Help Rami get to Germany to build a future.

Hello, I’m Rami Al Danaf, a 23 years old Lebanese student. For the last 4 years of my life I have been struggling to achieve my dreams. I have been working really hard as a waiter in a resto-pub in order to be able to pay the fees of the Arab Open university in Beirut, Lebanon (AOU). My work shift was at night starting from 4:00 pm till close which means 2:00-3:00 am (depends on the work). So my day starts in attending my university classes, continues at work and resumes all over again without a break. All that hard work was for only maintaining my higher education. Since my working hours were so long and in Lebanon we lack the transportation means, I took a car loan in order to afford buying a car that will help me in transitioning from university, work and home.

In June, 2020, I have decided to apply to BERLIN SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND INNOVATION (BSBI) for BA in Economics and Business Administration with Foundation Diploma, a 4 years program. I was so excited to apply for a university in Germany because I got an invitation last year to study the German language for 40 days in Horizonte, Regensburg. In July, 2019 I completed level A1 in German language with a certificate. During my visit, I asked for universities in the country to apply to, but they asked for an additional semester in my university back in Lebanon in order to continue my studies in Germany. A week later, after completing the application, I got an acceptance letter from the university with all the documents needed for the registration office and the visa papers. They asked for my certificates, personal ID documents, course transcript records, passport pictures, and many others. But at first, to ensure my scholarship in the university I should pay a down payment of 2,000 EUROS. From here the problem has appeared, I couldn’t transfer the amount from any Lebanese account.

The deadline for transferring the down payment was till the end of August.2020. I took all my savings which were in Lebanese pounds and while transferring them to euros they didn’t reach 500 euros. Because of that, I reached for help to a friend of mine that I know from work, who has a bank account outside Lebanon. She was able to transfer the down payment for the university from her account and for a mean of support she accepted to take the payment in Lebanese pounds on a moderate rate between the official bank rate and the black market.

From the documents that they asked for, was the blocked account by EXPATRIO or FINTIBA. These blocked accounts are especially for international students that doesn’t come from EU countries. It is approximately a total of 10,500 euros, which are mainly the living cost in Germany for one year. This is the last document needed in order to take an appointment in the German embassy in Lebanon. On the other hand, I have already started my online courses with the university from the beginning of November,2020.

I am fundraising for my fees of 4,200 EUROS per year (3,900 euros tuition fees plus 300 euros installment plan which is 30 euros for a 10 months period)and the blocked account of 10,500 EUROS for one year. So that is a total of 14,700 Euros. I would appreciate any help you can give.

Saving by myself would take a lifetime concerning all the economic problems. I know I have lost a lot, on the financial side and on a personal side. I am ready to sacrifice the four years that I have lost from my life and start all over again from scratch in a new country. Receiving the acceptance letter from BSBI was like a new life offer and a hope to rebuild my future. Honestly, I’m out of options and this is my last chance.

If you would like to know a bit more about me…

I know that you are wondering why couldn’t I complete my university studies in 4 years? The answer is that because of my long working hours and depending on my monthly salary I couldn’t afford to pay more than 3 courses per semester (the minimum courses allowed in my university). In addition to that, I didn’t register in the university for a full year because of many national economic problems that my country encountered. In March,2019, I returned from my university to home in the afternoon in order to change my clothes and get prepared to go to work. I have parked my car and went home, few minutes later, I heard the neighbors screaming that there is fire and smoke coming out from my car. The civil defense, fire fighters, couldn’t come at time, and by that I have lost my car. Unfortunately, the insurance didn’t help at all, they only closed the car loan and took what was being left from the car.

For those who don’t know about my country Lebanon, here is a brief explanation about what is going on. On October, 17, 2019, a revolution has risen in facing the corrupted political system. For a total month during the revolution, all the companies, stores, schools, restaurants have closed their doors and sacrificed with their future to revive Lebanon’s pride. In that period, the economic cycle started to fall apart then decreased rapidly. That affected hardly our Lebanese currency in which our Lebanese pound is linked to the American dollar, consequently the black market dominated on the economy. About 70% of the population has lost their jobs in that time, including us. My family was already struggling financially but with the economy crisis, they lost their jobs completely. Speaking on my behalf, my salary was on a fixed monthly rate but after that it became per shift, which is a big loss. I was working every day and now my maximum is 2-3 days per week. For further explanation about the loss, my shift nowadays is 50,000 LBP (Lebanese pounds) which equals to 5.80 $ (American dollars). This rate is in respect to the black market since the banks lack dollars. Before October, 2019, my shift was worth 33.30 $, which is a moderate average to manage my education and basic life expenses. In this live example you can imagine how hard it is to build a future in my country.

Above all these problems, in the beginning of March.2020, the first case of COVID-19 has tested positive in Lebanon. So like all the countries in the world, a lockdown has been announced by the government in the whole country. Moreover, the companies that were still alive and suffering since the revolution, COVID-19 took their last breath completely. Some of the employees were working half time and taking half salaries even though a full salary is worthless due to the high living cost and the huge decrease in the value of the Lebanese currency. Months passed by and the crisis is exaggerating more and more.

On August, 4, 2020, a blast explosion happened, in the heart of the city Beirut, the port. All the worldwide media has assembled the huge explosion to Hiroshima. Off course, the damage affected the buildings, cities, cars, and even villages that are away from the city, but the biggest and hurtful damage was psychologically. Every Lebanese suffered, either by losing a family, a beloved one, a friend, or a coworker.

This strike killed our hearts and dreams for a better Lebanon. I used to work and study to reach my goals, in the meantime I am only surviving days and aiming for a safer country. That’s why applying to BSBI was like a ticket to achieve my goals. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity that I wouldn’t miss but I can’t take up because I don’t have the tuition fees.

I really need and appreciate your help. I have 4 weeks to reach my target because the German embassy in Lebanon will be giving appointments to new applicants starting from the beginning of January,2021.

If you have any question, please feel free to ask. (WhatsApp +96176033678)

Blocked accounts: https://www.expatrio.com

And https://www.fintiba.com

University website: https://www.berlinsbi.com