Region Two GOAL outreach attracts hundreds of applicants

Hundreds of Region Two residents have signed up for the Guyana Online Academy of Learning (GOAL) scholarship programme during an outreach at the Charity Secondary School and the Anna Regina Town Council, Region Two.

On Friday, Minister of Public Service, Sonia Parag led a team from GOAL and her ministry, to enlighten persons on the various courses offered and assist them in filling out the application forms.

Several applicants expressed their appreciation to the government for making available programmes that will help them advance their academic skills.

Tushanna Deochan, 18, of Charity Housing Scheme, said “I think it’s a good idea they made to do this for some people who don’t have education or they didn’t get to do CXC … I applied two months back and I got through with the engineering scholarship.”

Another applicant, Paulette Budburgh of Capoey Lake is happy after applying for a scholarship on Friday and she encouraged others to utilise the opportunity.

“I wrote CXC, I did Mathematics and English. I got grades but not too up there so when I heard about this programme, I just feel happy to come and sign up and do the online programme, because it’s a very good thing and I would encourage young people,” Budburgh relayed.

Meanwhile, 37-year-old Susannah Vetencourt received her Diploma in General Management through the GOAL programme and is once again applying for another course to further elevate herself.

She said, “I am so happy about this. The study is so good and I want to do a next course [and] I am going to move on to the masters.”

“To me, the programme is very beneficial to the younger folks as well as the older ones because there are many older folks out there that didn’t get the opportunity to finish school or complete their secondary education,” another prospective scholar, Romeena Lall stated.

Thirty-two-year-old Diamond resident, Compton Hinckson and a current University of Guyana student noted that it does not hurt to widen his scope of studies.

Meanwhile, Minister Parag in her address at the Charity Secondary School urged residents to make use of the opportunity and invest in themselves to take part in the national development.

“It is very important that we take this opportunity because we want to be able to have a more qualified and skilled population. As we move from there, the Ministry of Public Service has its own scholarship programme but that is geared towards selective scholarship,” she stated.

The GOAL scholarship programme is a collaborative effort between the Ministries of Education and Public Service, which aligns with the government’s commitment to delivering 20,000 online scholarships during its first term in office.

With some $1.8 billion allocated to further advance the GOAL Scholarship programme this year, the administration is well on track to surpass the 20,000 scholarships promised in its manifesto.