FAWEMA, Mastercard Foundation Launch $22 Million Initiative to Expand STEM Access
MZUZU, Malawi — The Forum for African Women Educationalists in Malawi (FAWEMA), in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, has inducted another group of beneficiaries into its $22 million (about K38 billion) Higher Education Bridging and Scholarship Programme, a six-year initiative designed to expand access to STEM education for 1,350 vulnerable young people across Malawi, writes Tionge Hara.
The programme, which runs from 2024 to 2030, aims to support 1,350 vulnerable young women and men from rural and marginalized communities to pursue science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) degrees at six universities—four public and two private.
The 750 students inducted are part of the programme's overall target of 1,350 beneficiaries.
Speaking during an orientation session for beneficiaries at Mzuzu University on Tuesday, FAWEMA Executive Director Wesley Chabwera said the programme is designed to help academically gifted students who have been disadvantaged by limited learning resources in community secondary schools.
“We are targeting rural, marginalized young people who ordinarily wouldn’t have this opportunity,” Chabwera said. “They went to community secondary schools where they lacked access to better learning facilities like laboratories, qualified teachers and teaching materials, but they are gifted.”
He said FAWEMA conducted nationwide outreach campaigns through radio, television, community media, traditional leaders and churches to identify deserving beneficiaries.
Before enrolling at university, selected students undergo a bridging programme to strengthen their academic skills and prepare them for the demands of STEM degree programmes.
The scholarship covers full tuition fees, accommodation, meals, monthly stipends, laptops, mentorship and psychosocial support throughout the beneficiaries’ university education.
Mzuzu University Deputy Vice-Chancellor Dr. Simeon Gwayi welcomed the initiative, saying it addresses the academic challenges many students from under-resourced schools face when entering science programmes.
He also noted that while the Higher Education Students’ Loans and Grants Board supports many needy students, some eligible learners from rural areas miss out because they lack access to information or fail to meet application deadlines.
“This programme bridges that gap by preparing students to cope with rigorous university science courses while increasing the number of disadvantaged students accessing higher education,” he said.
One of the beneficiaries, Chisomo Kaluwa Matchere from Rumphi District, described the scholarship as life-changing.
“I was not expecting to have a chance to go to university because of the financial challenges I was facing,” Matchere said. “Given this opportunity, I am so excited. My promise is to work hard so that I can bring something back to impact my community.”
FAWEMA and the Mastercard Foundation are rolling out orientation sessions across participating institutions, including Mzuzu University, the University of Malawi (UNIMA), the Malawi University of Science and Technology (MUST), the University of Livingstonia (UNILIA) and the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), as part of efforts to build Malawi’s next generation of scientists, engineers and innovators.