Bursary rollouts for ORT youths

SEVENTY-SIX bursaries will be offered to bright students from extremely poor homes by O R Tambo district municipality.

February 10 is the deadline for the bursaries, which cover tuition, accommodation and meals.

O R Tambo spokesman Ayongezwa Lungisa said: “The bursary was an intervention initiative to assist extremely impoverished families with children displaying good academic potential, whom are assisted to further their studies and improve their family’s socioeconomic livelihoods.”

He said: “The reality is that O R Tambo district municipality does not have industries. By affording these youths an opportunity to access tertiary education, this will eventually make them employable and even be able to open their own businesses.”

He said previous bursary beneficiaries had jobs and although some were still looking for work.

The bursaries will be awarded to deserving matriculants only from within OR Tambo district, who want to study medicine, accounting, finance, engineering, nursing, and environmental studies, as these skills were scarce and needed by the municipality.

“We specifically mention these fields as the crucial ones because the municipality lacks people with technical expertise. In the medical field, this municipality is a pilot district for the National Health Insurance (NHI) programme,” Lungisa said.

He said normally R2,5-million was set aside for bursaries every academic year and only those who had passed their matric are selected.

Applicants had to prove their social background and academic information and also provide proof of the employment status of their parents or official guardian.

Candidates had to provide a provisional or full admission letter from any recognised government tertiary institution. Closing date for applications is February 10. —