The National Research Foundation (NRF) and Energy Mobility Education Trust (EM Education Trust) have partnered to advance skills development and training of postgraduate students.

The partnership, which spans a three-year period, aims to strengthen the responsiveness of the country's National System of Innovation to the energy challenges it is facing by developing innovative skills development programmes, promoting inclusive and diverse skilling of highly qualified individuals from traditionally marginalised groups and contributing to the transformation of the South African education landscape.

The partners will specifically focus on helping black and female persons, as well as persons living with a disability.

Some of the immediate outcomes of the partnership will be the establishment of an Education Trust Scholarship programme, which will promote academic, scientific and technological cooperation by supporting full-time studies for South African postgraduate students at the honour’s level for the first year of the partnership and inclusion of master’s and doctoral levels from 2024.

The EM Education Trust has championed the attainment of formal qualifications in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects and commerce for more than eight years.

“However, we recognise the dearth of funding of postgraduate studies. As such this complementary and strategic partnership with the NRF strengthens our position and commitment to narrowing this gap. Additionally, our partnership will augment the much-needed innovation in developing and managing the current and emerging renewable energy systems," says EM Education Trust CEO Vuyo Mwase.

The programme will start with the provision of funding opportunities for 38 honours students for the 2023 academic year with an initial investment of R6.8-million.

Funding for postgraduate students will be made available in the STEM disciplines with a specific focus on mathematical science, data science, computer science, the green economy, renewable energy and climate change studies.

The first phase of the programme will support students from the universities of Fort Hare, Limpopo, Pretoria, Witwatersrand, Western Cape and Johannesburg.

“The scholarship programme comes at a critical time as South Africa strives to respond to energy and climate change challenges amongst many other national concerns.

“This partnership is aligned with national policy goals on higher education, science, and technology such as the strengthening of human resource development and the creation of an enabling environment for innovation in South Africa,” comments NRF human and infrastructure development acting executive director Dr Mbulelo Ncango.