Programme to support network-based research
in Africa
PARRAF
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Call for projects
Call for projects' closing date: 18 March 2013
Application files to be sent to parraf@ird.fr
1. Background, aims and presentation of the programme
Science is playing a bigger role in the global economy. Furthermore, it helps make
development more sustainable. For a number of years, African states, international
institutions and states that provide official development assistance have given specific
attention to research. Research helps consolidate education systems, particularly higher
education, whose quality depends on the existence of a high standard of national, outwardlooking scientific research. It is also essential for producing the competencies and expertise
needed by African states and businesses to respond to the challenges raised by a country's
development. Finally, it favours innovation by transferring knowledge to those behind
economic development.
Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding South Africa) is home to more than 10% of the world's
population but only has 0.8% of the world's researchers to ensure its development1. National
research and innovation systems have not all progressed in the same way. Some countries
have managed to build scientific expertise through their main national universities and
research centres while others have not developed solid research structures or are forced to
rebuild a damaged national system in the wake of political crises.
Given the importance of research for a country's development, the French ministry of foreign
affairs (MAE) has developed a three-year 'programme to support network-based research in
Africa' (PARRAF) with €1.9 million in funding. It is being coordinated by the Agency for interinstitutional development research (AIRD), which comprises six French bodies involved in
development research (CIRAD, CNRS, CPU, INSERM, Institut Pasteur, and IRD).
PARRAF draws in particular on the achievements of previous research programmes such as
AIRES-Sud, Corus and Ripiecsa, which have proven their worth in terms of the production of
knowledge, the coordination of research in Southern countries and the education of students.
They have strengthened North-South and South-South partnerships through international
teams. Scientific cooperation between sub-Saharan Africa and France dates back many
years. This programme, which is inspired by the same principles of cooperation, helps
maintain and strengthen these partnerships by supporting the insertion of African scientists
into international research networks.
The aim of the programme is, on the one hand, to favour the emergence of research
networks around unifying and regional projects and, on the other, to strengthen the research
capabilities of the least developed countries in Africa. To achieve this, the programme
supports research in various ways to respond to contrasting needs and favour regional
synergies.
2. Aim of the call for projects
1
UNESCO Science Report 2010, UNESCO, Paris, France PARRAF call for projects 2 To meet these challenges, AIRD is launching a call for projects to identify and fund projects
in accordance with the following two components:
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'network support' component, bringing together research and higher education
institutions together to support research activities. This component has €1,150,000 in
funding.
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'research project' component, which will allow teams from Africa's least scientifically
developed countries to join networks. This component has €290,000 in funding.
3. Beneficiaries of the call for projects2
Direct beneficiaries3
This call for projects is aimed at research and higher education teams within African
institutions. Structures whose purpose is to popularise science or transfer technology may be
direct beneficiaries.
It mainly targets francophone countries in sub-Saharan Africa which are the historic partners
of French scientific cooperation as well as their non-francophone partners which belong to
integrated regional bodies (e.g. EAC, ECOWAS, etc.). It includes teams from Portugueseand English-speaking African countries as long as their participation forms part of an initiative
which includes a francophone partner.
Indirect beneficiaries4
The French research teams associated with the networks are indirect beneficiaries and will
not be able to benefit from funding under the programme.
Other institutions may be associated as indirect beneficiaries of this call for projects, such as
research teams from South Africa or North African countries. These teams will not be able to
benefit from funding under the programme.
The costs linked to the involvement of African institutions which are not involved in research
or higher education but whose involvement is beneficial (political or technical institutions
which implement the results of the research, private sector companies, growers'
associations, etc.) may be borne on a case-by-case basis as part of the funding allocated to
the direct beneficiaries.
