Vodacom Lesotho offers 50 scholarships

VODACOM Lesotho Foundation in partnership with Udacity will provide 50 Nanodegree programme licences to Basotho. The licences valued at M800 000 will be given to Basotho between the ages of 22 and 35 years. The 50 scholarships will cover subjects such as cloud computing, programming, artificial intelligence (AI), and data science and will run over a period of eight months. Applications opened yesterday and will close on April 20. These licences will grant access for the in-demand tech opportunities such as Programming for Data Science with Python and Business Analytics. The aim of this new scholarship opportunity, jointly funded by Vodacom Lesotho Foundation and Udacity, is to bring job-ready educational opportunities to Basotho in the tech sector. “The critical differentiating factor with Udacity’s Nanodegree programmes is that it provides training, education, and experience using in-demand skills that Basotho can develop more quickly compared to education through traditional certification programmes,” John Matlosa, the Vodacom Lesotho Foundation’s Board Chairman, said. Being part of a technology company, he said, digital career transformation is at the top of their agenda. “This collaboration offers an opportunity to help bridge the digital skills gap, offering Basotho youth access to developing much-needed digital skills and thereby increasing their employability and stimulating career growth,” Matlosa said. “We envision that this collaboration will help develop a more representative workforce in Lesotho, particularly in today’s top tech jobs,” he said. Another vital factor that sets these educational opportunities apart is that the learning material developed for these courses is designed to incorporate real-world projects which must be completed. This, he said, gives the student both theory and practical application of the subject, enabling them to be more ready to enter the workforce and be functionally capable to perform well. The courses are aimed at students, regardless of their current role or educational status, who are looking to improve or change their career trajectory.The courses are available online and have flexible accessibility, with 24-hour support from mentors.