A total of 220 students from Nyanza and Western Kenya regions have received scholarships from the KCB Foundation to join secondary schools across the country from next week.
These are part of the 1,000 students commissioned today across the country by the KCB Foundation, the KCB Group social investment arm.
The group has set aside Sh 700 million to support the 2023 scholarship cohort through secondary and tertiary education.
This will see the lender cater for tuition fees for the four years of secondary school and tertiary level.
Those in secondary schools will also get financing for uniforms, transport, set books, and regular mentorship and psychosocial support.
The KCB programme targets bright students from underprivileged backgrounds, with 100 slots allocated to Persons with Disabilities and 500 slots to girls.
KCB Group Human Resource Director Japheth Achola said they intentionally seek out vulnerable and marginalized learners at risk of dropping out of school completely.
This includes learners facing difficulties from orphanhood, disability or harmful cultural practices as well as gender or disability and areas with high poverty indexes.
“Our commitment stems from our strong belief that it is every child’s right to access quality education which is a powerful tool of transformation in society,” he said during the commissioning in Kisumu.
Achola added:
“We have also incorporated a wholesome psycho-social support system to ensure the students receive mentorship and guidance, so they have relevant coping skills applicable to this dynamic fast-paced world.”
For this cohort, KCB Foundation received over 10,000 applications, making it the highest turnout since the programme's inception in 2007.
“The 2023 class will form the 16th cohort of the scholar’s programme, including the 1,962 students currently in school. The programme has so far sponsored over 4,558 students from inception,” Achola said.
Beginning with last year’s class, all the high school beneficiaries who sit the KCSE examination receive 100 per cent school-fee support in the university and tertiary scholarships.
The revamped KCB Foundation education scholarship programme also includes a 3-month apprenticeship post-KCSE results at KCB branches countrywide for all the beneficiaries commencing with the 2022 class.
