Supporting the Next Generation of Procurement Leaders: 9 CIPS Bursary Students Across Africa

Not every student we teach is in the room with us. Every week, students log on from Kampala, Banjul, Nairobi, Harare, Lagos and Lusaka, often juggling time differences and the odd patchy connection, to study for a CIPS qualification. We thought it was worth writing about why we think that’s such a smart move right now, and what we actually do to make sure students studying with us from Uganda, The Gambia, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Zambia get properly looked after, not just logged in.

We’re also proud to be supporting nine CIPS students from these countries through bursaries, helping them access professional procurement training and work towards a recognised CIPS qualification. For us, it’s about making sure talented procurement professionals have the opportunity to develop their skills, regardless of where they’re studying from.

Why Now Is a Genuinely Good Moment

There’s a genuine reason procurement skills are in demand right now across all six of these countries, and it comes down to one thing: the African Continental Free Trade Area. AfCFTA brings together 54 of Africa’s 55 countries, Uganda, The Gambia, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Zambia all included, making it the largest free trade area in the world by member count, covering roughly 1.4 billion people. The World Bank reckons that if it’s fully implemented, intra-African trade could grow by around 52% by 2035.

None of that happens on its own, though. Someone has to build the procurement and supply chain teams capable of sourcing across borders, managing suppliers under different legal frameworks, and handling risk that simply didn’t exist when trade was mostly domestic. Industry analysis of the AfCFTA rollout keeps landing on the same point: organisations expanding across the continent are actively trying to build teams with that kind of cross-border capability, and struggling to find enough people who can do it. That’s the gap a recognised, portable qualification like CIPS is genuinely built to close.

What the Numbers Say

The numbers back this up too. The 2026 CIPS & Hays Salary Guide found that 61% of procurement and supply professionals globally got a pay rise over the past year, averaging 7.4% against 4.1% inflation. Africa’s picture is even better. Last year’s guide had sub-Saharan Africa posting the highest average salary increase of any region in the world, around 14%. This year’s South Africa-specific findings show procurement salaries up 10.2%, well ahead of the country’s 3.2% inflation rate. Paul Vos, CIPS’s Regional Managing Director for Southern Africa, summed it up when the 2026 results came out:

The findings reflect the growing strategic importance of procurement and supply chain management within South African organisations. Businesses are increasingly recognising that procurement professionals play a critical role in managing risk, controlling costs, improving resilience and supporting growth.

— Paul Vos, Regional Managing Director, CIPS Southern Africa

The same guide found 57% of employers globally had struggled to find the right procurement talent this year, and 59% now specifically look for MCIPS status, or proof that someone’s actively studying towards it, when they’re hiring. Organisations across Africa are competing for a smaller pool of qualified people than they actually need. A CIPS qualification is one of the clearest ways to stand out in that market.

What “Top-Class Support” Actually Means to Us

None of that matters much if the training itself doesn’t actually work for where our students are studying from. We know studying for a UK-recognised qualification from Kampala or Lusaka comes with real, practical questions. What time do sessions run in your time zone? How much does a patchy connection get in the way? And will a tutor actually take the time to answer a question properly, rather than moving straight on to the next slide?

That’s really why our Distance Learning route exists — built for exactly this kind of flexibility, with study material and tutor support that doesn’t assume everyone’s sitting in the same room, let alone the same time zone. If you prefer more structure, our Online Classroom sessions bring the same MCIPS-qualified tutors and the same course content as our UK-based cohorts, just in a format built to travel well. Whichever route a student takes, the standard stays exactly the same: same tutors, same materials, same level of attention, wherever in the world they’re logging in from.

Get in Touch

If you’re studying procurement from Uganda, The Gambia, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Zambia, or anywhere else outside the UK, and want to know more about how CIPS training works for you specifically, our team would be glad to talk it through.

Call us on 01254 945 902 or drop us a line at enquiries@cipsbusinesstraining.co.uk.

Sources

CIPS Procurement & Supply Salary Guide 2026, in partnership with Hays (global and Southern Africa findings). CIPS Southern Africa, launch commentary from Paul Vos, Regional Managing Director. World Bank, African Continental Free Trade Area economic impact estimates. African Union / AfCFTA Secretariat, member state and implementation data. Industry analysis of AfCFTA-driven supply chain hiring trends, IMM Graduate School and Regent Business School.