The governments of six African countries, the World Bank Group, and the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) are calling for proposals from eligible higher education institutions to become a Regional Anchor University (RAU) with a focus of addressing skills and knowledge gaps in agriculture facing Sub-Saharan Africa.
Application Deadline: 30th November 2018
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Eligible Countries: African countries
About the Award: The proposals are part of the preparations for the Strengthening Higher Agricultural Education in Africa (SHAEA) project, which aims to strengthen linkages between selected African universities and regional agricultural sector needs for developing required human resources needed to accelerate agri-food system transformation in Africa in six countries across the continent. The six participating countries are Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi and Mozambique. With an expected $190 million in financing from the International Development Association (IDA), the project will support the selected universities to become RAUs designed to meet regional agricultural sector needs in human resource development required for accelerating this transformation through partnerships with other tertiary education institutions, including post-secondary agricultural vocational institutions, and key agricultural sector actors both public and private.
SHAEA complements the Africa Centres of Excellence for Development Impact (ACE Impact) project with a focus exclusively on agricultural higher education,and particularly emphasizes its integration with the agricultural sector. The project aligns with the region’s development priorities as outlined in: Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want; the Science, Technology, and Innovation Strategy for Africa 2024; the 2014 Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation; and the global Sustainable Development Goals.
Type: Grants
Eligibility: To submit a proposal to become a Regional Anchor University (RAU), applicants must:
- Be from one of the participating countries which have IDA funding availability;
- Has had at least 5 cohorts of graduates with master’s degrees in relevant areas;
- Offers postgraduate programs at the Master’s level (preferably also at the PhD level) in agri-food systems related topics and preferably one within the identified regional key knowledge gap areas;
- Has at least one existing active and functional regional partnership in the area of agriculture;
- Demonstrates on-going effort in reform/change for institutional improvement;
- No land acquisition needed if civil works are expected to be financed under the project;
- If a university has an existing agricultural ACE, it can apply as long as the proposed focus area for being a RAU is not the same as what is already supported by the agricultural ACE; and
- Only one proposal per university may be submitted
All proposals must also address at least two of the following six regional key gap areas:
- Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship
- Agri-food Systems and Nutrition
- Rural Innovation and Agricultural Extension
- Agricultural Risk Management and Climate Change Proofing
- Agricultural Policy Analysis
- Statistical Analysis, Foresight and Data Management
Number of Awards: Not specified
How to Apply: Apply Here
Visit Programme Webpage for Details
