Persons Living with Disabilities get Sh14m scholarships
Kenya Pipeline MD Macharia Irungu (second right) and KPC Board Chairperson Rita Okuthe (third left) hand over a dummy cheque of Sh14 million to National Council for Persons With Disabilities Executive Director Harun Hassan (on wheelchair) at the Kenpipe plaza offices, Nairobi on January 22, 2021. They were flanked by staff and students from Thika School for the Blind.
Kenya Pipeline Company Ltd has released Sh14 million towards 2021 scholarship programme for Persons Living with Disabilities (PWDs).
KPC Board Chairperson Rita Okuthe said that Kenya has many PWDs who cannot afford to pay for their education in public or private schools.
“The fact that PWDs are constantly needy, their other needs such as education are affected thus stunting their economic wellbeing and lifestyles,” said Ms Okuthe when she presented the scholarships to the National Council for Persons with Disability (NCPWD) at Kenpipe Plaza, Nairobi on Saturday.
The programme dubbed Inuka Scholarship programme, which was started five years ago, enables PWDs to access education, skills-based training and other economic opportunities.
The programme has two segments; Inuka Social Empowerment Programme that aims at enabling PWDs access skills-based training and other economic opportunities and Inuka scholarship programme that enables them to access secondary school education.
Since its inception in 2016, 376 students from needy backgrounds from all the country’s 47 counties have benefited from the scholarships programme.
Ms Okuthe said, KPC will continue to improve the lives of individuals, special groups, and communities across the country.
KPC MD Dr Macharia Irungu said access to quality education for every child is a requirement to spur the country’s economic growth.
Dr Irungu said KPC has spent Sh56 million since the programme was started, translating to Sh14 million per year.
He urged the beneficiaries of the programme to study hard.
NCPWD Executive Director Harun Hassan, who received the scholarships on behalf of this years' beneficiaries, said the council appreciated the collaboration between it and KPC.
“The Inuka initiative is transforming lives for many PWDs across the country,” he said.
