RECORDER REPORT

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund has provided an endowment of Rs 2 million to the National University of Science & Technology (NUST) Trust Fund, here on Friday.

The endowment will be used to establish a scholarship fund for the benefit of eligible students enrolled at NUST. The scholarship to be known as Italian Development Corporation/PPAF Scholarship Endowment Fund will be managed by the NUST Trust Fund.

The NTF Endowment Scholarship Funds shall serve as dedicated fund for the benefit of those deserving students enrolled at NUST in its Undergraduate program of minimum four years duration and /or Postgraduate Program who are unable to afford the fees/costs of the said program from their own resources. The financial assistance will be in the form of fees waivers or scholarships on a semester or annual basis.

Financial assistance from the scholarship will primarily be extended to students from Balochistan who have received an unconditional offer of admission or are enrolled at NUST and students who satisfy the criteria for award of Financial Aid at NUST as per Financial Aid policies of NUST.

Dr Domenico Bruzzone, Director of Italian Agency for Development Cooperation at the Embassy of Italy found the collaboration to be a direct reflection of the Italian Government’s long standing development investments in Pakistan.

He said, “The Programme for Poverty Reduction (PPR) is meant to promote stability and prosperity in the challenged border areas of Pakistan, and this fund will provide an essential demographic segment-the youth, with access to such prosperity.”

Qazi Azmat Isa, CEO PPAF, expressed his gratitude to the Government of Italy for their contribution to the Fund. He further stated that the contribution will provide access to quality education for students from the most underprivileged areas of Pakistan.

The PPR is financed by the Government of Italy through the Directorate General for Development Cooperation and is aimed at transforming the lives of poor and marginalized communities by establishing a social and productive infrastructure system supported by sustainable social safety nets.