Scholarship, Grants and Funding Opportunities For Africans

Call For Proposals: Africa CDC/EDCTP €5 million Grant in sub-Saharan Africa

Reliable epidemiological data is often unavailable or severely limited in resource-limited settings in sub-Saharan Africa, and this knowledge gap is further aggravated by a shortage of skilled personnel in epidemiology and biostatistics to efficiently monitor, analyse and interpret these data to inform policy and decision making. Training programmes are needed to develop a cohort of epidemiologists across sub-Saharan Africa and beyond, which can work in collaboration with their national departments of health, national public health agencies, as well as with international organisations such as the World Health Organisation Regional Office for Africa (WHO AFRO) and Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), to collectively conduct routine surveillance, conduct public health research and respond timely to disease outbreaks.

As a specialised technical agency of the Africa Union, Africa CDC operates through a framework focused on harnessing regional resources (all five African regions); the Regional Integrated Surveillance and Laboratory Network (RISLNET) in order to carry out its mandate and achieve the strategic pillars (public health emergency preparedness and response, surveillance and disease intelligence, information systems, laboratory systems and networks, and public health research and institutes) through the National Public Health Institutes (NPHIs). Effective implementation of these strategic pillars depends on the efficiency of the NPHIs and/or affiliated agencies, such as academic institutions in Member States. 

The Africa CDC has also developed a framework for public health workforce development. Building on numerous investments already made by EDCTP and its partners in sub-Saharan Africa for disease outbreak preparedness and response, this partnership between EDCTP and Africa CDC will further enhance the public health workforce capacity in NPHIs and National Ministries of Health to better enable them to respond timely to disease outbreaks. 

Details:


The purpose of this Call for Proposals is to establish an African cohort of epidemiologists by supporting institutions in sub-Saharan Africa and Europe that provide master’s training in epidemiology and biostatistics, as part of the Africa CDC’s framework for public health workforce development. Master’s courses with practical field research experience is the preferable level of training as it is relatively short and likely to deliver the required numbers and high-quality fit-for-purpose calibre of personnel that are urgently needed in epidemic zones of sub-Saharan Africa.

Proposals can be submitted by a single institution or consortium of institutions which must provide master’s training in epidemiology for 10 to 15 excellent, early- to mid-career researchers (“EPI Fellows”) based in sub-Saharan Africa and working in a relevant field. The EPI fellows must commit to remain in Africa for a minimum of two years after completing their studies and provide evidence to demonstrate this through a letter of support from their host institution.

Proposals should include institutions with a proven track record in the provision of high-quality master’s training with clear local and regional collaborations with NPHIs (or similar agencies), Ministries of Health and other academic institutions. Proposals must demonstrate the following:

Proposals should also include support for meetings and conferences for the trainees to participate in an annual networking meeting organised by Africa CDC, as well as the biennial EDCTP Forum.  Tuition fees, enrolment fees or other types of university charges are not eligible for reimbursement by EDCTP.

Due to the extraordinary global crisis of COVID-19 that is also affecting African countries, this topic should also be considered by applicants.

The proposed action should start no later than 1 October 2021 and must be completed before the end of 2024.

Benefits


Projects funded under this call for proposals should:

Ultimately these grants will contribute to the generation of a critical mass of epidemiologists and biostatisticians and institutional research capacity in sub-Saharan Africa.

Eligibility


A proposal/application will only be considered eligible if:

  1. its content corresponds, wholly or in part, to the topic/contest description for which it is submitted
  2. it complies with the eligibility conditions for participation set out below, depending on the type of action:
    • The application must have at least one legal entity established in a Participating State* or a sub-Saharan African country.
    • The maximum duration of the grant is 36 months
    • The maximum duration of the master’s programme is 30 months (including research component).
    • The requested EDCTP contribution per action should not exceed EUR 50,000 per student, with a maximum total budget of EUR 750,000.

Apply Here: https://www.edctpgrants.org/

Deadline: 30th July, 2020

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