4. Subject areas
The call for projects concerns the following subject areas:
2
See the detailed list in the appendix 3
The direct beneficiaries are those teams which can claim financial support in accordance with the terms and conditions described in item 5 (network funding) and item 6 (project funding). 4
The indirect beneficiaries do not benefit from funding but the cost of their participation can be covered as part of funding provided to networks. PARRAF call for projects 3 •
Health On the one hand, the programme is interested in neglected tropical diseases
(a group of infectious diseases defined by the WHO) which affect the poorest and
most isolated populations and, on the other, lifestyle diseases (cancer, cardiovascular
diseases, diabetes, obesity) and pathologies which, due to a growing level of
urbanisation and lifestyle and environmental changes, are becoming real public
health problems in developing countries.
•
Agriculture Here, agriculture is considered in its broadest sense and includes crop,
animal and fish production. The challenge is to produce more and better in a context
of sustainable development and despite the uncertainties linked to climate change.
Progress has to be made in soil fertility, ecologically intensive agriculture, plant
genetics, the protection of species and the preservation of their diversity, the fight
against pests, etc. To optimise the work of small farmers and feed towns and cities,
knowledge of the entire food processing value chain must be significantly improved.
Issues surrounding food security may also be studied.
•
Urban development Africa will see 300 million people become urban dwellers over
the next 20 years. How will it deal with such a large increase? The co-existence of a
large number of bodies with the state during a time of decentralisation raises the
question of how towns and cities will be governed (bodies, areas of competence,
actions, operating method, relationship between bodies, etc.). The most notable
areas of concern are the production and management of housing (policies,
developers, funding, land, etc.) infrastructure (education, health, culture, etc.) and
basic urban services (water, energy, transport, sanitation, etc.). Economic activities
are a strategic problem due to their multiple effects on the organisation and
functioning of urban and suburban areas (type of jobs, location of activities, social,
environmental and economic effects, governance of towns and cities, etc.).
A multi-disciplinary approach is taken for environmental challenges. They include, in
particular:
- the understanding of the various facets and consequences of climate change
(observed or possible)
- the understanding of anthropogenic changes, particularly pressure exerted by
humans on resources, soil, etc.
The consideration of geographic areas (catchment areas, suburban areas, supply basins,
etc.) will bolster the understanding of the consequences of the implementation of
infrastructure (roads, dams, etc.) on the development of farming (plant, animal, etc.), the
spreading of diseases and the impact of urbanisation on resources (water, soil, energy wood,
etc.).
Biodiversity may be taken into consideration insofar as it is linked to the challenges faced by
the agricultural sector and the issue of food security, such as the characterisation of and
increase in varietal diversity or the introduction of new crops or breeds (insects, breeding of
wild species, etc.), or health through vector species or disease reservoirs.
5. 'Network support' component
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Aims and activities of the networks
The purpose of this component is to support experienced African research teams which work
together in a network. These teams must also work with French teams, particularly teams
PARRAF call for projects 4 which are members of AIRD5. The PARRAF programme's funding is targeted at activities (i)
linked to the development and the structuring of the network, (ii) research and training
support activities, (iii) and South-South exchange and mobility. The research activities
undertaken within the network are not eligible for funding through this programme.
i.
PARRAF aims to structure research into networks. It therefore supports activities
that develop and structure networks. Such activities could include the organisation of a
founding workshop, scientific unifying events, communication tools or support for the
governance of a network.
The selection process gives importance to the ability of networks to operate over the
long-term.
ii.
The networks must focus on developing large-scale collective projects through
research support activities. Networks which develop training projects are eagerly
awaited, as are those which develop value-adding, expert assessment and scientific
communication activities, etc.
A few examples of goals which can be supported:
the creation of master's degrees or graduate schools on a regional level,
the forming of teams to respond to international calls for projects,
the undertaking of collective expert assessments,
the application of work in progress, including outside of the academic world, for
decision makers or the general public through general publications, audiovisual
programmes,
the transfer of existing knowledge to identified targets,
the implementation of transfer and innovation structures.
This list is not exhaustive.
iii.
