Enabling young people to access education and training is an important investment in the future of every community, every country, and society as a whole.
Looking to the future
The Scholarship Programme is part of the development projects that ABBA carries out in the countries where it is active, supporting schoolchildren and students from families in need.
Support is discussed and renewed year after year depending on the results achieved, and the situation of the families, who are asked to participate within their means.
Since 2012, 66 young and not-so-young people have received a scholarship for university or vocational training in Nicaragua, Brazil, India Andhra Pradesh, and now Kenya.
Kenya – St Cecilia School
The school’s philosophy is based on principles of equality and solidarity, offering equal opportunities for quality education to children of different social status. The St Cecilia school also welcomes girls rescued from the streets in collaboration with a local NGO working in the slums of Nairobi.
With your participation we ensure a better future for girls and boys from needy families, with a quality education usually reserved for the few.
The school fee of CHF 25 per month covers:
school fees • food • school supplies • extracurricular activities • medical expenses • insurance • clothing for the most needy
Internal students stay at St Cecilia’s for the whole term, and return home for a weekend mid-term. At weekends, as well as after school hours, they benefit of the after-school activities organised by the school, the cost of which is CHF 48 per month.
Each donor can decide to what extent they wish to contribute:
- bearing the cost for one or more students, or
- with a free payment that feeds the scholarship fund
Nicaragua
Access to university comes straight from secondary school, so students are under a lot of pressure to adapt to the new style of teaching and very demanding subjects. Some of them have to go to the capital Managua, and for the first time they live outside the family during the week. The students are all followed and accompanied on a personal level, an important commitment that ABBA has made in collaboration with the local coordinator. Every year, exchange days are organised with all students.
Everyone is called upon to get involved in the community project, and they “return” in hours what they receive, supporting with their know-how those responsible for the various activities, as needed.
These are the sectors and careers chosen:
Accounting and finance • Law • Journalism • Tourist guide • Nursing care • Agronomy • Professional English • Current English • Mastery in construction • Marketing and advertising • Mechanics • Medicine • Dental technology • Pedagogy • Refrigeration and air conditioning • Tailoring • Medical sciences • Tourism and hotels
Brazil
Two degrees in pedagogy thanks to financial support from our Scholarships, thanks to the accompaniment of Mr and Mrs Eisenhardt who are looking after Casa dos Curumins in São Paulo, and last but not least, thanks to the tenacity and perseverance of the two girls who were able to fulfil their dream of wearing the “tocco”, the graduates’ hat.
India, Andhra Pradesh
One scholarship for higher education to enter nursing school, and one for training as an accountant. Two young girls from troubled families, with excellent school results, despite the difficulties. Two young girls from troubled families, with excellent school results, despite the difficulties.
The long-awaited moment
The graduation day or the end of the training is always an important and moving event: for most of the students who benefit from our scholarships is a dream that they did not expect to see come true.
The awarding of diplomas is therefore a goal for the students but also for the donors who support us and who allow these goals to be achieved
