[Source: US Embassy Suva]

24 teenagers from Wakanisila Settlement outside Suva will be part of a two-year English Access Micro-scholarship Programme.

U.S. Ambassador to Fiji Joseph Cella officially launched the program yesterday.

It aims to train local English teachers that will guide the 24 teenagers through a supplemental English course while learning life skills and participating in cultural activities.

Cella says this is the first Access program ever to be held in the Pacific and VisionFiji, a local NGO focused on children’s welfare, received a grant of $70,328 to manage the two-year program.

He is confident that by the end of the program, students’ English proficiency will be strong enough to help them attain their goals and participate in future exchanges and study in the United States.

Ambassador Cella presented the students with certificates and supplies to aid them in their studies which will begin on Monday observing all COVID-19 mitigation protocols.

Approximately 150,000 students in more than 80 countries have participated in the Access Program since its inception in 2004.