By Godwin Bonge Muhwezi
Over 20 tutors and lecturers from Regional Flagship TVET Institutes (RFTI) from Ethiopia, and Tanzania have been selected to be awarded the EASTRIP-China TVET Scholarship to pursue post graduate studies in Science, Technology and Engineering at top Universities and Technical Colleges in China.
The Scholarship is a joint partnership between The People’s Republic of China through the Ministry of Education, the World Bank and the Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA), the EASTRIP Regional Facilitation Unit.The nominated candidates went through a rigorous multilevel selection process involving the college management, and IUCEA, before they were forwarded to the China Scholarship Council, and Chinese universities for further selection and award of the scholarship. Among those forwarded to China Scholarship Council, 10 were from Ethiopia, 8 were from Kenya, and 6 were from Tanzania. Among the nominees, 9 applied for PhDs and 8 for master’s programmes out of which 7 were females.
A tutor and students at Arusha Technical Polytechnic College
Through the Scholarship Programme, which commenced in the academic year 2020/21, 37 scholarships have already been awarded to tutors and lecturers from 16 RFTI. The TVET Institutes are part of the East Africa Skills for Transformation and Regional Integration Project (EASTRIP), funded by the World Bank and Governments of Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania to increase the access and improve the quality of TVET programs in selected Regional TVET Centers of Excellence and to support regional integration.
The Scholarship Programme is part of the Project’s effort to build capacity of TVET Institutions in East Africa to deliver quality and demand-driven TVET programmes in key growth sectors of the economy including Manufacturing, Agro-processing, Energy, Infrastructure, and Information and Communication Technology (ICT).
The Programme is expected to offer 100 scholarships to qualified young lecturers who are currently teaching in the RFTIs over a period of five years to pursue master and PhD level study at top Universities and Technical Colleges in China. The Scholarship is open to both male and female students from Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania under the age of 35 years for master’s Programs and under the age of 40 years for doctoral programs.
The Writer is the Project Communication Officer for EASTRIP at IUCEA.