Imbuto Foundation and the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China have reached a Memorandum of Understanding to jointly support Rwandan youth to pursue secondary education.The MoU was signed, yesterday, at Imbuto Foundation offices in Kigali by the Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda Shen Yongxiang, and Radegonde Ndejuru, the director-general of the Foundation.The MoU formalises a partnership agreement in which the Embassy of China will provide scholarship support to the tune of $32,400 (about Rwf21 million) to benefit 108 disadvantaged students over the year 2014."The funds will be channelled through the China-Africa People-to-People Friendship Action launched by the People’s Republic of China to promote cooperation and exchanges between non-governmental organisations, women and youth from China and Africa,” the statement said.Launched in 2003, Imbuto Foundation’s Scholarship Project provides financial support to bright but disadvantaged students who fail to pursue secondary school education due to the lack of tuition.The initiative supports an average of 1,000 beneficiaries with school fees, health insurance, uniforms and scholastics.An estimated 5,862 scholarships have been awarded since 2005. Sponsors range from banks and private sector companies to individuals, NGOs and now, partner countries.The Scholarship Project is in line with Imbuto Foundation’s vision of a society with a prosperous, educated and healthy population, which echoes the country’s long-term development aspirations in Vision 2020.The project selects within a pool of poor students enrolled in public schools who obtain an average of at least 70 per cent in their grades, with boys and girls having equal chance to benefit.The project has a side component, focusing on the reintegration of a small group of adolescent girls and young women who have dropped out of school and wish to resume their secondary level education.