The KCB Foundation has given scholarships to 1,000 needy students who sat the 2022 KCPE examination. The students are set to join Form 1 between February 6 and 13.

The award of scholarships follows the completion of a nationwide exercise to identify deserving students. The beneficiaries were picked from vulnerable and marginalised families, with 100 slots allocated to Persons with Disabilities and 50 per cent to girls.

KCB group director of Marketing and Communications Rosalind Gichuru on Monday said the foundation seeks out academically gifted but needy learners. Gichuru said the Foundation’s focus is on learners who are vulnerable because of various circumstances.

She said this could include marginalisation, orphan hood, disability or harmful cultural practices as well as gender or disability. “We do this by going beyond paying tuition fees to providing mentorship and later, apprenticeship at our branches,” Gichuru said.

The KCB Foundation has set aside Sh100 million for the scholarship programme. The funds will cater for tuition fees for the four years, uniforms, transport, set books, regular mentorship sessions and psychosocial support.

“We are keen on going all the way with the students who receive the scholarship. By the time they enter the world of work, they will be prepared and equipped with the skills and experience needed to make it in a quickly-evolving world,” Gichuru said. For this cohort, KCB Foundation received more than 10,000 applications, the highest since the programme’s inception in 2007.

The 2023 class will form the 16th cohort of the scholar’s programme, including the 1,962 students currently in school.

Beginning with last year’s class, all the high school beneficiaries who sit the KCSE examination receive 100 per cent school fees support through tertiary scholarships.