The Embassy of the United States of America, in collaboration with the Mauritanian Ministry of Education, held a graduation ceremony of the eighth English Access Microscholarship Program this morning. The ceremony was hosted by the Nouakchott English Center (NEC) and the Acting Deputy Chief of Mission, U.S. Embassy in Mauritania, Ousmane Cissé presided.
This year’s program has enabled 120 talented students, ranging from 13 to 20 years old and representing different secondary schools in Nouakchott and Rosso, to take intensive English courses at the Nouakchott English Center (NEC) and Sahara English for two school years, in parallel with their regular studies, with the objective of providing them with a foundation of English language skills that may lead to better jobs and educational prospects.
The U.S. Embassy Nouakchott has covered all the expenses, including tuition, transportation, school supplies, and educational activities for two years. This represents a total funding of $120,000 USD in FY 2016.
Since 2007, 940 students have benefitted from the English Access Program in Mauritania. The U.S. Embassy works collaboratively with the Ministry of Education to continuously recruit participants for the program.
Each year, the best students of each Access Program are selected to spend three weeks in the USA under the Pan Africa Youth Leadership Program. This year, we are pleased to announce that four Access 7 graduates, accompanied by one of their teachers, have participated in the Pan Africa Youth Leadership Program. They spent three weeks in Washington D.C., Chicago, Illinois and Muncie, Indiana. We hope to offer the same opportunity to the best students in Access 8.
Nouakchott, October 27, 2016
