A Step Toward the Future: Seven Students, One Great Hope

On September 3, this year’s graduating primary school students celebrated the completion of their studies. Family members, young and old, gathered for the ceremony, and representatives of the school’s supporting organizations also joined this joyful occasion. The seven students, dressed in outfits specially tailored for this important day, proudly and happily received their certificates.

Today, however, the time has come for the exams that may determine their future. They performed very well in the preliminary examinations, so we are hopeful that today and tomorrow they will once again do their best, remain focused despite any distractions, and be able to concentrate fully. The results of their performance this week will be published in November on a nationwide online list.

If they do well in their exams, the door to further education will open for them. If they do not, however, the girls may soon be married off by their parents, and when we return next year, they may welcome us with a small child in their arms in one of the remote bomas out in the bush.

A poor examination result can be equally decisive for the boys. Instead of continuing their education, they may be given a herding stick and return to the semi-nomadic way of life of their parents.

Today, however, our hearts are filled with hope that all the years these young people have spent studying have not been in vain, and that their perseverance through often difficult and challenging circumstances will bear fruit.

We are deeply grateful to the sponsors who have supported these children and their families and helped them come this far. But their journey is not over. They continue to need significant support so that they can take the next step in their lives and move forward toward a better future.