A fair path from vulnerability to opportunity

Daraja Scholars Program

Our bursary and scholarship program follows a transparent, government-aligned process for identifying and supporting the children who need it most — with built-in checks against fraud, favoritism, and unfair exclusion.

The Vulnerability Scorecard

Every applicant is scored 0–100 across five factors — orphan status, living conditions, academic standing, guardian status, and health — with deductions for households already receiving other support.

How is a child selected?

  • Names come from official Most Vulnerable Children registers, shared by Ward and Village leaders through the local government — never handpicked.

  • The Vulnerability Scorecard ranks need consistently, so decisions don't come down to who a family knows.

  • An unannounced home visit, plus a community check, confirms the facts on the ground before any funding is approved.

  • School placement, fees, and ongoing tracking of attendance, grades, and wellbeing — reviewed every year.

0–49

Referred

50-69

Waitlisted

70-100

Approved

Build-in Safeguards

Conflict of interest

The Tanzania Country Coordinator declares any personal ties to applicant families; HQ steps in on any conflicted case.

Privacy at community checks

Families choose whether their case is discussed publicly — no one is named without consent.

Right to appeal

Any family or community member can challenge a decision within 30 days — reviewed by someone not involved in the original score.

Sibling policy

Brothers and sisters are scored on the same household facts and, where possible, placed together.

Documentation fallback

A signed community affidavit can stand in for missing certificates, so paperwork gaps don't exclude the neediest children.

Annual review

Every file is reassessed each year, with clear rules for renewal and graduation from the program.