Network projects are expected to strengthen the regionalisation of research.
South-South mobility is a key part of the PARRAF programme to strengthen
regionalisation. Projects with an ambitious exchange programme for doctoral students
and young researchers who are at the start of their careers are eagerly awaited.
Mobility towards the North, although permitted, is only considered for complementary
purposes.
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Composition of the networks
This component concerns research teams which belong to African institutions which have
already proven that they are capable of carrying out research or research training operations.
Each network will make a team responsible for coordinating the network.
Each network will have to be made up of at least five teams from three different African
countries.
The association of teams from different disciplines, particularly the social sciences, is an
advantage.
5
AIRD's members are: CIRAD, CNRS, INSERM, Institut Pasteur, IRD and all French universities through Conférence des Présidents d’Université. PARRAF call for projects 5 The networks:
- will have to associate French teams; the latter will be considered to be indirect
beneficiaries of the PARRAF programme;
- will be able to associate other African partners:
o these partners may come from French-, Portuguese- or English-speaking
countries in sub-Saharan Africa (see list in appendix)
o teams from North African countries or South Africa
o institutions outside of the world of research and higher education
International institutions may be considered to be eligible following approval by the steering
committee.
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Network funding
The maximum amount allocated to a network is €200,000 throughout the duration of the
programme, namely, three years (2013-2015).
Funding is paid to the Southern teams, which are members of the network. The institutions,
which are seen as direct beneficiaries of the programme, bear the cost of implementing the
network. Indirect beneficiaries, which are members of the network, are not entitled to receive
any funding.
Eligible costs6 are:
- the network's operating costs, such as the creation and coordination of the network,
the organisation of workshops or scientific events;
- activities linked to the network's specific goals;
- mobility actions, although mobility to the North cannot exceed 20% of the budget
allocated to mobility by the network.
6. 'Research project' component
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Project goals and activities
This component aims to strengthen the competencies of teams from francophone countries
in Africa (see list in appendix) with few scientific resources and to increase their regional
integration.
Projects from teams from countries which are particularly underdeveloped on a scientific
level and/or in a crisis or post-crisis situation7 are eagerly awaited: Burundi, Comoros, Côte
d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Guinea, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Central African Republic,
Democratic Republic of Congo, and Chad.
6
The programme considers costs linked to structuring and developing the network to make up
approximately 20% of costs, mobility costs to make up 40% and other costs to make up 40%. This
breakdown is indicative.
7
The number of publications in the web of science per million inhabitants was one of the criteria used to create this list. PARRAF call for projects 6 The projects of teams from other francophone countries in Africa are eligible insofar as these
teams form part of institutions whose research structure is not yet fully formed, such as
recently-created provincial universities.
This would provide funding for a partnership-based research project associated with a
network. A number of requirements would have to be met.
i. The project has to be undertaken in a partnership. It comprises a coordination team
from one of the eligible countries and a support team. The support team is either a
French team or an African team, whose scientific excellence is recognised.
ii. The research projects must reflect the subject areas defined for the networks. The
projects may be presented as part of a network or will be associated with a network by
the scientific committee.
iii. This component includes funding for equipment, the implementation of research and
training courses.
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Project funding
The maximum amount for each research project is €30,000. The funding is paid to the
Southern team, the project's coordinator.
Any expenditure directly linked to the project will be covered under three types of spending:
-
operating costs, in the strict sense of the term (laboratory products, field study costs,
consumables, etc.);
-
costs linked to the partnership, which will be limited to 20% of the project's budget
(coordination assignments, inter-team meetings, etc.);
-
the cost of equipment necessary for research work (capped at 40% of the project's
total budget);
NB: Spending on training the team's members (researchers, engineers and technicians)
so that they can master a method or a technique will be borne under the funding provided
to networks and take the form of individual training mobility programmes and participation
in cross-functional courses.
7. Duration
The funding of the projects cannot exceed the end of the programme in 2015.
