commitment to supporting and investing in education is evident, reflecting a key priority for socio-economic transformation in alignment with the governor's manifesto.

Khalid Abdullahi Adan, one of the beneficiaries set to study software engineering expressed gratitude to the county leadership for investing and prioritising the education sector.

"Thanks to the governor for the programme, my dream of studying software engineering has come true," Khalid said.

Education CEC Bashir Alio said that the scholarship is partial with tuition fees fully paid.

According to Alio, the county government will cater for tuition fees while parents will be expected to pay for visas and air tickets for their children who qualify for the sponsorship.

Parents from mandera are grateful to the county government for lifting the burden of education off their shoulders in this harsh economy.