In February 2010, Develop Africa provided full scholarships to 2 students - Fana and Naomi, students at Omega Training Institute (OTI) in The Gambia.  They are both enrolled in OTI's Office Administration course. The course lasts between 9 months to 18 months or more depending upon the progress of the student through the course.
 

Fana Jobe (age 17) comes from a Muslim family. Her father who is now deceased worked for the Dept. of Water Resources in the Gambia. She lives with her mother, a housewife and petty business woman. She has four brothers and one sister. She completed middle school (Grade 9) and would like to pursue a career in office administration.

Fana started her course in January 2009 and was unable to pay for her fees.
Consequently she requested sponsorship and she was permitted to continue her
course until sponsorship could be found. She was a beneficiary of a gift to the
Institute which covered her fees for two terms in 2009. This amount from Develop
Africa covers her fees for another two terms until she completes her course.

Naomi Cham (age 23) comes from a Christian family. She lives with her parents and 4 sisters and 1 brother. Her father is a Mason and her mother does housecleaning. She is the eldest in her family. She would like to work in a bank when she completes her office administration course. Presently, she has a part‐time evening job as a study teacher to children aged 6-7 years to help with her family situation.

Naomi started the course in early part of 2009 and dropped out because she did not
have money to pay for her fees. She was asked to come back as sponsorship is now
available through Develop Africa to enable her to continue her course. The balance
amount would cover her fees for another three terms until she completes her course.

A portion of their scholarships was provided through funds raised by Tiffany Jung, Columbia University.  Read more about Tiffany ...

Here are quotes from their brief thank you video clips - watch here:

“My name is Naomi Cham. I am a student at Omega Training Institute I am studying secretarial office administration and I would like to thank Develop Africa for their support.”

“I am Fana Jobe a student of Omega Training Institute. I’m studying Office Administration and I would like to thank the Develop Africa for the help that you give us”.

Read a thank you / appreciation letter from Fana's mother (pdf)

Omega Training Institute (OTI), formerly Omega Typing School and Omega Skills Centre and, was opened on 5th July 1989 by WEC International, a Christian Mission. The Institute was handed over to private ownership in November 2003 and is a recognized registered Training Provider by the National Training Authority of the Gambia.

OTI provides training to those who have completed middle or senior secondary school, employees who have no formal training, or people who wish to acquire a particular skill for a specific field of study.  OTI also provides work experience for those already trained to prepare them for the world of work as office assistants, receptionists, computer operators, and other related positions.