Angie Motshekga, Minister of Basic Education of South Africa, thanked the UAE Government for offering scholarships to South African students at Khalifa University while asserting that the UAE has become a regional centre of innovation and excellence in education, science and technology.

The South African minister made her remarks during a meeting with Mahash Saeed Al Hameli, UAE Ambassador to South Africa, in her office, to discuss the bilateral relations between the UAE and South Africa. Motshekga expressed her happiness at the meeting and her readiness to enhance future cooperation in basic education between the two countries.

Al Hameli explained the educational system in the UAE and suggested cooperative basic education programmes while noting the scholarships offered by the Khalifa University of Science and Technology in Abu Dhabi, through academic programmes that guarantee a monthly stipend and cover the expenses of 16 engineering master’s programmes and PhD programmes in petrol geology.

Al Hameli then highlighted the importance of encouraging and benefitting from the cooperation between academic institutions in both countries and exchanging expertise, noting that the UAE hosts over 150,000 South African citizens, who are ambassadors of the African community.

He also affirmed the importance of signing a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, related to higher education, to discover cooperation opportunities and encourage both governments to establish further ties, especially in youth education.

Source: WAM