Building on a 23-year commitment to education, Higherlife Foundation (HLF) yesterday announced the launch of a new training fellowship for Junior and Senior Resident Officers employed at public healthcare institutions in Zimbabwe.
Since its inception in 1996, the Foundation has supported the education of over 250,000 students across Zimbabwe, Burundi, and Lesotho through its flagship education initiatives: the Capernaum and Joshua Nkomo Scholarship programs.
The Capernaum Scholarship has been running for the last 23 years and provides tuition to orphaned and vulnerable children from early childhood to tertiary education. The Joshua Nkomo Scholarship (JNS) was established in 2006 and awards scholarships to highly talented Zimbabwean students through a rigorous selection process, creating opportunities for them to study at local and overseas learning institutions.
Through these scholarships, HLF has seen many young women and men graduate as medical doctors who have provided healthcare services to our nation. In order for our healthcare system to continue having this continuous in-flow of doctors, it is important for Junior and Senior Resident Officers to complete their training within the designated time period.
With that in mind, HLF launched the medical training completion fellowship with immediate effect for those Junior and Senior Resident Officers who are in full time employment at public teaching hospitals within Zimbabwe. The scholarship covers those who are currently undergoing a Junior or Senior Resident program, with special preference being given to beneficiaries of the Capernaum and Joshua Nkomo scholarships.
The ZW$100 million Fellowship will last for the duration of 6 months, with funding contingent upon fellows remaining enrolled in their programs for that period and satisfying all requirements:
A1. Joshua Nkomo and Capernaum Scholarship Alumni practicing medicine in Zimbabwe public health institutions in the following roles:
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- Junior Resident Medical Officer
- Senior Resident Medical Officer
A2. Non Joshua Nkomo or Capernaum Scholarship Alumni practicing medicine in Zimbabwe public health institutions in the following roles:
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- Junior Resident Medical Officer
- Senior Resident Medical Officer
- All will be considered upon submission of an application to Higherlife Foundation
The ZW$100 million fellowship comprises:
A non-negotiable monthly subsistence allowance of ZW$5,000 (Five thousand Zimbabwean Dollars) per doctor for a maximum of 2000 doctors. This amount will be disbursed monthly and is subject to unilateral review by HLF.
- The monthly subsistence will be disbursed to qualifying Junior and Senior Resident Officers on proof of being on duty at the specified institution for the duration of the month.
- HLF will provide a smartphone as a tool of trade.
- A VAYA carpool voucher to access the hospital, at a maximum of 3 trips per day.
- Access to a ZW$10 million (Ten Million Zimbabwe Dollars)portion of this fund for: stethoscopes, patella hammers, uniforms and other diagnostic aids
- Higherlife Foundation will also undertake to provide WIFI at the major teaching hospitals in Zimbabwe.
This Fellowship opportunity has been shared with Joshua Nkomo, Capernaum, Junior and Senior Resident Officer Representatives and the Ministry of Health leadership.
They emphasised that this initiative is not from Econet Wireless Zimbabwe, or Cassava Smartech Zimbabwe.
A HigherLife Foundation representative said neither of these public listed companies’ management and boards were consulted on this matter.
“It has nothing to do with them. Higher Life Foundation is an initiative of the Masiyiwa Family Foundation. The support for this initiative will come from the family and its donor partners. Other members of the Zimbabwean corporate and donor community are welcome to approach HLF with a view to helping.
“For the avoidance of doubt this initiative was not developed in consultation with potential beneficiaries or their employer. It is a unilateral initiative of HLF, as are all our initiatives,” the HigherLife Foundation representative said.
Interested applicants can obtain the application form from the nearest Higherlife Foundation office. Higherlife Foundation offices are found in: Bulawayo, Chinhoyi, Gweru, Harare, Masvingo, and Mutare.