Meet the AdAmi Project’s First College Scholar

Two years ago, Nasiratu had dropped out of secondary school and been forced to leave her family home when she became pregnant. But, she is now the AdAmi Project’s first college scholar, being supported to study business management at university.

Nasiratu had dreamed of becoming an accountant or nurse before she became pregnant. But when her boyfriend denied responsibility for the baby and her family threw her out of the house, Nasiratu had no other option but to become a house girl for a friend in Bo. She was given food or lodging as payment, but that left her without the means to pay for medical support during her pregnancy. Ashamed of her situation, Nasiratu lost all self-confidence and retreated into herself.

But thanks to a scholarship from the AdAmi Project, Nasiratu was able to return to school, which was a ‘dream come true’ and ‘restored her hope’, she says. Her return to education persuaded her parents to allow her back into the family home, and thanks to the family mediation support from the AdAmi team, their relationship is much improved.

Nasiratu also received mentorship support from Auntie Miatta, which helped increase her confidence and, she believes, has positively shaped her character and helped her to make wise life-decisions. ‘I came to realise my potential when I was recruited in the AdAmi Project’, she says.

Nasiratu’s progress since then has shown what great potential she indeed has. Going on to finish her schooling, Nasiratu has passed her final exams with flying colours. With only 5% of students taking the West African Secondary School Certificate in Sierra Leone passing them in 2019 and 2020, Nasiratu’s performance is exceptional. With funding from the AdAmi Project, Nasiratu has enrolled to study Business Management at university, meaning her aspiration to become an accountant is again within her grasp.

But Nasiratu is more than just back on track: her journey has given her understanding and experiences which she would never have had without the AdAmi Project. Now not only can Nasiratu build a career for herself, but she is inspired to help other girls do the same. ‘I hope to one day become a mentor like Auntie Miatta’, she says, so she can ‘encourage other girls to focus on their books and study, to make something of their lives and not become reliant on men’.