By IANS,
New Delhi : USAID has announced a two-year $2 million grant to the US-based Tibet Fund for a Tibetan educational project.
The project will work in cooperation with the Dalai Lama’s government-in-exile among others to improve the quality of educational opportunities for Tibetan primary and secondary students in India and Nepal.
USAID India Mission director William Hammink said: “The US government is committed to assisting Tibetan refugees in the region.
“Both the Department of State and USAID support cultural preservation and sustainable development in Tibetan refugee communities through numerous programmes.”
To enable a larger number of Tibetan students to access costly and competitive higher educational opportunities, The Tibet Fund will expand the Central Tibetan Administration’s college scholarship programme and provide test preparation and coaching for secondary students.
The project will also establish a counselling programme for students and strengthen administration of Tibetan schools.
India is home to some 100,000 Tibetans, including the Dalai Lama, who fled his homeland in 1959.