KINGSTON, Jamaica – Minister of Education and Youth Fayval Williams, has commended the NCB Foundation for its support to the education sector through its annual bursary programme.

“I am very pleased to see organisations such as the NCB Foundation investing in the lives of our future leaders. As we [transform] education, we love to see our corporate [partners] change with us as well,” she said.

The minister was speaking at a ceremony for the presentation of an $8.7-million bursary, which will enable qualified secondary-level students to sit the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations (CAPE).

The function was held on March 20 at the NCB Wellness and Recreation Centre in Kingston.

The support will cover approximately 1,600 examination sittings.

Chief Executive Officer of the NCB Foundation, Sheree Martin, said that the entity has been funding the sitting of information technology (IT) subjects since 2019, and will be expanding its support for technology to ensure that students are equipped with the skills needed to participate in the growing digital economy.

“I am proud to say we are taking another step forward. We are now investing in Computer Science Education at the CAPE level in both units 1 and 2. By doing this, we are ensuring that Jamaicans have the advanced skills to succeed in a world that’s increasingly digital and tech-driven,” she noted.

Beneficiary of the programme and St George’s College student, Lexington Jones, said the support has been invaluable in his academic journey.

“When a company like NCB, through its Foundation, commits to providing bursaries for students sitting IT and computer science, it augurs well for nation-building… I am a testament of the benefit of the subsidy; it has been a blessing. Again, I want to thank NCB for thinking about me, thinking about the youth, and playing its part in building a better Jamaica,” he said.

Since commencing the bursary programme in 2003, the NCB has invested more than $243 million in bursaries covering 113,000 examination sittings for students in both public and private schools.

These include Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH) beneficiaries and wards of the State.

Ninety per cent of students must qualify to sit the exam in order for a school to benefit from the bursary.

-JIS