With an aim to provide educational opportunities to meritorious students from the disadvantaged background, Airtel Africa Foundation has announced the launch of 'Airtel Africa Fellowship Program'. The fellowship program has been introduced for the undergraduate students at IIT Madras Zanzibar which is the first-ever foreign campus established by an IIT.
The Fellowship aims to support deserving students from diverse socio-economic backgrounds enrolled in the Bachelor of Science in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence at IIT Madras in Zanzibar. It is designed to support students from 14 African countries, which are namely Nigeria, Kenya, Malawi, Uganda, Zambia, Tanzania, Rwanda, DRC, Niger, Chad, Congo B, Gabon, Madagascar and Seychelles.
What will the fellowship include?
The program will benefit 10 undergraduate students for their entire course duration of four years by offering an initial outlay of US$ 500,000. Recipients of this scholarship will be known as 'Airtel Africa Fellows'. They will receive 100 per cent of their college fees i.e. US $ 12,000 as per the course fee structure of the Institute for a four-year program. Additionally, to cover the living expense cost, US $ 500 will be given to all eligible students.
The Airtel Africa Foundation is dedicated to advancing digital and financial inclusion across the continent along with key focus on education and environmental protection. It was founded in 2024 with a vision to foster a prosperous Africa.
"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," noted Prof V Kamakoti, director, IIT Madras.