In yesterday’s edition of this paper, it was reported that the Students’ Revolving Loan Scheme is at consideration stage in the National Assembly. This scheme, as explained by the Honourable Minister for Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology, aims to provide an alternative funding source for students who are ineligible for government scholarships. This is to ensure broader access to tertiary education in the country.
There is no doubt that education is the fastest, if not the only, way to pull a country out of poverty into a developed one. This education has to be relevant to the needs and aspirations of the people of a country for it to fulfill the requirement for development. As in everything else, good and quality education is expensive and requires huge investments for it to be beneficial.
In a poor country like The Gambia it can be understood that not many citizens will have the required financial ability to pursue such education without help. This is why many brilliant and intelligent students end up cutting their studies short because they cannot fund it and have no other means of getting the required financial aid.
Although this problem affects everyone, it is more acute when it comes to girls and their education. Many parents do simply fall back on the idea that girls belong in the kitchen therefore they should go and get married. This results in their education being cut short, preventing them from realising their true potentials.
Cognisant of the problems education is faced with the country and the urgent need to address these for national development, the current minister for Higher Education, Prof Pierre Gomez, since taking office has worked tirelessly to improve the access to higher education.
His focus has been on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) as the need to transform the education system of The Gambia so that it can meet the purpose of development. That is why he and his staff have embarked on a series of efforts to bring skills education to all parts of the country.
It is true, these require huge funding and as individual citizens may not be able to keep up, they came up with the Students’ Revolving Loan Scheme to ensure that access is granted to all those who need it. If this goes through in the National Assembly, it will be the first step in transforming the education system of the country and by extension, its development as well.
