The Government of India has expressed concern about the low uptake of fully funded training opportunities offered to Malawians under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (Itec) programme.
Indian High Commissioner Shri Amararam Gujar said Malawi is utilising only about 50 percent of the 150 short-term training slots offered annually to civilian professionals.
An additional 30 fully funded slots are also available each year for defence personnel.
“We have offered 150 slots, but only about half have been utilised so far. This is a lost opportunity because there is no financial burden on the beneficiaries,” Gujar said.
The Itec programme provides short-term professional training courses lasting between two and six weeks. The scholarships cover airfare, accommodation and other related expenses, making them fully funded. The courses are designed to build capacity in critical sectors such as public administration, ICT, engineering, finance, agriculture and other technical fields.
The concern over underutilisation comes at a time when India recently increased the number of long-term degree scholarships offered to Malawi under the ICCR programme from 20 to 30, an announcement the envoy made recently.
The ICCR scholarships cater for undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD studies.
In addition to Itec and ICCR, India also offers two to three fully funded Ayush scholarships annually in traditional medicine disciplines, including Ayurveda, Unani and Siddha, each lasting five years.
In an inyerview, Civil Society Education Coalition executive director Benedicto Kondowe attributed the low uptake of Itec opportunities to coordination and awareness challenges.
India’s scholarship programmes have previously benefited a number of Malawians, including former president Bingu wa Mutharika and Minister of Foreign Affairs George Chaponda, highlighting the long-standing educational ties between the two countries.
