It is a dream come true for 33 students of the National University of Samoa (N.U.S.) who were awarded scholarships by the Yazaki Kizuna Foundation on Tuesday to finish their study programs.

For the student-recipients this means that the financial burden of paying for school has been lifted off their families. The students, who were awarded scholarships include 30 who would be doing foundation and undergraduate studies, while three will be doing their postgraduate studies.

One of the students, Tuanai Feagaiga Aofia, said she was grateful for the opportunity which minimises the financial burden on their families.

The Yazaki Kizuna Foundation is a non-profit organisation established by the Yazaki Company which had operated out of Samoa for 26 years. The scholarships are a way of giving back to the community.

Managing Director of the Foundation and Managing Executive Officer of the Yazaki Corporation, Junichi Kitami, said the program reflects their desire to support the students.

He added that it is also a gesture of appreciation to the Samoan people for the support they had given to the Yazaki Company during its 26 years of operation in Samoa.

“The Foundation was established to give back to our people through scholarships which does arm young people with knowledge to develop their families and community," he said.

The Foundation is currently engaged in two kinds of activity in Samoa. One is a scholarship program for students at the N.U.S. The other activity supports business projects in Samoa. They have also provided grants to Women in Business Development Inc. and the Lakapi Samoa.

The presentation at the N.U.S. on Tuesday also marked the first time the ceremony was held in person since 2018. It was hosted by the N.U.S. Vice Chancellor and President, Professor Aiono Dr. Alec Ekeroma and was attended by representatives of the company from Japan. Also in attendance was the Japanese Charge D’Affaires Kazuo Tsukada.

Former scholarships recipients gave testimonies of how the scholarship funding opportunity impacted their lives and that of their families.

The Japanese Charge D’Affaires expressed approval of the initiative by the Japanese firm saying this provided Samoa with hope for the future.