LEDI Provides More Scholarships
The Liberia Economic Development Initiative (LEDI) has provided fifteen (15) additional scholarships to impoverished students during the 2018 school year. The scholarships were awarded to elementary, Junior, Senior High school students as well as students of the University of Liberia in September of 2018.
According to Mr. Sherman Seequeh, LEDI Country Director in Liberia, the students were very excited to receive the scholarships from LEDI given their dire financial hardships.
LEDI has provided over 450 scholarships to impoverished students in Liberia under its LEDI Leann Peiffer Scholarship Program for impoverished students in Liberia.
Scholarship Sponsorship and Education Initiative
LEDI believes that illiteracy can be reduced by increasing access to institutions of learning through scholarships and other educational initiatives.
Why Illiteracy Exists in Liberia
According to USAID|Liberia website, the literacy rate of Liberia in 2010 was approximately 50%. This high illiteracy rate of the country is due to several factors including the lack of adequate educational opportunities in the country. As a result of high poverty and unemployment rates of 80% and 85%, respectively, many Liberian parents and caretakers cannot afford to send their children to school. This results in the vast majority of impoverished children growing up without the requisite education to earn a living and become productive members of society.
Additionally, harsh economic conditions force most children and adults to find work to survive, rather than pursue an education. Finally, the lack of free education throughout the country and ineffective educational programs in rural areas automatically disqualifies impoverished Liberians from participating in the existing education system. Illiteracy does not only directly contributes to poverty, but in many cases also leads to a lifestyle involving criminal activities. Therefore, to combat poverty head-on, the current trend of inaccessibility to education must be changed. Otherwise, countless families will remain stuck in the vicious cycle of poverty. LEDI wants to be a part of the solution and will work to guide Liberians along the path from illiteracy to educational development.
Our Solution
LEDI seeks to reduce illiteracy in Liberia in the following ways:
Provide annual scholarships to deserving kindergarten to college students.
Provide financial and material support and supplies to deserving students and institutions of higher learning.
Build schools, computer labs; and provide educational training and development facilities throughout the country.
Provide stipends, grants and incentive awards to teachers
Establish students, teacher, and institutional sponsorship programs
Establish sister school relationships between Liberian and foreign schools. We are therefore inviting you to support LEDI in its efforts to economically empower poor Liberians to overcome poverty through our scholarship and educational initiative.
