Seven Malawians awarded Fellowships for Higher Level Study in Ireland

Seven fellowships to study at higher level educational institutions in Ireland have been awarded this year to Malawians working with Irish Aid partner organisations. Ambassador Liz Higgins held a reception on the 5th of August for the seven fellows congratulating the candidates on their success.

The fellowship programme aims to strengthen capacity of Irish Aid partner organisations, and offers the opportunity to the individual beneficiaries to develop their own skills and experience, as well as their employing organisation – improving their own capacity to deal with the pressing issues and challenges facing Malawi.

This year we have fellows for the first time from the Malawi Human Rights Commission and the Malawi Investment and Trade Centre. They will join fellows from the Malawi Police Service, the National Statistics Office, and the Evangelical Association of Malawi – demonstrating a focus this year on organisations operating within the governance sector.

“The aim of assisting the Government of Malawi to deliver better governance, human rights and accountability is a key part of the Irish Aid programme in Malawi. We view these forces as powerful drivers of progressive reform – building resilience and promoting sustainable development”, said Ambassador Higgins.

She continued, “we hope that organisations can make the most of capacity building measures, such as our Fellowship programme, to improve their service and delivery for the people of Malawi. For them to be effective, they need to be guided by the principles and standards of accountability and transparency, commitment to gender equality and human rights”.

The fellows underwent a rigorous selection process. Those awarded Fellowships are committed to returning home to resume work and put their acquired skills into practice for the benefit of their ministry or organisation and the wider community.

This year’s group brings to 40 the total number Malawian students who have benefitted from the Irish Aid Fellowship Programme.