Star Student: Letter of Thanks from a Grumeti Fund Scholarship Recipient

One of the main objectives for Singita's community development programmes is creating a generation of well educated children. This usually takes the form of supporting early childhood development, but another very important aspect of this goal is further education. The Singita Grumeti scholarship fund invests heavily in the education of local youth in Tanzania, and has enabled hundreds of young people to complete their schooling, as well as tertiary-level diplomas and degrees.

The recipient of one such scholarship is Matatizo Peter Kastamu, who wrote to the Grumeti Community Outreach Program recently with news of his accomplishments and expressed gratitude for the opportunities afforded to him by the Fund. Here, Mr Kastamu tells his story in his own words:

Matatizo Peter Kastamu

Hello Mr Richard and the Community Outreach team at Singita Grumeti!

It's my great pleasure to write this email and share with you my good news that, without you, perhaps could not be achieved. I am happy to inform you that I will be away to the Brandenburg Technical University in Germany for the International Academic Conference on Heritage Landscapes for two weeks . I will be presenting a paper on the theme of 'Conflict Solving Strategies in Historic Urban Landscapes' with the title: 'Urban tourism as user-group reconciliation strategy in the historic urban landscapes in Tanzania'.

I still remember your positive contribution towards my academic achievements which have allowed me to be selected as one of the best postgraduate students that have been selected to attend the international academic conference. In order to get this chance, there was a big competition that involved 560 Masters and PhD students all over the world. We were asked to write a research paper that involved various topics around historic landscapes and heritage management. In this competition, only 13 participants were selected and among them were only two Africans, including me and a student from Egypt.

I will be representing the Tanzanian postgraduate students, and this could not be achieved without the positive contribution from Singita Grumeti who offered me a scholarship to study a B.A. in Tourism and Cultural Anthropology. Thank you very much and I wish one day after the completion of my M.A., I may come and say hello to the COP team and the Singita community.

All the best in reaching your targeted goals and God bless you Regards Matatizo Peter Kastamu

Mr Kastamu is from a village called Mariwanda in Bunda district, a part of the Serengeti that is covered by the Grumeti Fund's Community Partnership Programme. He received a full scholarship (which included tuition fees, books and stationery, meals and accommodation, faculty requirements, field practical training and research) to study at Tumaini University Iringa from 2010 to 2013. Mr Kastamu achieved an excellent 3.8 GPA and went on to intern at Singita Grumeti before working as a Research Assistant for the Cultural Tourism Project at Iringa. He is simultaneously completing his Masters in Tourism, Culture and Society at the University.

Adult education has been a key focus of the Grumeti Fund, and it is wonderful to hear such a wonderful success story from a past recipient of the scholarship programme. To find out more about Singita's community partnerships in Tanzania, please visit our website.