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Needy girl secures scholarship after Graphic exposé

Kofi Yeboah Aug - 13 - 2014 , 12:40

After months of disappointment, Bernice Datsomor, a brilliant, needy girl, has redeemed her hope, self-confidence and desire to fulfil her dream of becoming a medical doctor in the future.

She has been offered full scholarship by MasterCard Foundation to study at the University of Toronto, Canada.

The scholarship package, which was made possible by the Zawadi Africa Education Fund, includes tuition fee, accommodation, pocket money, holiday jobs and return visits to Ghana.

Initially, Bernice will be studying Life Science in the first year and progress to study Human Biology in the subsequent years which will bring her closer to a lifetime dream of becoming a medical doctor.

“I am glad I came to Zawadi; it has really helped me. All I can say is thank you and God bless you,” she said in a modest show of gratitude to her benefactors.

Down memory lane

Bernice had obtained very good grades as a science student in the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) in 2012 but poverty had restrained her academic progression until the Daily Graphic told her story, which attrated public benevolence.

A year ago when the Daily Graphic visited the home of Bernice’s parents at Kordie, off the Kumasi – Offinso Road in the Ashanti Region, she looked so dejected and hopeless.

With grade A1 in seven science subjects and B2 in another, she had a good chance of gaining admission to the university, but she had spent one year at home because her parents could not even afford to buy university admission forms.

Bernice even had a debt of GH¢400 in respect of school fees, extra classes fees and other commitments to clear at her former school – St Louis Senior High School, Kumasi.

That debt was settled by Zawadi Ghana after it had taken up her case.

Turn around

When I met Bernice in Accra recently, her demeanour clearly confirmed that she had parted company with her gloomy past as she looked forward to embracing the bright prospects of the future.

With a full scholarship, passport, visa and air ticket tucked under her armpit, Bernice is earnestly counting down the hours to enplane to Toronto, Canada, on Thursday, August 14, 2014 to begin a new academic life.

Indeed, there is a huge turn-around in her life and now her dream of becoming a medical doctor is within reach.

“Thanks to the Daily Graphic for bringing me out to Zawadi,” she said in gratitude to the Daily Graphic for highlighting her case.

Securing the scholarship

Bernice’s fortunes did not come on a silver platter though.

She had to undergo a rigorous and competitive academic and mentorship programme by Zawadi Ghana, including examination and interviews for the award of scholarship.

And again, she proved her academic prowess with excellent results.

Out of 25 applicants presented by Zawadi for the programme this year, Bernice Datsomor was among four girls who were granted full scholarship, with three other girls getting partial scholarships.

Established in 2009, Zawadi Ghana has been scouting for brilliant, needy girls in schools across the country every year for assistance and sometimes found it difficult to get those who qualify.

“So it was a real Godsend when I was reading the Daily Graphic and I came across this wonderful piece that you yourself had produced on a young lady who was brilliant and had these wonderful results and had not even applied to the university because of financial constraints. We immediately recognised that this would be an ideal potential candidate for the Zawadi programme,” Ms Dzifa Amegashie, a Director of Zawadi Ghana, said.

“I have to say that immediately upon having our first interview with Bernice, we all knew that she was absolutely a Zawadi material. She was exceptional in terms of her intellect and academic performance,” she added.

The Zawadi programme

The Zawadi Africa Education Fund was established to provide scholarship for academically gifted girls from disadvantaged backgrounds.

It promotes the academic pursuits of such girls, especially in science, medicine and technological studies.

This is in recognition of the fact that while there are many scholarship facilities in the system, they do not seem to focus on girls and the pursuit of technological studies.

In collaboration with Coca Cola, Google, Databank, UT Bank, Cal Bank and some philanthropic organisations such as MasterCard Foundation, Zawadi has restored hope to many brilliant, needy girls in the country.

As of 2014, Zawadi has 15 Ghanaian scholars who are at various stages of study in tertiary institutions in Ghana, USA and Canada.

“We realise that not all Zawadi scholars will either want to pursue their studies outside or will qualify for the full scholarship that we need for these young ladies to study outside. So some of our partners sponsor local scholarship programmes in leading institutions like KNUST and Ashesi,” Ms Amegashie said.

She expressed gratitude to the partner organisations who sponsor the education of the girls.

The scholarships are valued at about $200,000 for a three-year period.

Writer’s Email: kofi.yeboah@graphic.com.gh