As African governments increasingly recognize the benefits of knowledge-based economies, research-active academics, whose training is relevant to the African context and who work in universities equipped to retain them, become essential. With a steady increase in both the number of universities and student enrollment, keeping pace with the growing need for academic staff is a daunting challenge. More skilled and knowledgeable university lecturers must be trained, and a number of universities must move from being largely undergraduate teaching institutions toward building robust research programs as training grounds for future lecturers. This transition requires new thinking about the provision of researcher development and retention on the continent.
With the aim of nurturing a vibrant corps of African academics working within dynamic and supportive university environments, our grantmaking focuses on:
- Early-career African academics with emphasis on their advancement and retention through support for universities and university networks that show potential for becoming strong regional centers of doctoral education and research
- African academic diaspora with emphasis on bridging African universities and the diaspora communities in ways that benefit research and training at African universities and create lasting, mutually beneficial relationships
- Higher education policies and practice with emphasis on generating and disseminating data-driven research and publications on Africa’s higher education sector and promoting policy dialogues on national priorities relevant to the sector
