Applications are open for the PASET Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF) 2020. The Partnership for skills in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology (PASET) is an African-led initiative with the goal of strengthening skills in the Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology to further socio-economic transformation in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).
The Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF) is the flagship program of PASET. RSIF focuses on transformative technologies that have a far-reaching positive impact on society. It is funded by contributions from African governments, the World Bank and the Government of Korea and facilitated by the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) in Nairobi, Kenya.
Background
RSIF aims to train quality PhD students and post-doctoral researchers at selected African universities (‘African Host Universities’) to address the human resource gap of highly qualified specialists in the fields of applied sciences, engineering, and technology (ASET) and to contribute to improving research and innovation capacities in those fields in SSA.
RSIF also supports the strengthening of research and innovation ecosystems at the African Host Universities by providing funding through competitive grants.
The specific objectives of RSIF are to:
- Create a stock of highly skilled scientists, professionals and innovators in ASET areas.
- Identify and nurture young talented Africans who wish to further their studies in ASET fields where expertise is needed most.
- Address imbalances in the number of women and disadvantaged groups in ASET fields in Africa.
- Build African university capacity to provide relevant ASET training and to ensure continued investment in scaling up the ASET education and workforce.
Eligibility
- RSIF PhD Scholarships are open to candidates interested in receiving international-quality PhD training.
- Priority for the scholarships will be given to women and existing young academic faculty who do not have a PhD.
- There is no age restriction for applicants for the RSIF program. However priority is given to young applicants without PhDs.
Benefits
RSIF PhD Scholars will receive the following benefits:
- The RSIF PhD Scholarship covers university tuition and related fees, competitive stipend to cover living expenses, travel, medical insurance, and research costs.
- RSIF PhD scholars will be supported to spend 6-24 months in a ‘sandwich’ training at an international partner university, research institute or private company.
- RSIF PhD scholars become part of a growing network of emerging leaders in ASET fields in Sub Saharan Africa.
- RSIF PhD scholars will have access to RSIF competitive research grants upon completion of their PhD.
Scholarship Duration:
The duration of the PhD Scholarship is 3 to 4 years, including 6-24 months ‘sandwich’ placement at an international partner university, research institute or private company.
RSIF Scholarship Host Universities
The RSIF Scholarship is tenable at the 10 RSIF African Host Universities (AHUs) and within PhD Programs in the universities. AHUs are competitively selected universities in SSA that offer a PhD program in one of the PASET Priority Thematic Areas. RSIF AHUs admit and train RSIF PhD scholars.
The PhD Program is offered through the Africa Centre of Excellence (ACE) at these universities:
- University of Gaston Berger, St. Louis, Senegal
- University of Rwanda, Kigali, Rwanda
- Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania
- University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana
- Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology (NM-AIST), Arusha, Tanzania
- Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya
- University of Port Harcourt, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
- University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya
- University Felix Houphouet-Boigny, Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
- Bayero University, Kano, Nigeria
- Africa Centre of Excellence in Dryland Agriculture (CDA)
Thematic Areas
PASET established the 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 five (5) priority thematic areas:
- ICT including big data and artificial intelligence
- Food security and agri-business
- Minerals, mining and materials engineering
- Energy including renewables
- Climate change
Eligibility Requirements
To be eligible for a RSIF PhD Scholarship, applicants must:
- Have a relevant master’s degree in one of the fields of study.
- The master’s degree must have been completed less than six years before 30 April 2020.
- Meet the specific admission requirements of the African Host University they are applying to.
- Be a citizen of a sub-Saharan Africa country.
- Be willing to enroll full-time in a PhD program at a African Host University in the 2020-2021 academic year.
- Be willing to spend 6-24 months in a ‘sandwich’ training at an international partner university, research institute or private company.
- Demonstrate that their research goals are well aligned to the RSIF Priority Thematic Areas and contribute to Africa’s development.
- Priority for the scholarships will be given to women and existing young academic faculty who do not have a PhD.
Application Guidelines
- Applicants must reference the RSIF PhD scholarship call guidelines (English or French) for guidance in completing applications.
- Please note that only complete applications submitted online will be accepted.
- Should there be any challenges navigating the application system, please contact rsifscholarships@icipe.org
- Complete the online application and submit together with the required supporting documents via the online system.
- The online platform will accept the following file types: doc, docx, pdf, jpg, jpeg, png. The maximum file size accepted for any single file is 32 MB.
- Submit together with the required supporting documents.
- The application must be completed in English or French.
How to Apply
Application Deadline: Applications must be submitted no later than 15 June, 2020 at 5:00 pm (East Africa Time; UTC+3).
