Lebanese Community awards scholarships to 18 GIJ students
In furtherance to its pledge to annually assist brilliant students to pursue higher education in the field of journalism, the Lebanese Community in Ghana has awarded full scholarships to some 18 students of the Ghana Institute of Journalism (GIJ) at a brief but colourful ceremony in Accra.
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The award, which was instituted about four years ago, is the contribution of the Lebanese Community in Ghana towards the country’s human resource development through the provision of quality education at all levels.
At the ceremony, the Lebanese Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Ali H. Halabi, said: “I am here to renew the commitment of the Lebanese Community to supporting brilliant students of this noble institution”.
He observed that the programme had helped a number of students over the years and reiterated the promise of the Lebanese Community to push many more students to reach the peak of their educational ladder.
“Over the past four years, I have gladly observed how students, benefiting from our scholarship programme, have excelled in their academic work. We believe in education and we believe that given a little push, the individual can and will excel,” he assured.
Rector
The Rector of the Ghana Institute of Journalism, Dr Wilberforce Dzisah, called on other organisations and embassies to follow the example of the Lebanese Community and support more students to get access to education.
“We hope that others will emulate the example of the Lebanese Community to enrol others onto the programme,” he stated.
Dr Dzisah also urged the ambassador to expand the scholarship net in order to add more students to the programme in subsequent years.
Beneficiaries speak
One of the beneficiaries, Tracy Amidatu Ibrahim, said the scholarship was timely and would propel them to higher heights.
“I must admit, this scholarship came at a very crucial time and this will go a long way to relieve our parents of the heavy financial burden on them.”
Five of the first batch of beneficiaries, who graduated this year with first class honours, won several awards, including the overall best student award.
Four of these students are currently being sponsored by the community to pursue a Master’s programme at the GIJ.
To date, over 100 students, including those from the GIJ, the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), the University of Ghana, as well as children of fallen heroes in the security services, have benefited from the scholarship award.
The Lebanese Community in Ghana has also engaged in several humanitarian and developmental projects in other sectors of the economy.
