BY SULTAN JESSA
Montreal – Quebec – Education has been and always will be top priority for this Montreal Ismaili family.
“No one can take away your education,” explains Richad Jiva Lila, pointing to the famous saying seek education from the cradle to the grave.
Richad, originally from Madagascar, and his wife Sairoza from Mozambique met in Lisbon, Portugal, in 1989 and moved to Canada from France in December 1994.
The couple has two children Zarha and Rahim.
Rahim, born in 1998, distinguished himself during the final examination of International Baccalaureate (IB) from College Brebeuf, widely regarded as one of the best secondary school in Quebec.
He had a perfect score.
Each year, students in the second year of the IB program must undergo a series of rather complex examinations.
In the last round of exams, Rahim distinguished himself with a perfect score.
Other well known graduates of Brebeuf include Canada’s President Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Julie Payette, astronaut and Canada’s incoming Governor General, Sonam Kapoor, a Bollywood actress and daughter of famed Bollywood star Anil Kapoor and also Princess Raiyah bint Al-Hussein, daughter of King Hussein and Queen Noor of Jordan.
Rahim, 19, has an exemplary school career.
After spending four years at Regina Assumpta College in Montreal, he went to Portugal to finish high school at the Lycee francais de Lisbonne.
During his brief stay in Europe, Rahim discovered a passion for the economy and the humanities.
This prompted him to enroll in College Brebeuf in the IB program.
“I chose to study economy and went to Brebeuf because it is an institution of excellence where professors guide students and where intellectual curiosity is valued.”
Rahim has developed a sound philosophy with regard to academic success.
Rahim was surprised to learn that he had obtained a perfect mark at the final BI exam.
According to available information, only 0.1% of the graduates of the program do so.
When he received the news, he was in Portugal on holidays with the family.
“I was extremely surprised.”
Since the start of the school year, Rahim has been attending the Desauteis Faculty of Management at McGill University.
He is doing a bachelor’s degree in commerce.
“I am determined to pursue a career in the humanities,” he said. “My goal is to use my knowledge for the benefit of humanity. I would ultimately like to work for a major institution that promotes social progress and development.”
His sister Zarha graduated in science from McGill University and Biomedical Engineering at Polytechnique Montreal.
This biomedical engineer works for Zimmer Biomedical.
Her dream is to do an MBA.
Richad is currently finalizing his MBA executive at McGill-HEC University in Montreal.
His wife Sairoza graduated from UQUAM in education.
Richad emphasizes Sairoza is the “pillar for his family, guiding and motivating achievements.”
Ismailimail 