ZORZOR, Lofa County –  Youth Talk Liberia (YOTAL), a local non-profit organization operating in Lofa County has given out 30 full-tuition scholarships. The scholarships are worth over $90,000 LRD in value and were given to children between ages 5 and 15.

According to Titus Koikoi, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of YOTAL, the initiative is the organization’s way of identifying and responding to the educational needs of Liberian youth living in rural areas.

Children display book bags during the 2014 Make the Children Smile program in Salayea. Photo Credit: James Kwabo

“These children are mostly challenged with limited [access to] educational opportunities, that are most often [located] in the urban areas,” he said at a meeting with parents of scholarship recipients in Zorzor. “The 2015/2016 scholarship program targets the 30 best performing children from Zorzor and Salayea, who were selected as finalists at the Make the Children Smile program organized by YOTAL,  with sponsorship from Concern Worldwide-Liberia, from the 18^th – 19^th of December  2014.”

Koikoi also pointed out that the Make the Children Smile program targeted 100 children in Zorzor and Salayea districts and provided them with book bags along with Ebola prevention materials. Moreover, he added that the program also allowed students to engage and interact on issues related to their rights and responsibilities as children in line with the 1989 United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child and the 2011 Children’s Rights Law of Liberia.

YOTAL’s Board Chairman, Titus K. Koikoi. Photo Credit: James Kwabo

Similarly, the management of YOTAL has promised to strengthen the capacity of the scholarship beneficiaries by opening a tutorial class to enable students to meet the 85% benchmark set by the organization.

According to Weegie Kizzellee, the Deputy National Director of Operations at YOTAL, the program will also provide training in radio production and presentation techniques. They will work with the youth to “produce and present the organization’s proposed radio advocacy program named and styled, We have a Voice Too.”

Deddeh Gayflor, on behalf of parents, thanked YOTAL for the initiative and promised that the parents will be supportive of the efforts of the organization in ensuring that their children meet the 85% benchmark.

“No local organization or NGO has done this thing for us. We will not stop thinking about YOTAL even after the program,” Gayflor stated.

Featured image courtesy of Youth Talk-Liberia, Inc.