For Franco Tumuhimbise, an accountant at the East African Business Week, if it was not for the Madhvani scholarship, he would perhaps be a petty trader in Mbarara.

Tumuhimbise tells the story of how he grew up in a poor family in Mbarara where his parents only supported him up to primary six. Thereafter, he survived by living in a makeshift tent for six years.

A good Samaritan then took over educating him up to senior four. After doing odd jobs in Mbarara, Tumuhimbise sat for his A-level exams at Kabale hall in 2005 where he passed and was admitted to Makerere University for a degree in Law on private sponsorship.

Unable to pay the fees, he opted for a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration at Mbarara University of Science and Technology. But while this course was more expensive, Tumuhimbise says the admission terms were more negotiable than at Makerere.

“At least I was able to teach in a nearby primary school to have my tuition paid. But with time, I failed to balance teaching and my studies and opted for gambling”.

And that is where the Madhvani Foundation scholarship came in handy.