Correspondent|Gays and Lesbians Association of Zimbabwe (Galz) will bankroll a scholarship program that will take members of the lesbians, gays, bisexual transgender and intersex (LGBT) community enrolling for higher education.
The organisation has started receiving applications from potential students across the country for next year’s first semester.
In an interview the GALZ national Director Chasterfield Samba, said they want to help the under privileged members of the LGBT community.
“It will be a five year project that provides equal access to education within the LGBT community; we have noted that many of members who are financially incapable of paying for school fees are shunned by the community because of their sexuality. We will also add
those of transgender sexuality on the program.
Besides their sexuality, LGBT people do have capacity and can do the same or even better than those who are said to be ‘normal’. We have to give a helping hand to them, our first group’s number will be guided by the response we will get from applicants and as time goes on we will add the numbers” he said.
The scholarship programmes will cater for food, tuition, accommodation, stationery, transportation among other expenses that are incurred during their studies.
Students will enrol in local state universities from the beginning of the coming semester, next year.
Samba said they will closely look and vet the applicants so that they curb misrepresentation and chancers.
“We will develop a strict criterion to pick our students. There might be chancers who will misrepresent their sexuality because they want a scholarship, we will come up with measure to get the right people for the platform,” Samba said.
Galz regional co-ordinator Tadios Munyimani echoed the same sentiments with Samba.
“Education is for everyone and members of the LGBT should not be sidelined, those who are failing to advance with their studies should be helped to achieve their goals, and we expect them to come back and plough back into the LGBT community,” Munyimani said.
M&T