FOLLOWING the death of her parents who were her sole providers, Lois Bayigga had lost all hopes of ever completing her Biomedical Laboratory Technology degree at Makerere University.

"After my parents' death, life changed. There were lots of uncertainties. I was worried about how the next day would be, how we would get along, how we would continue with school," she says.

At the time of her parents’ death, she was remaining with one year to complete. She had always been so brilliant that even the death of her parents did not deter her performance, but the future was certainly bleak. Then a saviour, in form of Madhvani Foundation, showed up.

Bayiga now works with the Women's Hospital in Bukoto as a laboratory technician.

She is one of the hundreds of students who have benefited from the Madhvani Foundation scholarship scheme that recently announced a sh550m package, the highest so far in the foundation's history. "I encourage all the needy students, not to lose hope. Hard work and perseverance will always see you through," Bayiga advises.

Most of the beneficiaries have similar backgrounds.

...