A 15-year-old girl from Mombasa, who became a mother at a young age and was forced to drop out of school, can now see a brighter future for herself and her six siblings thanks to a scholarship.
The girl, Mwanamkuu, had to abandon her education to care for her child and siblings after her mother disappeared and her jobless father was largely absent.
According to the original account, about half of the children in Africa miss out on school due to various barriers, and Mwanamkuu's situation was further complicated by her early pregnancy and the need to support her family through menial jobs.
However, with the help of reigning Miss World Kenya Evelyn Njambi, who awarded the siblings scholarships, Mwanamkuu's younger sisters can now return to school.
Maridhia, the third-born sibling, expressed her gratitude, saying, "I was imagining my future as going into a big hole where no one could help me out. A girl without an education is nothing in this world. Education is everything."
The siblings are among the approximately 5% of Kenyan children who have been helped to access free primary and secondary education by organizations like Bridge International Academies over the past decade.
Bridge International Academies has supported over 10,000 children in Kenya to attend school since 2009, focusing on vulnerable and poor children who are at risk of being excluded from the education system.
Evelyn Njambi emphasized the importance of reducing the chances of children leaving school early or without basic literacy and numeracy skills, saying, "Reducing the chance that children leave school early or without basic literacy and numeracy skills is clearly important but which interventions work best, with whom and when?"
The recovered account cited reporting by Tuko.
