First Mutual and Africa University took their relationship to a higher level as the two signed a memorandum of understanding on the 17th of March 2022 at the First Mutual Office Park in Harare, for the provision of scholarships valued at USD 17,000 per semester to talented but underprivileged students, beginning with the August 2022 cohort. The scholarships will cover tuition, board, technology fees as well as meals for the entire duration of the student’s four years of study.
The initiative comes at a critical point in the lives of Zimbabwean youths and the continent as many families recover from the devastating impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic that has set many students from financially disadvantaged backgrounds behind. The partnership also compliments Africa University’s on-going efforts to empower the most underprivileged of our communities and provides First Mutual Group a unique platform to facilitate community transformation and directly impact the lives of those in need.
In remarks delivered on behalf of the Acting Vice Chancellor Rev. Professor Peter Mageto, Interim Deputy Vice Chancellor Professor Pamela Machakanja said,
Africa University values strategic partnerships that are deliberate and intentional and help to guarantee the sustainability of the institution. First Mutual Group is joining a group of partners that have helped in ensuring the sustainability of the university .”
First Mutual Group CEO Mr. Douglas Hoto referred to Africa University as a strategic partner with whom mutually rewarding and continent-wide collaborations could easily be forged. He emphasized that this scholarship facility, which falls under his organization’s corporate social responsibility program, is strategic as it enables First Mutual Group to contribute meaningfully to the Education 5.0 framework that currently shapes Zimbabwean higher education initiatives.
Also present during the signing ceremony was the Africa University Zimbabwe Development Committee Chairman Mr. Denias Zaranyika, who stressed the value that strategic partnerships bring to the growth and development of the University and thanked the Group CEO for choosing Africa University ahead of many other tertiary education institutions in the country as a partner of choice.
The six students to benefit from this scholarship facility will be selected through a highly competitive process in which both partners will evaluate and select the most promising candidates.
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