In collaboration with the Islamic Development Bank, the West and Central African Council for Agricultural Research and Development (CORAF/WECARD) invites applications for a one-year mentoring process on agricultural technologies and innovations. The program aims to reach 1,000 “agripreneurs” in West and Central Africa. Candidates are expected to have a business idea or a start-up related to agriculture, preferably in relation to the 15 technologies developed by CORAF/WECARD. Applications from women are particularly welcome. The deadline for applications (English, French) is 24 July 2016. Link
Africa
Agriculture for Food Security 2030 (AgriFoSe2030) — From Research to Policy for Agricultural Development in Africa
The program Agriculture for Food Security 2030 (AgriFoSe2030) is a partnership of Swedish universities, funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida). The program invites applications from African researchers to a one-week training course on effective research-to-policy communication for agricultural development. The course will be held in Nairobi during late January 2017. Applications are invited from lecturers and post-doctoral researchers currently affiliated with universities in Sub-Saharan Africa, and who have received their PhDs within the past five years. AgriFoSe2030 will cover the expenses of travel, lodging, and meals. The deadline for applications is 29 August 2016. Link
U.S. Department of State — Fulbright/Clinton Fellowship 2017-2018
The J. William Fulbright-Hillary Rodham Clinton (Fulbright-Clinton) Fellowship is a component of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. The fellowships provide professional experience and research opportunities in public policy areas that include agriculture, energy, environment, and others. Host countries in 2017-2018 are the African Union, Burma (Myanmar), Chile, Cote d’Ivoire, Guatemala, Kosovo, Malawi, Nepal, Peru, Samoa, Timor-Leste, and Ukraine. Eligibility for the fellowships is limited to U.S. citizens. The application deadline is 11 October 2016. Link
Denis & Lenora Foretia Foundation — STEM Prize for Young Africans
The STEM Prize aims to encourage young Cameroonians and other Africans, especially girls and young women, to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Applications are invited from teams of three to five persons who submit a project that has the greatest potential to positively improve their communities. Applicants must be between the ages of 13 and 21 and be citizens in one of the following countries: Cameroon, Chad, Central Africa Republic, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, or Gabon. The top teams will be invited to the foundation’s headquarters in Yaoundé to participate in a 3-day workshop focusing on research, career guidance, and project implementation. Cash prizes will be awarded totaling 5 million FCFA (approximately US$10 thousand). The deadline for applications (English, French) is 31 July 2016. Link
U.S. Department of State — Marine Protected Areas and Ocean Conservation
The U.S. Department of State will fund projects in marine protected areas and reduced nutrient pollution affecting coastal waters. Grants in Category 1 will strengthen compliance capacity for marine protected areas in the Bahamas, Belize, Honduras, and Panama. Grants in Category 2 will fund projects to more effectively manage marine protected areas in Comoros, Djibouti, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Somalia, and Tanzania. Grants in Category 3 will aim to reduce nutrient pollution in waterways, coastal waters, and the ocean. Applications are accepted from non-profit organizations and educational institutions in the USA and other countries, and from public international organizations. Funding Opportunity OES-OTI-16-005. The closing date for applications is 01 August 2016. Link
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation — Advancing Geospatial Data in Africa
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation seeks to invest in an organization that will advance the quality, completeness, and sustainability of geospatial data in Africa. This organization will serve as a strategic grant maker, capacity builder, and effectively coordinate with others working in mapping and data on the continent. Applicant organizations should be ideally based in Africa. If headquartered elsewhere, the applying organization must have a strong presence and/or offices in Africa. The deadline for sending qualifications statements is 05 August 2016. Link
MEETAfrica — Supporting Young African Entrepreneurs
MEETAfrica is a program to help Africans who have diplomas at European universities to establish innovative enterprises for agriculture, industry, and services in their home countries. The current call is for recent university graduates and early-career researchers from Algeria, Cameroon, Mali, Morocco, Senegal, and Tunisia who are currently resident in France or Germany. Candidates should be less than 35 years old and have a masters, doctorate, or post-doctorate. The deadline for applications is 15 September 2016. Link
University of Florida — Research on Livestock in Ethiopia, Nepal, and Rwanda
With funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development, the University of Florida manages the Feed the Future Livestock Systems Innovation Lab as a five-year program of research to improve the nutrition, health, and incomes of the poor through increased livestock productivity and the marketing and consumption of animal-source foods. The program seeks to upgrade technologies, management practices, skills, knowledge, capacity, inputs across livestock value chains, and policy environments that foster sustainable intensification and increased profitability of smallholder livestock systems. The focus countries are Ethiopia, Nepal, and Rwanda. Participation is open to qualified universities, institutes, and other organizations in the target countries, USA, and elsewhere. The program will fund research grants up to US$1 million, and focus grants up to US$100 thousand. The deadline for research concept notes is 23 June 2016. Link
Finland Ministry for Foreign Affairs — University Collaboration, Finland with Developing Countries
Finland funds the Higher Education Institutions Institutional Cooperation Instrument to support collaboration between higher education institutions in Finland and partner universities in developing countries. All subject areas are relevant. Grants will range from £300 thousand to £700 thousand, up to 80% of total project costs, for up to three years. The partner countries of highest priority are Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Somalia, Tanzania, and Zambia. However, the program is open to partners in additional low and middle-income countries (details are provided in the announcement). The deadline for submitting proposals is 04 October 2016. Link
Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) — RONPAKU Fellowships for PhD Students 2017
The RONPAKU fellowships are a program of the JSPS to support students from Asia, the Middle East, and Africa to pursue PhD degrees from Japanese universities. Each fellow submits a research dissertation co-supervised by an advisor in Japan and an advisor in the fellow’s home country. The fellows do not pursue doctoral courses in Japan (i.e., dissertation only). RONPAKU will award about 20 fellowships across all subject areas. The application deadline is 24 August 2016 for submissions to RONPAKU from Japanese universities; applicants need to send their documents to their prospective Japanese advisors in advance of this deadline. Link