In honour of the 75th birthday of cultural icon and matriarch of the Marley family, Rita Marley, her foundation has announced the inaugural launch of the Rita Marley Scholarship.

The scholarship which will be given annually is geared towards the empowerment of women from the lower socio-economic stratum of Jamaica’s society and will be awarded to three recipients.

The scholarship will target two women pursuing careers in nursing and a single mother, who experienced teenage pregnancy.

This single mother will be selected from applicants who are currently enrolled at the Women’s Centre of Jamaica (or similar institutions) who desire to pursue further education.

Mrs Marley, beloved globally as an entertainer and humanitarian, was herself a nurse.

Upon meeting (and later marrying) Bob Marley, their joint passions for music, spiritual self-actualization, and the upliftment of disenfranchised people became the basis for a vision that fueled the careers of Bob Marley & the Wailers, I-Threes, and Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers. 

This vision also inspired the various enterprises that comprise the Marley Group of companies, including the Rita Marley Foundation, which she founded.

Details of the scholarship application process

A call for applications will be conducted using an online portal accessible to applicants via the Rita Marley Foundation website.

This portal will be used to guide the selection process by utilizing a means test.

Participating applicants, parents or guardians will submit applications for the program via the online portal only. After which interviews of the shortlisted applicants will be conducted to further evaluate the prospective beneficiaries.

Upon completion of the selection process, the Foundation will make the disbursements directly to the institutions where the awardees are enrolled.

The deadline for submissions is Monday, August 9, 2021. Full details and application are available here: https://forms.gle/jwftDnj7JjPotSaZA

The Rita Marley Scholarship is one of several activities being done to celebrate the reggae icon.

The grand finale is a live stream that airs on Sunday, July 25th, to coincide with Marley’s 75th birthday at 5 pm eastern / 4 pm Jamaican time on Tuff Gong Television’s official YouTube channel.

Beginning at 5 pm EST viewers will be able to tune in to enjoy a behind the scenes peek at the Bob Marley Museum’s new Rita Marley Exhibition (curated by Berette Macaulay), a mini-documentary, new music videos, and an exclusive airing of the Rita Marley: Mystic of a Queen Concert.

This is in addition to the premiere of the digitally remastered Africa Unite Concert; all interspersed with greetings and well wishes from friends and family.

Performers and participants featured during the week of festivities include Marcia Griffiths, Judy Mowatt, Queen Ifrica, Tessanne Chin, Tanya Stephens, Nadine Sutherland, Ernie Smith, DJ Sunshine, Mitzie Williams, Odessa Chambers, Carolyn Cooper, Tova Hamilton, Coleen Douglas, and the Jamaica Youth Chorale.

About the Rita Marley Foundation

The Rita Marley Foundation is an organization that works towards the alleviation of poverty for people of developing and less developed countries. Long-term, the foundation aims to eradicate poverty and hunger in specifically selected communities using as its tools: empowerment of those community members through the creation of economic investments, educational opportunities, the development of knowledge and proper practice in nutrition and health care.