Scholarship For Virgins: 16 Girls Awarded Scholarships After Passing Virginity Test

A mayor in South Africa awarded scholarships to 16 girls because they
are virgins, according to the Associated Press, which said the young
women have voluntarily abstained from sex and have agreed to undergo
regular virginity tests to keep their scholarships.

Uthukela Mayor Dudu Mazibuko said the funding will be renewed "as long
as the child can produce a certificate" saying she's still a virgin.
"To us, it's just to say thank you for keeping yourself and you can
still keep yourself for the next three years until you get your degree
or certificate," Mazibuko said.

The reason this community — located in the eastern South African
province of KwaZulu-Natal — introduced the scholarships is because
young women are more vulnerable to exploitation, teenage pregnancy,
and sexually transmitted disease, according to Mazibuko. Teen
pregnancy is a major issue in South African, where 22,286 girls
between the ages of 10 and 19 became pregnant in 2013, according to
research from a professor at North-West University in South Africa. A
survey by Statistics South African found that 5.6 percent of South
Africans girls between the ages of 14 to 19 were pregnant in 2013, the
Associated Press reported.

At least one group in South African is taking issue with the virgin
scholarships. Mfanozelwe Shozi, chairman of the Commission for Gender
Equality, said the mayor's intentions are good but the scholarship is
ultimately discriminatory. "There is an issue around discrimination on
the basis of pregnancy, virginity and even against boys," he told the
AP. "This is going too far."

source: omojuwa.com/2016/01/scholarship-for-virgins-16-girls-awarded-scholarships-after-passing-virginity-test/