Accra, July 3, GNA - Thirteen of Africa's brightest students from across the continent are benefiting from scholarships granted by the Western Union Foundation in 2005-2006 to help them continue their postgraduate studies.

Western Union through the Western Union Foundation has given scholarships to these talented students to celebrate its 10th anniversary in Africa, according to a statement from Western Union received in Accra on Monday.

"Encouraging this new young elite, is one way for Western Union to support the emerging generation of leaders who represent the future of the continent," it said.

It said more than 100 undergraduate students in Science, Economics, Human Resources, Engineering and Business coming from 10 French and English-speaking countries applied for the Western Union Foundation scholarship.

The names of the selected beneficiaries were communicated by the end of 2005 by the Association of African Universities (AAU) in Accra and the African American Institute (AAI) in New York, both members of jury, which selected the most promising students among all applicants. Mr Kofi A. Boateng, Chief Operating Officer of AAI, stressed the importance of such initiatives, saying the future of Africa lay in the development of its human capital.

The 100,000-dollar scholarship fund was awarded to 13 promising students willing to continue their studies in any African University. The statement said one of the main criteria for their selection was the quality and creativity of an essay which should discuss how education can develop Africa in general and how, in their specific case, pursuing a post-graduate degree would benefit their own communities and countries.

The Universities of Ghana, Kinshasa in DRC, Ngaoundere in Cameroon, Cocody in Abidjan, Al Akhawayn in Morocco, Obafemi Awolowo in Nigeria, Cheikh Anta Diop and CESAG in Senegal, as well as the National Agronomical Institute in Tunisia are some of the institutions selected by the students.

The students were awarded up to 10,000 dollars donations each, based on their needs, to cover tuition, fees and daily expenses. 03 July 06