The Future FinTech Champions Programme

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The Future FinTech Champions Programme is a skills and capacity building initiative developed by the Mauritius Africa FinTech Hub. 

The one-year programme aims to grow future leaders for the FinTech sector by immersing a cohort of specially selected students into the Mauritian FinTech ecosystem to gain knowledge and industry insight as well as a range of work-ready skills.

Problem statement

The FinTech industry is growing rapidly and disrupting the traditional banking & financial Services sector by offering new and improved products and services to consumers and businesses. For FinTech companies to grow and scale, and for incumbents to adapt to these disruptions, the sector needs a growing supply of talent with the right skills and attitudes. 

Disruptions to the traditional banking and financial service sector is likely to change the job outlook for today’s current students, new jobs will be created, some jobs may change or require new skill sets, and some others may disappear completely as technology automates some roles.

These disruptions may seem scary, but they offer a range of exciting new opportunities for students looking to embrace and drive this change.

In order to build a growing and dynamic Fintech talent pool in Mauritius we need today’s students to understand and embrace the opportunities that Fintech offers, but there are challenges to achieving this goal:

  • Currently, most students are unaware of what FinTech is
  • FinTech is not integrated into most current BFS curriculums
  • Students generally lack industry exposure & awareness
  • Current programs do not give emphasis to the soft skills needed for students to excel in a VUCA world (volatile, uncertain, complex & ambiguous)

What is the Future Fintech Champion Programme?

MAFH’s Future FinTech Champions (FFCs) programme complements and builds on the skills students are already gaining from their degree programmes. Selected participants in the initiative grow their skills and knowledge of the FinTech sector through immersion in the Mauritian FinTech ecosystem. Through participation in all of MAFH’s workshops, events, regulatory roundtables, internships and other initiatives, FFC’s build their knowledge of the technologies, opportunities, and challenges facing the industry. At the same time students are building a network of industry contacts and a peer group of like-minded future leaders.

In order to address the challenges of fintech awareness among students more generally, FFCs also act as ambassadors for the FinTech sector by organising FinTech awareness-raising events and initiatives on their home university campuses and through writing fintech-focused blog pieces, which they share with the community through the FFC LinkedIn page and MAFH website. Through these interventions, participants in the Future Fintech Champion programme build industry-ready skills such as communication, problem-solving, leadership skills, and professionalism.

The Inaugural Cohort of 2021

The programme launched in January 2021 with the first cohort of 20 Future Fintech Champions selected from 6 different Mauritian universities.

Already the programme is having significant impact. As of May 2021 the FFCs have participated in 16 MAFH events including workshops, regulatory roundtables, webinars and networking events. They have researched and written 18 blog posts on FinTech topics,  and organised 5 fintech-focused university campus events reaching 660 fellow students!

There is much more in store for this dynamic group including participation in the Africa FinTech Festival 2021 in June and October. This is the largest Fintech event in the African region and is this year being hosted by MAFH in collaboration with the Africa Fintech Network.

How to get involved?

If you are a student currently studying in Mauritius and interested in exploring FinTech and the opportunities it offers, then becoming one of our Future Fintech Champions could be for you! 

The programme is run on an annual basis with recruitment for the next cohort taking place in December 2021. You can register your interest by clicking on the button below and we will let you know when applications open. In the meantime be sure to follow the FFCs on LinkedIn to learn more about their on-campus events and follow MAFH on our social media networks to hear the latest news and learn more about our public events and webinars.

As an organisation, there are various ways in which you can contribute to the FFC programme, including sponsorship, internships, and speaking opportunities. Learn more by contacting us at [email protected].