COMESA PRESS RELEASE

• COMMON MARKET FOR EASTERN AND
  SOUTHERN AFRICA – COMESA

COMESA OFFERS 18 SCHOLARSHIPS TO STUDENTS UNDERTAKING MASTER’S
DEGREE IN REGIONAL INTEGRATION
Lusaka, Wednesday 20 January 2021: COMESA Secretariat has awarded 18 scholarships worth
USD 50,100 to COMESA citizens who are students admitted to ursue a Master’s egree Programme
in Regional Integration at Kenyatta University of Kenya and University of Mauritius.
This sponsorship has been facilitated through support from the European Union and the
Organization of the African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) under the TradeCom II
Capacity Building programme. In 2010, the 28th COMESA Council of Ministers meeting decided
to establish a professional or graduate school on Regional Integration to foster cooperation in
research and development in the COMESA region in line with Articles 127 and 128 of the Treaty.
Following this decision, COMESA signed a Memorandum of Understanding with participating
Universities to offer training and undertake conventional researches as tools for analyzing impacts
and supporting innovations to address development challenges in the region.
According to trade experts at COMESA Secretariat, the two-year Masters of Regional Integration
programme is a unique multi-disciplinary professional course designed to build the capacity of
public sector officials working on trade, economic integration and international cooperation issues.
In addition, the programme is relevant to private sector stakeholders, including private
firms/organizations, media practitioners; chambers of commerce, manufacturer and consumer
associations. The programme is hosted by Kenyatta University and is to be offered in collaboration
with 21 other universities in COMESA Member States. So far, COMESA has signed a
memorandum of understanding with 6 universities, including Kenyatta University (Kenya),
University of Mauritius (Mauritius), Open University of Mauritius (Mauritius), ISGE (Burundi),
University of Zambia and University of Zimbabwe.
The programme offers tailor-made courses best suited to provide sound conceptual, policy and
practical training to foster all areas of integration in COMESA, including economic, social and
political integration. By expanding the pool of experts, the programme is expected to address
capacity constraints and strengthen implementation of various commitments, including legal,
economic, social and political areas in Member States. Commencement of this programme could
not have taken place at a better time than when Member States are engaged in multiple negotiations
e.g. the Tripartite Free Trade Area, the African Continental Free Trade Area, Economic Partnership Agreements with the European Union and other bilateral agreements, all of which
require high technical skills and evidence based analysis.
Based on the Scholarship Award Criteria, Kenyatta University received 13 scholarships in these
inaugural scholarships, whereas the University of Mauritius received 5 out of a total of 30 students
who have commenced learning under the programme. The students undertaking the virtual studies
in the two universities hail from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Mauritius, Rwanda,
Uganda, Zambia, as well as Ghana and South Africa.