Education Financing through Volunteering Resource Networking in Tanzania: Supporting the Disadvantaged Students

Abstract

Education has never been free in human history. There are various costs associated with its access and management.  In some countries, governments have waived or abolished school fees, yet families take care of indirect or other supportive school requirements. Although the government of Tanzania abolished fees from primary to Secondary education in 2016, parents have been paying school fees at advanced secondary education. As a result, students from disadvantaged communities have been facing a great challenge in attaining advanced secondary education.  Hence, in January 2018, Dr. Msuya Scholarship Award was founded to support disadvantaged students. This study used the mixed research approach to collect data.  A total sample of 91 participants was used including 64 beneficiaries, 11 heads of secondary schools, 15 parents and 1 scholarship coordinator from Dr. Msuya Foundation. The findings indicated that the scholarship successfully supported 111 students who were able to complete their advanced secondary education. Out of those, 93 passed and joined various higher learning institutions for further learning. The scholarship raised community awareness on undertaking collective responsibility in financing education. It promoted the spirit of unity and charity. The study recommends collaborative approaches to finance education through mobilized community resources.