The Ministry of Technical and Higher Education (MTHE) has on Friday bade farewell to forty-seven (47) Sierra Leonean students in pursuit of their studies in Hungary.
The meeting was held at the Ministry's conference room, New England Ville in Freetown.
The 47 students would be going to Hungary and Venezuela for Masters and Undergraduate courses in different areas.
Welcoming the awardees, Director of Science Education at MTHE, Fatmata Kaiwa said the 50 students were the chosen ones because so many people applied for the scholarship, but they were awarded.
"It is a big responsible for you because you are going not only as students, but as ambassadors of Sierra Leone. So, your every action and behaviour would impact on Sierra Leone. I want to advise you all to be in good conduct when going out there and you should behave like ambassadors representing the country," she said.
Chief Executive Officer for Students Loan Scheme, Paul Amara, congratulated the Hungary scholarship awardees and said the 50 scholarships were geared towards complementing government's agenda to enhance quality education and human capital development in the country.
"I really want to express my pride in your selflessness to do all the needful from the application process. I also want to admonish you all that you have good people who have stood as guarantors for you, remember your commitments to pay back your loan as the ministry has obtained data from you as we would work with you," he said.
He told them that the ministry has the power to ensure that every tax payer's money that has gone into the loan to cover their tickets would be collected so that other people and students who deserve the ministry's support to promote the human capital development agenda of the government.
"Our journey has just started with the scheme and we will continue to work with you and the Hungary government," he assured them.
Hungary Counsel to Sierra Leone, H.E Jihad N. Eter, expressed delight over the bilateral relation between Sierra Leone and Hungary, especially in the area of education, referring to the event as an indication of the diplomatic dividends between the two countries.
He asked the students to go and study well and come back to help the country improve as the county needs more medical doctors, more business people and more people in other sectors.
He pleaded with them to return back to the country after pursing their studies.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
He assured the ministry and by extension the government of Sierra Leone of Hungary's commitment to awarding more scholarships to Sierra Leoneans in subsequent years, as they have started awarding scholarship to 47 students for the five years.
In addressing the students, Deputy Minister of MTHE, Sarjoh Aziz-Kamara said awarding scholarships to students clearly shows the commitment of the government to human capital development.
He said Sierra Leone was making significant improvement in the education sector,adding that when President Bio took office in 2018, he made commitment to one singular objective, to drive national development- human capital development.
"You will be going as ambassadors of Sierra Leone so when you go to those universities in Hungary, you have to excel and represent the nation well. But more importantly you have to ensure that the knowledge you gain, you bring it back to the country to support national development. President Bio has promised to make Sierra Leone a middle income country by 2039, so this scholarship is a free tuition. You will be given a monthly stipend, a medical insurance and accommodation," he said.
He said they have decided to give student loan scheme because President Bio believes that everyone has right to education, but noted that not everyone would afford it and that the ministry was implementing the student loan scheme to help those who cannot afford it.
