30 students to benefit from Malawi-Scotland scholarship programme
The Malawi Scotland Partnership is announcing a second round of its “Malawi-Scotland David Livingstone Scholarship Programme”, with an additional £100,000 (over MK66 million) invested by the Scottish Government.
This second year of the programme will support another 30 young, gifted and underprivileged Malawian students to study at a Masters level within Malawi.
Dr Matthews Mtumbuka, Chair of the Malawi Scotland Partnership said he is delighted to announce this second round of the Malawi-Scotland Livingstone Scholarship Programme.
“Already we can see the 37 current scholarships are not only benefitting the individual students but also the universities they are studying in and their wider community. Investments like this in Higher Education are essential for Malawi’s long-term sustainable economic development, and we are extremely grateful to the Scottish Government for their continued commitment to Malawi,” he says.
Humza Yousaf MSP, Scotland’s Minister for External Affairs and International Development sayseducation has a transformative effect on the lives of young people, “and that is why I was pleased to announce that following the success of the David Livingstone Bicentenary Scholarship Programme that the Scottish Government would provide funding for further 30 scholarships for Malawians to study at Master’s level were to be made available via the Scotland-Malawi Scholarship programme.
“It’s clear from my time in Malawi that, 150 years on from the work of David Livingstone and the Church of Scotland, there is still huge respect for the work of Scots in the country. That’s why it’s hugely appropriate that we are strengthening this legacy with these Livingstone scholarships. Just as education transformed the life of David Livingstone, it can do the same for every child. The Livingstone scholarships contributed to the education of 37 Malawian post-graduate students and I look forward to more students enjoying the life-changing benefits of further education.”
The SMP Trustee, Dr Jack Thompson, member Independent Selection Panel, and former Vice Chancellor of the University of Livingstonia adds that as someone who has worked in the Higher Education sector in both Scotland and Malawi he is very aware of the real struggle of many able young Malawians to find and fund places at University.
“These David Livingstone Scholarships are allowing a number of outstanding young Malawians to complete Masters degrees in their own country. Since one of the criteria for selection is relevance to the Malawi government’s development goals, the scholarships are enabling the successful applicants to make a meaningful contribution to Malawi’s future and hopefully further strengthen educational links between Scotland and Malawi.”
Every higher education institution in Malawi is invited to submit up to 15 students for the scholarships programme. An Independent Selection Panel (ISP), composed of four Malawian and four Scottish academics, will select the successful nominations.
“All aspects of the nomination and selection process will be fair, transparent and free from external influence. Not less than 50% of the successful applicants will be female students, and the process will be made as accessible as possible for those with disabilities. Preference will be given to individuals who, given this opportunity, will likely help build the capacity of higher education in Malawi, benefit the wider community, or advance strategic thematic priorities of the Government of Malawi” reads the statement.
The programme is already supporting 37 Malawian students. Malawian institutions benefiting from the program are: Chancellor College, the Catholic University of Malawi, the College of Medicine, Kamuzu College of Nursing, the African Bible College, the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, the Malawi Institute of Management, Mzuzu University, the University of Livingstonia, the Polytechnic and ShareWORLD Open University.
Full details about the nomination and selection process, and d-etailed information about all successful students are publically available at: www.tinyurl.com/DavidLivingstoneScholarships.
The Malawi Scotland Partnership (MaSP) is the Malawian umbrella organisation coordinating Malawi’s many links with Scotland. It exists to inspire the people and organisations of Malawi to be involved with Scotland in an informed, coordinated and effective way for the benefit of both nations, and has members right across Malawi.
The University of Edinburgh estimates that more than 148,000 Malawians and 85,000 Scots are actively involved in links between Scotland and Malawi each year, and that this work benefits over 1.38 million Malawians and 280,000 Scots annually.
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