Airtel Africa To Support Meritorious Students Across 14 Countries

Airtel Africa, through its Airtel Africa Foundation, has unveiled ‘Airtel Africa Fellowship Program’, to support meritorious students across 14 African countries.

The Fellowship is designed to support students from Nigeria, Kenya, Malawi, Uganda, Zambia, Tanzania, Rwanda, DRC, Niger, Chad, Congo B, Gabon, Madagascar and Seychelles, enrolled in the Bachelor of Science in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM) in Zanzibar. Starting with an outlay of $500,000, this program will benefit 10 undergraduate students, for their entire course duration of four years.

Recipients of this scholarship will be known as ‘Airtel Africa Fellows’. They will receive 100 percent of their college fees i.e. $12,000 as per the course fee structure of the Institute for a 4-year program.

Additionally, to cover the living expense cost, $500 will be given to all eligible students. This initiative will aspire to transform, shape lives and nurture future leaders who will contribute to technological innovation and economic growth of Africa.

Commenting on the fellowship scheme, Zanzibar’s minister of Education and Vocational Training, H.E. Ms Lela Mohamed Mussa said, “IITM Zanzibar is charting a wonderful path in technical education in the region. Providing access to this high quality education to students from Tanzania and the rest of the continent, who are topping the IITM Zanzibar screening and test processes, through financial assistance, is an important priority for us. We are thankful to this support from Airtel Africa Foundation, which will enhance our own efforts in this direction.”

The chairman of the Airtel Africa Foundation, Dr. Olusegun Ogunsanya said, “We are pleased to partner with IIT Madras Zanzibar to provide opportunities for young Africans to access quality education. This initiative aims to contribute towards creating a prosperous and sustainable continent. We look forward to creating even more opportunities not just in education, but also in financial and digital inclusion, and environmental protection”.

The director of IIT Madras, Prof. V. Kamakoti added, “IIT Madras is committed to establishing a world class campus in Zanzibar. We are delighted that Airtel Africa Foundation is joining hands with us in this effort. We look forward to welcoming the second cohort of bright young students to the IITM Zanzibar campus this year. We are immensely grateful to Airtel Africa Foundation for providing financial assistance for these future global leaders.”