THE British government, through the British High Commission to Lesotho, is offering six Basotho a chance to further their studies in the United Kingdom (UK) under the one-year Chevening Scholarship Programme. The Commission has since invited “eligible and motivated” Basotho to apply for the 2015/2016 edition of the scholarships with entries closing on 15 November 2014. Chevening Scholarships are awarded to talented professionals from around the world, who are potential leaders, and offer them financial support to study for a Master’s degree at the UK’s leading universities.
Lesotho Times (LT) reporter, Lekhetho Ntsukunyane, this week spoke with the Commission’s Political Counselor, Susan Hewer, about the scholarships and the relationship between Lesotho and the UK.
LT: Could you please give us a brief background about how the Chevening Scholarships came about?
Hewer: The Chevening Scholarships started around 1984, so this year, we are celebrating 30 years of this programme. And from the beginning, Lesotho was part of the programme. Lesotho is a very important country to the UK as it is a member of the Commonwealth (former British colonies). And today, the scholarship is only available to developing countries, which makes Lesotho eligible as it has done for the last 30 years. So we have about 30 to 35 Basotho who have benefitted from this programme over the years, who have been given a second chance to further their studies through these scholarships. Normally, only one student goes to the UK under this programme, per year. But this time around, we are increasing the number from one to six for Lesotho. The programme offers a range of benefits: from expertise acquired from studying in one of the world’s leading academic destinations, to building lasting links with the UK, to becoming part of a network of 43 000 Chevening alumni from 120 countries from around the world. Successful applicants experience life in the UK and then return to Lesotho to put their newly-acquired skills and experiences to good use in their home country.
LT: What are the requirements for this programme?
Hewer: Eligible candidates must have a degree, which is equivalent to an Upper Second-Class Honours Degree in the UK, must meet the English language requirements, have at least two years work experience and meet the UK’s visa requirements. The deadline for applications is 15 November 2014 for 2015/2016.
LT: Why has Lesotho been so fortunate to have its intake increased from one to six?
Hewer: Well, the only answer is that this year, we have extra money for development assistance, and we have decided to spend that money on scholarships. So each developing country that qualifies for the Chevening Scholarship has had its number increased, and we hope that next year, it will be the same increased figure.
LT: You mentioned that about 30 Basotho have gone through the programme over the last 30 years. Do you make a follow-up on these people to see whether the skills they acquired through the programme are benefiting Lesotho or being put to good use?
Hewer: Absolutely. Infact, the main objective of the Chevening Scholarship Programme is to find future leaders, offer them to go to the UK to learn new skills and to experience life in England. They are then obliged to return and give back to their country. The British government follows their careers, and they, in turn, support the British High Commission in achieving its objectives for its bilateral relationship with Lesotho. We have an alumni association — all previous scholars belong to this association — and we keep in touch with them through this association. We invite them to events that the British government organises in South Africa or in Lesotho, when we come to Lesotho. And we help them with their careers and their projects in support of Lesotho. And likewise they help us – the British government – with our work and in strengthening bilateral relations with Lesotho.
LT: We understand the scholarship programme is open to all first-degree holders in different fields. But then again you indicated that you give priority to certain areas of study. Could you please elaborate?
Hewer: The Chevening Scholarship is open to everybody who qualifies, and like I said, it is a fully-funded one-year Master’s scholarship. We pay for the flight. We pay for the fees and we also pay for the living expenses. And it is for any subject at any university in the UK. However, we do have what we call priority areas, which are chosen by the British government. And for Lesotho they are Governance and Human Rights, International Relations and Foreign Policy, International Trade, Economics and Finance. Now, it doesn’t mean that only those who want to study these areas should apply for the scholarships. We really want everybody to apply to study anything. And it’s only if we get a lot of people who qualify for the scholarships that we will prefer those who would want to study these priority subjects. But we don’t want to put people off and discourage them from applying. We are very keen for people to apply for any field of study.
LT: Any reason why Lesotho has been accorded these priority areas?
Hewer: International Relations and Foreign Policy are our main focus at the Commission. International Trade, Economics and Finance, that again is our main focus regarding Lesotho — to promote trade both ways, which is trade for British companies here and also opportunities for Basotho companies to trade overseas. Governance and Human Rights are also very much part of International Relations, working at international level, for example the United Nations.
LT: Are there any challenges regarding the programme as far as Lesotho is concerned?
Hewer: Well, there are challenges but not that many. As mentioned earlier, the other qualification for the Chevening Scholarship is that we are looking for people who have two-year working experience because we are looking for future leaders of Lesotho to join this very prestigious scholarship programme. We are looking for people who are going to be leaders either in government, academic life, business, agriculture, every area. So the challenge for us is finding the right people who have the two-year working experience, and whose employers can also allow them to leave their jobs for one year and then take them back on their return. I know that is quite a challenge for lots of people. Some companies don’t want to let their employees go for that period of time. The other challenge that we are aware of for Lesotho is that there is obviously an English subject requirement for them to qualify for the scholarship. For them, they need IELTS (International English Language Testing System) test – it is an English language test which is a requirement for the scholarship. So we know that for small countries like Lesotho and Swaziland, where there are no centres for this test, it can be a bit of a challenge. But we are aware of that, and so if they cannot take the test immediately, it doesn’t mean they cannot apply for the scholarship.
LT: Having dealt with Lesotho for the past 30 years through this programme, what can you say about the quality of our education?
Hewer: I am afraid I am not really familiar with the education system in Lesotho. I am sorry about that. But my understanding is that most of the learning up to university courses is in English language. English is actually the medium of most subjects of study in Lesotho. That’s positive. That creates a lot of opportunities for Basotho to look beyond their country and realise more opportunities outside Lesotho. It gives Basotho a good chance to pursue their studies abroad.
LT: It seems you are maintaining good bilateral relations with Lesotho from what you have been saying about this country. But if that is the case, why did you close down your office in Lesotho and relocate to Pretoria, instead of just scaling down your operations here if the office was not that busy?
Hewer: I am not the spokesperson of the Commission, so I can’t really comment on that. I can only refer colleagues for that. But obviously, I can confirm that we really value our relations with Lesotho and the scholarship illustrates that. We still have a commitment to Lesotho and Basotho. We might not have a High Commission here, but we are committed to Lesotho and its people.
LT: Are there any other programmes that you have engaged with Lesotho apart from this one?
Hewer: Because Lesotho is a member of the Commonwealth, Basotho are also afforded a chance to apply for the Commonwealth scholarship. And that scholarship takes different forms. Unlike the Chevening Scholarship, the Commonwealth one is for undergraduates and other courses as well.
LT: Lastly, how has the current political instability in Lesotho affected this country’s relationship with the UK?
Hewer: Like I said, I am not really the spokesperson. But what I will say is that we are glad to see that progress is being made with the SADC (Southern African Development Community) intervention. So we are watching carefully. We wish Lesotho well.
