I first found
out about Africa's Tomorrow (http://www.africastomorrow.org/) through a post on the Peace Corps Ghana facebook
page. Started by a Ghana RPCV, the program selects three to six girls each year
from rural areas throughout the entire continent of Africa and offers them an
interest free loan to go to university in America. The loan is 100% forgiven
provided the girl returns to her home country within six months of graduation;
if she chooses not to return immediately, she can instead opt to pay back the
loan in monthly installments until she chooses to return, at which time the
remaining debt is forgiven. Africa's Tomorrow aims to select candidates who
want to further their education so that they can use it to improve lives
in their home countries.
When I first heard
about this program I immediately thought of my student Nihad. She was one of
the smartest girls I had ever met, a leader in many clubs at the school, and a debate
national champion. I discussed the program with her and she immediately
expressed interest. She wanted to go and study business administration with
three goals in mind: 1) Start a business in her home town near Wa to provide
employment. 2) Focus on employing women as a way of empowering them and
encouraging girl child education in an area it is not considered necessary. 3)
Become a lecturer at SHSs and universities
to share her knowledge with her community.
After an application
which involved four essays by her, four essays by me, a letter of
recommendation from another teacher, and her school records, followed by a
month and a half of waiting, I recieved an email from Africa's Tomorrow. Nihad
was one of six women selected this year, and the only one from Ghana (other
represented countries include Lesotho, Swaziland, and Cameroon). Needless to
say, there was a large amount of celebrating going on that day!
The process is
still ongoing. Now Nihad will have to take the TOEFL, apply to the university
(the program partners with Berea College in Kentucky but she can apply to other
schools as well), apply for a passport and visa, and prepare herself for a huge
new chapter in her life! If all goes according to plan, Nihad will be studying
stateside starting fall 2014.
-Alana
