Mastercard Foundation

The Mastercard Foundation aims to enable 30 million young people across Africa to access dignified and fulfilling work by 2030. The Mastercard Foundation focuses particularly on young women, refugees and displaced people, and people with disabilities, and concentrates on sectors that create youth employment: education, agriculture and the digital economy.

Registered name

Mastercard Foundation

Type

Private foundation (education and youth employment)

Fields funded

University study at partner institutions, including master’s degrees at UC Berkeley

Website

mastercardfdn.org

Where the foundation works

The Mastercard Foundation runs offices in Kigali, Accra, Nairobi, Kampala, Lagos, Dakar, Addis Ababa and Toronto, and its work spans more than 40 African countries, including South Africa. In Canada, the foundation has a separate goal: helping 100 000 Indigenous young people access post-secondary education and move into meaningful livelihoods by 2030.

The Scholars Program works through universities

The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program does not take applications through one central form. Partner universities in Africa and elsewhere select and support scholars, so each university sets its own process, deadlines and eligible degrees. Students apply to the partner university and indicate interest in the scholarship, following that institution’s instructions.

The University of California, Berkeley offers one example. Berkeley’s programme page says it is recruiting master’s scholars through fall 2028, and applicants must first apply to an eligible Berkeley master’s programme.

Researching a Mastercard Foundation scholarship

Our general Mastercard Foundation scholarship page has not been refreshed for 2027, and partner universities change over time as the foundation’s agreements begin and end. Start on mastercardfdn.org to see current partners, then go to each university’s own scholarship page to check eligible countries, levels of study and deadlines.

The foundation’s news pages also describe entrepreneurs and projects it supports, such as Christine Ng’ang’a’s Soko Kijiji digital market platform. Reading these stories helps applicants understand the foundation’s focus on work and livelihoods, which scholarship essays should reflect.

Be cautious of social media posts that promise Mastercard Foundation scholarships for a fee. The foundation and its partner universities do not charge applicants.

Applicants from South Africa should check each partner programme’s list of eligible countries carefully, because some Mastercard Foundation partnerships focus on particular regions or on refugees and displaced young people. A clear explanation of how your studies connect to work and community impact matches the foundation’s stated 2030 goals.

Students interested in study abroad can compare options on our Postgraduate Bursaries page.