Cairo: In a heartening move, a 25-year-old student from Guinea has cycled 4,000 km (2,500 miles) across West Africa, to secure an academic seat at Al Azhar University in Cairo, capital of Egypt.
Mamadou Safayou Barry set off from his home country in May in pursuit of Iskakic knowledge and hopes of being accepted at the prestigious university.
Barry cycled for four months through the hot sun, bitter cold and countries under Islamic militants and coups.
Before heading to Cairo, he crossed West Africa, stopping in Mali, Burkina Faso, Togo, Benin, Niger and Chad.
He was arrested twice in Burkina Faso and once in Togo, but this did not dampen his spirits.
As per the media reports, Barry’s lack of funds for his flight prompted him to cycle to Al-Azhar.
Upon reaching Cairo on September 5, the Dean of Islamic Studies at Al-Azhar Al-Sharif, Dr Nahla Elseidy met him and offered him a seat in their Islamic Studies course.
Elseidy took to Facebook and wrote, “This support not only covers international students in Egypt but also extends abroad. Al-Azhar receives students from all countries, takes care of them, and offers them grants.”
He told the BBC that he was “very happy” to receive the full scholarship. “I cannot tell you how happy I was. I thanked God,” he remarked.
