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MTN AND WWF AFRICA PACHIPANDA CHALLENGE

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Application Deadline: 28th August 2026

LOCATION: Multiple Regions

The Africa PachiPanda Challenge, a joint effort by MTN and WWF to inspire and support innovative solutions addressing pressing environmental challenges across the continent.



This programme aligns with WWF’s global goals, its Africa Strategy, and its established practices. It also adds significant value to the Mobilising More for Climate (MM4C) Programme. Specifically, the challenge contributes to achieving WWF’s core objectives of zero habitat loss, preventing species extinction, and promoting healthy populations.

ELIGIBILITY:

The challenge is open to young people between 18 and 35 and youth-led SMEs from select African countries.

The PachiPanda Challenge invites youths (18 – 35 years), students (university and college students), young entrepreneurs, youth-led SMEs, entrepreneurs, and individuals from Nigeria to enter their innovative ideas or solutions to the challenge statements on:

1.0 Climate Change [Solutions focusing on the reduction of greenhouse gases]

Human activities emit greenhouse gases—mainly carbon dioxide and methane, which are the major drivers of climate change. The effects of climate change include, among others, severe drought, water scarcity, rising sea levels, flooding and biodiversity loss.

The challenge will take place in two phases. During phase one, applications in each country will be shortlisted. Following this, selected participants will form teams of up to three members and undergo a human-centered design process during a sprint week. This process will involve business modelling, customer identification, and developing unique value propositions. The teams will then have the opportunity to pitch their solutions to a selected panel of industry experts, with the winning teams walking away with prizes valued at 5000 USD and advancing to stage 2—the Pan-African contest, where they compete in the final.

Rules and eligibility for Applicants from Nigeria:

The challenge is open to individuals or teams residing in Nigeria.

Participants should be between 18 and 35.

You may participate as an individual or form a team of a maximum of three members.

Young entrepreneurs or youth-led SMEs with early or idea stage solutions are free to participate, with a maximum of three members.

All participants must register online and submit entries through the designated portal before the deadline.

Participants should provide accurate and complete personal information during registration.

MTN Nigeria, Nigeria Conservation Foundation (NCF), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Nigeria and Deloitte Nigeria employees, and their immediate families are not eligible to participate.

Participants found in violation of the Nigeria PachiPanda Challenge terms and conditions  or suspected of fraud, plagiarism, or unethical behaviour, will be disqualified from the Challenge.

The organising committee reserves the right to disqualify any individual or team at its discretion.

Interested participants can find more information about how to apply at www.mtn.com/pachipanda-challenge. 

To submit an entry to any of the challenge statements, answer the following questions:

Briefly describe your innovative idea or solution (Maximum of 200 words)

What makes your idea or solution outstanding and deserving of selection? (Maximum of 200 words)

How would your idea or solution impact people at the community, national and international levels? (Maximum 200 words)

Provide a detailed description of your innovative idea or solution, including evidence or proof of concept (Maximum of 2000 words)

Timelines

The PachiPanda Challenge will run from July to October 2026.

Application portal opens—29th July 2026

Application portal closes—28th August 2026

Top 100 Announcement – 18th September 2026

Top 25 Announcement – 2nd October 2026

Top 10 Announcement – 9th October 2026

Boot camp and Pitch Day event – 20th – 23rd October 2026

Winners Announcement – 23rd October 2026

BENEFIT:

Prizes:

First (1st) Position – ₦ 5,000,000

Second (2nd) Position – ₦ 3,000,000

Third (3rd) Position – ₦ 2,000,000

The winners will represent Nigeria at the Africa PachiPanda Finale in South Africa, along with winners from other countries.

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Opportunities, PhD/post doctoral, Scholarships

CQ UNIVERSITY RESEARCH TRAINING PROGRAM (RTP) STIPEND SCHOLARSHIP (RESEARCH)

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Application Deadline: 2:59pm GMT+1, 31 December 2026

LOCATION: Australia

RTP Stipend Scholarships are funded by the Australian Government. They provide funding allocated to students to assist with their living costs while undertaking a higher degree by research.

ELIGIBILITY:

In accordance with the Commonwealth Scholarship Guidelines (Research) 2017, to be eligible for an RTP Scholarship, a candidate must be a domestic candidate or an overseas candidate enrolled in an accredited RHD course of study at CQUniversity.

To be eligible for an RTP stipend, a candidate must not be receiving income from another source to support the candidate’s general living costs while undertaking their course of study if that income is greater than 75 percent of the candidate’s RTP stipend rate. Income unrelated to the candidate’s course of study or income received for the candidate’s course of study but not for the purposes of supporting general living costs is not taken into account.

To be eligible for an RTP fees offset, a candidate must not be receiving an equivalent award of scholarship from the Commonwealth designed to offset RHD tuition fees.

Selection criteria: This is a merit-based Scholarship. A Scholarship Assessment Scale using three categories of performance will be used to inform the allocation of scholarships to eligible applicants, as follows:

Academic achievement and writing skills (0-20 points)

Quality of research project and alignment with CQUniversity research priority areas (0-15 points)

Evidence of motivation, research experience and research environment (0-15 points)

Please view the Research Training Program and Research Higher Degree Scholarships Policy and Procedure available (by searching the policy name) on our Policy page for more information.

There are no direct applications for RTP scholarships. Please discuss your interest in an RHD scholarship with your supervisory team. Prospective applicants will be invited by the School of Graduate Research to complete an application, based on the recommendation of the supervisory team.

Depending on the availability of RTP stipend scholarships, CQUniversity may conduct more than one assessment round within the calendar year. These rounds are typically scheduled to close at the end of April and September; however, the timing and number of rounds cannot be guaranteed and may vary from year to year. Applications remain open throughout the year.

Following the close of each assessment round, applications will be reviewed, and applicants will be notified of the outcome via email.

Applicants will be notified by email when the scholarships have been awarded.

Applications must include all necessary supporting documents. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Applicants will need to supply the following supporting documentation:

Written submission

BENEFIT:

Scholarship Value: $38,000 per annum

Length of Scholarship: up to 3 years

The RTP Stipend Scholarship provides a living allowance stipend, which is paid fortnightly to the recipient through the University’s payroll system.

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