More than 90 Namibians will receive scholarships to pursue studies in the new synthetic fuel industry.

President Hage Geingob says this is part of efforts to demonstrate his administration's commitment to building robust green and blue economies in Namibia.

"The grants received are yielding positive impacts. Towards the end of this month, we will announce 93 Namibians who will receive scholarships worth more than N$34 million to pursue their Masters's and TVET studies in areas related to the synthetic fuels industry. Of the four pilot projects earmarked to receive more than N$500 million in grant funding to develop their concepts, more than N$120 million has been allocated to the Daures Project, of which N$37 million has been drawn down. Project construction will commence this year. The Hyphen project in the ||Kharas Region will commence with a feasibility study, and we expect construction of at least three other green hydrogen projects in the Erongo region to begin in 2023."

However, opposition leaders are demanding transparency in the awarding process to ensure that deserving Namibians are not overlooked.

The scholarships are part of the more than N$782 million in grant funding that the German government gave to the Namibian government for the development of the synthetic fuel industry, including green hydrogen.

Close to N$98 million was set aside for scholarships, and the 93 are the first cohort as the national program to train Namibians kicks off.