The chairman of the scholarship board, Karamo Bojang, stated that it was a rigorous process as all 100 candidates who applied had phenomenal qualifications but only a few had to be selected for the journey that he said would bring about development in the Gambian Agriculture and fishery business.
He goes on to explain that it is quite despondent that The Gambia has all these vast resources but insufficient skills to manage them. "Thus we decided to invite the young brains to come so that we can send them out of this country to go and study, come back, and not only implement changes but teach other young minds as well." he relayed.
The 10 awardees will make their way outside Gambia on the 7th of September and will go through rigorous training at the center of excellence in Malawi where they will be grouped in two with each group focusing on the same field of study to ensure sustainability.
"The asking for help outside days are over," said Hon Professor Pierre Gomez. "We will take charge of our destiny and development, anchored in a well-trained, well-educated youthful population and these scholarships are a step towards that.”
He goes on to iterate that their role is to put systems in place so that whoever comes after them will have the chance to build something extraordinary. "We will send our people to the best training centers so that when they make their way back home they will take care of the development agendas of our nation." he declared.
Sana K. Danso, one of the awardees, thanked the Ministry of education on behalf of all the beneficiaries. "On behalf of my colleagues, I express my sincere gratitude for such an opportunity and assure you that we will live up to the expectations that have been placed upon us."
He advised his fellow awardees to be steadfast and do what is asked of them in this new journey they are about to initiate in a new country.
A second set of scholarships will be awarded to another set of students who will be residing in Turkey.
