It has been a productive 5 years for the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at the University of Gondar. With the aim of educating 450 talented youth with disabilities and disadvantages from Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa the Program has come upon its 6th year and has come a long way in inclusion and creating Africa’s next generation of transformative leaders.
The Scholars Program, to continue on this upward trajectory, has pledged to increase the momentum of the work being done. To this end it has called a preliminary meeting of all staff members to reacquaint them with program goals and the way forward.
When speaking on the road ahead Dr. Molalign Belay, Co-Director of the Scholars Program at UoG, shared his optimism and delight in the work being done by all of the staff members. However, he shared that to reach its true potential, the Program will need the consorted effort of all team members to go above and beyond our own expectations. “Although a lot of success have been measured in the Program in the past 6 years, there is still a lot to be done to accomplish so much more” said Dr. Molalign. The Co-director gave a PowerPoint presentation on the values, goals and current standing of the Program and later allowed the floor to all staff members to take part in discussions and suggestions.
The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program focuses on creating a more sustainable and more inclusive environment for some of the country’s most marginalized and often overlooked groups. With a keen eye in establishing the University of Gondar as a center of excellence in inclusiveness, the Program staff are constantly creating opportunities to institutionalize the Scholars Program’s vision. Hence the Program, after the end of the Project period, will have the chance to give the many more talented youth with disabilities and disadvantages in the country with quality education in one of the more forward-thinking inclusive campus environments in the nation.
