Subscription streaming service Netflix has announced the extension of its Netflix Creative Equity Scholarship Fund (CESF) to film and television students in the West and Central Africa region.

According to a statement released by Netflix, applications are now open for students to apply to study at institutions in Benin, Gabon, Ghana and Nigeria.

The service added that the Fund, launched in 2021, will be distributed to various initiatives over the next five years “with the goal of building a strong, diverse pipeline of creatives around the world”. It includes a US$1-million scholarship fund for students from Sub-Saharan Africa.

Netflix said the scholarship fund will cover tuition, housing, study materials, and living expenses at selected partner schools in Nigeria, where beneficiaries have been accepted to pursue a programme of study in the television and film disciplines in the 2022 academic year.

The Netflix CESF is set to launch across the region in the academic year beginning in 2022, and Netflix will partner with digital skills and people development NGO Dalberg as an implementation partner and fund administrator in the West and Central Africa region.

Netflix explained that it has partnered with several higher education institutions to make the fund available to students who obtain admission to study in various film & TV-focused disciplines, for the 2022 academic year.

Partner institutions are listed as: -

• Institut Philippe Maury de l'audiovisuel et du Cinéma (IPMAC-Groupe EM GABON-UNIVERSITE), Gabon 
• Institut Supérieur des Métiers de l'Audiovisuel (ISMA) (Bénin)
• National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI), Ghana 
• National Film Institute Jos, Nigeria 
• Pan-Atlantic University, Nigeria 

The Fund is intended to provide financial aid in the form of full scholarships at the academic partners in Benin, Gabon, Ghana and Nigeria, to help ambitious creatives from West and Central African countries obtain official qualifications and training.

However, other countries are also eligible including Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Côte D'Ivoire, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.

Applications can be made via the following link and the application process will remain open until 4 September 2022