- Students received bursaries from Ksh 10,000 to Ksh 50,000.
- The 37 students form part of over 500 already enrolled in the program.
- The organization looks forward to improving more lives in Nyamira and its borders.
At the start of every academic year in Kenya, news outlets report hundreds of bright but needy students appealing for help to the next level of study.
Others, who are already in secondary school, fail to report back due to staggering amounts of fee balances.
Some of those students have lost one or both parents, making them partial or total orphans.
Others have been abandoned by their parents, or come from families struggling under severe financial pressure.
Additionally, there are students whose families have been financially crippled due to huge medical bills and other critical needs.
A majority of Kenyans, particularly those in the informal sector are also struggling to put food on the table, as the economy takes a toll on them.
Civil servants, particularly those in the lower job cadres are not doing any better either.
They are grappling with heavy taxation, delayed salaries, rising living costs, and responsibilities of supporting a growing number of dependents.
Stories like these surface frequently from Nyamira County, about 300km West of Nairobi, capturing the attention of potential sponsors and Good Samaritans.
Despite this interest, the overwhelming number of students in need means that some still end up dropping out of school.
While the government has attempted to address this issue through funding measures such as capitation, scholarships, and grants, these efforts have fallen short of meeting the extensive demand for support.
Millions of students continue to flock to schools, eager to quench their thirst for knowledge, indicating a gap that still exists between the need for educational support and the assistance provided.
The Marwanga Foundation is among stakeholders in the education sector and has over the years supported thousands of students across the 20 wards of Nyamira County.
Beneficiaries include a boy at Makueni Boys’ High School, whose fees has been paid in full since the time he joined Form One, and is set to sit for the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations later this year.
This is one among several others that have received full scholarship to pursue their education.
In March 2024, the Marwanga Foundation assisted 37 students from Nyamira County by providing them with bursaries.
These bursaries, implemented by paying directly to school accounts and students given bank-deposit slips, were used to cover either part or all of their school fees, benefiting these students’ educational expenses.
Marwanga Foundation’s Chairman, Prof. Reuben Marwanga confirmed that the support was received from an American based charitable partner Shown Foundation which received the funding from the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) Foundation.
The MDRT Foundation supports charitable organizations worldwide, demonstrating the generosity, service, and impact of MDRT members.
The SHOWN Foundation received the financial award through endorsement of MDRT member, Joseph Mecha of Mecha Financial Services of Maryland, USA.
“The 37 beneficiaries received between Ksh.10,000 and Ksh.50,000,” said Prof. Marwanga.
He noted that they will continue to source for funding to support the large number of needy students that appeal to the program for help every year.
Prof. Marwanga, upon distributing bank deposit slips for bursaries to beneficiaries at his home in Sironga, West Mugirango Constituency, stated, “This is the only way we can change the story of those families where these needy children come from for the better.”
He further emphasized the transformative impact of educational support on the families of underprivileged children.
The students as well as their guardians, parents or relatives thanked the Foundation and their partner organizations for easing their financial burden.
Dorcas Moturi, a parent from Borabu Constituency encouraged the beneficiaries to work hard in their studies and thanked Prof. Marwanga for his passion in supporting the needy in society.
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“Prof. Marwanga is an inspiration to these children. Let them work hard so that they also become professors in future,” Mr. Franco from Bogichora Ward concluded.
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