THE National Assembly was informed on Monday that the ministries of Education from both sides of the Union have so far coordinated sponsorship and scholarships for students studying outside the country.

Deputy Minister for Education, Science and Technology, Omary Kipanga, told the House that the sponsorship was provided to students studying in England, Hungary, China, Morocco, Egypt, Algeria, Russia, Germany, Mozambique, Thailand, Mauritius, Iran and Indonesia.

The deputy minister issued the statement when responding to a question posed by Special Seats MP, Fakharia Shomar Khamis (CCM).

During her question, the Special Seats legislator had sought to know the number of Tanzanian youth who had received scholarships between 2015-2020, asking further, the number of beneficiaries from Zanzibar.

According to the deputy minister, about 856 Tanzanians had so far benefited from the scholarships, out of which 71.1percent were men and that women were 247 (28.9percent).

Mr Kipanga insisted that the scholarships outside the country ought to be coordinated by both sides of the Union via departments for higher education.

"The departments are tasked with a responsibility to look at the crucial criteria as well as proposing the names regardless of where they come from in both sides of the Union," he added.

The deputy minister further added that there were opportunities which were being coordinated by the specific funding agency or country.