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Announcements

In September, Banaa welcomed our second scholar, Mo Hassan! Mo is studying on a full Banaa scholarship at the
University of Rochester.
Click here to learn more about Mo!

In April, the Clinton Global Initiative honored Banaa and Makwei at their annual CGI-U conference. Click here for the story!

Banaa has received over 170 applications since our first call for applications in 2008! Dozens of qualified peace-builders are awaiting scholarship opportunities. Bring a scholar to your campus!

Mo Hassan


Age: 22 years old

The University of Rochester

Freshman (enrolled Fall 2010)

Possible MajorPeace Studies or Economics

You can contact Mo at mo.hassan@banaa.org

Mo grew up in a small town in Darfur near an African Union peace- keeping base. After school, Mo would talk to the soldiers. When he realized that many of the troops were speaking the language that he had heard on the television, he asked them to teach him. Mo’s English skills proved invaluable: when he was 16 years old he got a job working for a construction company that builds bases and manages supply logistics in Darfur. Mo was a savvy and reliable employee, and quickly rose from digging ditches to managing water purification in Nyala, the second largest city in Darfur. His American colleagues encouraged him to apply for college, and helped him find and apply to the Banaa Scholarship program. Mo wrote excellent essays on the need for basic infrastructure – health, water, electricity and transportation – to promote peace through development. As a Freshman, Mo has quickly become a popular and dynamic contributor to campus life at the University of Rochester.

"By ensuring there are good roads…Once people are able to travel without constraints, then we will have a better Sudan. Building hospitals and schools helps people to live peacefully, because once people are educated and healthy, they will value peace."

–Excerpt from Mo’s Banaa Application Essay

University of Rochester