The PASET Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF) for Africa

Call for Applications for Universities in Sub-Saharan Africa to host PhD Scholarships, Research and Innovation in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology

Opening date: 8th November 2018

Closing date: 17:00 hours East Africa Time, 17th January 2019

The Partnership for skills in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology (PASET), is an initiative by African governments to address fundamental gaps in skills and knowledge necessary for long-term, sustained economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). PASET was launched in 2013 by the governments of Senegal, Ethiopia and Rwanda, while the governments of Kenya and Ivory Coast have since joined the partnership. PASET established a Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF) to contribute towards the training of a critical mass of PhD and post-doctoral candidates, and support research and innovation in the following priority thematic areas: ICTs including big data and artificial intelligence; food security and agribusiness; minerals, mining and materials engineering; energy including renewables; and climate change. RSIF focuses on transformative technologies that have a far-reaching positive impact on society. It is currently funded partly by contributions from African governments, the World Bank and the Government of Korea; and implemented by the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe) in Nairobi, Kenya, as the RSIF Regional Coordination Unit.

The PASET RSIF requests applications from universities in sub-Saharan Africa to become RSIF Host Universities for PhD scholarships, research and innovation in applied sciences, engineering and technology.

  • RSIF Host Universities are universities or research institutes/centres based in SSA that offer a PhD program in any one of the five priority thematic areas.
  • Host Universities have the opportunity to train PhD students that are supported by RSIF scholarships (priority given to university faculty without PhDs, and women), and can benefit through the research grant and innovation grant windows of the RSIF.
  • Host Universities also gain access to institutional capacity building opportunities for graduate program management, research management, ICT, curriculum design, faculty training, and innovation hub development.
  • Hosts can also benefit from international collaboration and partnership opportunities with world-class institutions and universities outside the region to improve curricula, teaching and research methods, develop joint R&D and innovation projects, and arrange exchange visits.
  • Through the RSIF, Host Universities gain world-wide recognition as premier institutions for PhD programs in any one of the ASET priority thematic area, as a result of having been selected through a highly competitive process.

Further information and how to apply: http://www.icipe.org/sites/default/files/english-rsif-call-for-applications-for-host-universities.pdf