Isaac Mayenkay Scholarship Scheme
Isaac Mayenkay Scholarship Scheme
Who We Are
Mabohanday Organization is a registered, community-rooted nonprofit with 501(c)(3) status. One of the main objectives for its establishment is to expand educational opportunities for children from low-income families in Sierra Leone. We focus on awarding scholarships, mentorship and readiness so that every child, regardless of background, can learn, thrive, and contribute to the country’s future.
Students Supported
We invest in students who will give back, as leaders and as servants of their communities.
OUR STORY
The Story of Our Scholarship Scheme
The scholarship scheme was established by the Maryland Chapter in 2012. We started with 150 students in secondary/high school. After two years, we suspended the program due to the outbreak of the Ebola pandemic. Because of the economic downturn caused by the Ebola pandemic in 2014, the Government of Sierra Leone introduced free tuition in elementary and high school.
In the 2022/2023 academic year, we restarted the program and elevated it to tertiary education. A Scholarship Committee was established and decided to focus the program on medical students in the College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences (COMAHS), because Sierra Leone lost many medical doctors during the Ebola pandemic. With limited resources, the committee started with seven (7) students in 2022/2023. In 2023/2024, that number increased to fifteen (15).
In the 2024/2025 academic year, due to the progress and excellent performance of the Maryland Chapter, the Mabohanday Federation stepped in and took over the program. This happened during the 40th Anniversary hosted by the Maryland Chapter on August 22nd, 2024. When the Federation took over, the committee was broadened so that every chapter was represented. With increased resources, the leadership expanded the program to include law students. That year, medical school awardees increased to twenty-six (26) and the new intake from law school was seventy-five (75), bringing the total to one hundred and one (101) students.
WHY OUR WORK MATTERS
The Importance of the Scholarship Program
Many families in Sierra Leone struggle to cover the true cost of education. The average Sierra Leonean lives on less than one dollar fifty cents ($1.50) a day, with inflation at its highest in recent years. The high cost of schooling, including tuition, exam fees and school materials, pushes too many students, especially girls, out of the classroom or into dropping out. Removing this heavy financial barrier will tremendously help students complete their studies and become productive citizens in society.
Established
Medical Students
Students in the Program
Law Students
OUR MISSION
To break the cycle of poverty by investing in the education, well-being and leadership potential of Sierra Leone’s most underprivileged and underserved communities.
How We Fund Our Education Program
HOW WE FUND OUR WORK
Our program is powered by generosity and collective commitment. Funding is mobilized through:
- Voluntary contributions from Mabohanday Federation members across all chapters.
- Fundraising events in the US, the Netherlands and the UK.
- Support from philanthropic individuals and organizations worldwide.
- Inclusive outreach across all backgrounds
Scholarship Requirements
Who can apply
- At least one of the applicant's parents must be a Limba.
- Verification of the parent's identity: the village, chiefdom and district he or she hails from.
- A first-year medical student at COMAHS is qualified to apply.
- A second-year law student at FBC, UNIMAK and Njala University law schools is qualified to apply.
- All applicants must complete the comprehensive Mabohanday Organization Application Form.
- On-the-spot interviews are carried out by officials to determine qualified students.
- Completed applications of qualified students are submitted to the Scholarship Committee for scrutiny and approval.
Awards and program rules
- The organization pays full tuition scholarships to all qualified medical students.
- Partial scholarships are offered equally to law students across the board.
- The annual partial scholarship amount for law students depends on the resources available.
- For proper accounting and accountability, all payments are made by check.
- All students must submit their annual progress report to the coordinator, who forwards it to the Chairman of the Scholarship Committee.
- Any student who fails to be promoted in a given year loses their scholarship and is not qualified to reapply.
- Failing to submit an annual progress report results in withdrawal of the scholarship.
- A scholarship will be withdrawn from any student found to have falsified their identity.
- The annual budget of total student expenses must be submitted to the Chairman of the Scholarship Committee no later than October 31st each year.
OUR SCHOLARS
Meet the Students You're Helping
Behind every scholarship is a real student with real dreams. These are some of the young people the Mabohanday Scholarship Program has supported, proof of what our togetherness makes possible.
