Two full scholarships will be awarded to girls from developing countries to study in T&T, which, Malala Yousafzai says, is an example for the world.
The announcement was made on Thursday by chairman of the board of governors of the University of T&T, Curtis Manchoon, at a ceremony held in Malala's honour at the National Academy for the Performing Arts, Port-of-Spain.
Speaking at the event, Malala thanked UTT for the initiative. "Those girls in developing countries who have no access to education need support. This would help those girls to continue their education and get quality education in the good university here in T&T. Thank you so much for that."
The scholarships are being offered in conjunction with the Malala Fund, an organization founded by Malala to advocate for universal education. "I set up the Malala Fund to fulfill the dreams that I have to see every child go to school." She said the work of the fund was two-fold: raising awareness and doing ground work.
Malala commended T&T for its achievements in education, saying other countries should take an example from the twin-island republic.
"I'm taking this country as an example to tell the world that this is a country where education is free from primary to secondary to tertiary and children are even supported at university level.
Saying there were about 57 million children around the world who were out of school, she added, "I want to tell the international community to come together to learn from this country and to make sure that every child gets quality and free education...This is how every country should be."
She added: "In Kenya, there are so many girls who are out of school. One out of ten girls hardly gets the opportunity to go to secondary school. And in this country secondary education is totally free so I think you should be thankful for it."
Saying UTT had a lot to offer to the world through its wide range of courses, Manchoon said: "We look forward to an ongoing and mutually rewarding relationship with Malala and the Malala Fund as we offer these scholarships to scholars all around the world and right here in T&T. This would continue to take the message of Malala, UTT, and T&T all over the world."