Starting in 2025, Africa STARS Fellowship was established as an advanced training initiative to nurture and develop the next generation of high calibre scientists, innovators, policy makers and health care leaders in Africa.
Africa has the fastest-growing young population in the world, projected to make up nearly half of the global youth by 2100. Currently, young Africans have limited formal employment opportunities – a challenge that is expected to intensify as the continent’s workforce expands to over a billion people in the coming decades. Compounding this issue, Africa bears a disproportionate burden of epidemics, with frequent outbreaks of infectious diseases.
To address these urgent challenges, we must focus on building capacity and cultivating the next generation of young leaders in Africa who are well-prepared for employment, employ more Africans, and capable of addressing emerging and reemerging health crises. The proposed Mastercard Foundation Fellowship Programme, known as the African STARS Fellowship Programme (African STARS), seeks to meet this need by enhancing African expertise in genomics, diagnostics and vaccine design, while also working to retain skilled professionals in the sector.
