More than two hundred and fifty students in Kakamega and Bungoma Counties from needy backgrounds have been granted an opportunity to access high school education after acquiring scholarships from Community Education Service (CES), an association of well-wishers with funding from friends in Canada.
According to CES Kenya Chief Executive Officer Malik Khaemba, who worked in Canada for some time and retired, he thought of helping out the less fortunate in the community and together with friends, started the initiative of helping the needy children in the society especially orphans, to cater for their education and in 2004 CES was started.
Speaking during a visit to St Jan Namboani School in Kimilili sub-county, where two students Juliet Wanangia and Fredrick Wasike are beneficiaries of the scholarship, Mr. Khaemba said they have so far been able to bring on board thirteen schools with two hundred and eighty students.
“Our core mandate is scholarships but other issues of infrastructure and economic development can also be chipped in like providing water, and building laboratories in schools so as to enable the students access education in a conducive environment,” he said
However, he was quick to point out that CES is keen to support students who are strictly needy but bright saying the scholarship is meant to help them access education like other privileged children in the society.
Some of the schools under the program include St Patrick Ikonyero, St. Jude Napara, St Peters Mwiruti, Shieywe secondary school and after the visit to St Jan school, they were going to conduct their assessment to see whether it can also be brought on board.
On his part, the CES Canada representative Leonard Wandili said together with friends from the diaspora, they came together to set aside funds to ensure students from poor backgrounds have an opportunity of accessing education, saying it is the only way to open up opportunities for them to be influential people in the society in future.
However, he called upon other Kenyans who live in the diaspora to consider helping needy people back in Kenya through such initiatives saying it will provide an opportunity for them to access better education and be responsible people in the society.
He further called upon the schools under the program to uphold transparency and accountability under the program saying the funds are from individuals in Canada who are only sacrificing to help the needy in the society and therefore have to be certain that indeed the deserving students are indeed benefitting.
“For the students under the program I advise them to work extra hard to achieve their dreams in life so that they can also be able to help others in the same situation in future as the graduates under this program have also an opportunity to be part of this initiative” he said
His sentiments were echoed by CES Kenya Sarah Nabongo who encouraged the students to work hard saying CES is providing them with a rare opportunity of accessing education and must be able to maximize their potential to post best results in national examination.
St Jan school principal David Wafula applauded the efforts of the CES for extending their help to the school saying it has really helped the needy students stay in school to pursue their education adding that he was looking forward to continue working with them to support education programs.
Also present were representatives of the school management as well as a representative of the area Member of the County assembly who pledged their cooperation to help uplift education programs in the school.