8. Examination of projects
a. Admissibility criteria
For the network projects
PARRAF call for projects 7 ƒ
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The project must be presented by a team whose main activity is research and/or
higher education.
The network's coordination team must come from one of the countries included in the
list in the appendix.
The network must comprise a minimum of five teams
at least one team from a francophone country in sub-Saharan Africa,
at least three teams from French-, Portuguese- or English-speaking African countries
in sub-Saharan Africa (see list in appendix), At least one French team, particularly AIRD member teams.
North African countries, Egypt and South Africa will be able to put forward teams
within networks, although they will not benefit from funding under the programme.
For research projects:
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The project must be presented by a team whose main activity is research and/or
higher education.
The project must be submitted by a team from one of the eligible countries (see list in
appendix).
The team presenting the project may be connected to a network. If applicable, the
selection committee will make sure that the team is integrated into one of the
networks retained for component 1.
b. Assessment criteria
For network projects:
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Relevance of the application in relation to the guidelines of the call for projects
(subject areas, recommendations, aims of the call for projects)
Technical quality and possible impact (particularly the project's unifying nature,
sustainability, the extent to which it will improve competencies, the potential transfer
of results and the creation of value, etc.),
The importance of South-South mobility,
Method, how well the project has been put together,
Quality of the partnership and coordination,
Appropriateness between the project and its resources / Feasibility of the project.
For research projects:
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Relevance of the application in relation to the guidelines of the call for projects,
Benefits of integrating the team and the project into a network,
Structural relationship between research teams and the quality of the partnership
Scientific quality of the project,
Appropriateness between the project and its resources / Feasibility of the project.
The selection of a network is necessary but does not on its own allow for related research
projects to be selected.
9. Submission
PARRAF call for projects 8 Projects must be submitted in two stages:
Prior declaration of networks: before 14 February 2013 (one month after the publication of
the call for projects)
Electronically to: parraf@ird.fr
This declaration comprises a brief description of the subject and the network's goals (around
10 lines), the list of research teams approached and the e-mail address of one or more
contact people. The declarations will be published at the following address:
www.aird.fr/parraf
As the aim is to unify the various teams, these declarations will allow:
ƒ the various network projects to be grouped, if necessary, and thereby avoid the
dispersion and duplication of work,
ƒ the teams that wish to join a research network to make themselves known and submit
a project.
Submission of complete files before 18 March 2013 electronically to: parraf@ird.fr
NB: Letters of endorsement may complete the application and can be sent up to 30 March
2013. A partner that does not submit a letter of endorsement by this date will not be
considered to be a member of the network.
The original of each institution's endorsement letter and all of the signed documents must be
kept and may be requested in the event the project is selected.
10.
Definition of eligible costs
For components 1 and 2
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Travel costs of permanent or temporary staff allocated to the project. For mobility
programmes, the daily allowance amounts for short-term assignments and the
monthly allowance amounts for long-term exchanges must be clearly indicated; the
amounts for each pay scale must also be shown;
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All costs linked to organising training courses, events;
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Costs incurred when integrating a student into a laboratory at a host university for
student mobility programmes;
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Publication and communication costs;
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General management costs (see section 3.1.4.) or structural costs to a maximum of
10%.
For component 2
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Laboratory costs (liquids, small equipment, equipment, consumables, etc.).
PARRAF call for projects 9 11.
Selection process and calendar
Call for projects
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Launch of the call for projects: 14 January 2013
For the networks, prior declaration of a project: before 14 February 2013
Submission of projects: before 18 March 2013
Once the network projects and the research projects have been submitted, there is a threestage selection process:
- independent experts assess the applications,
- the scientific committee ranks the network projects and the research projects,
- the steering committee draws up the definitive list of the projects to be supported.
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Publication of results: May 2013
Start-up and funding
Once the projects have been selected, notification of the maximum budget allocated to each
team will be sent to each team leader within a network. Such notification will constitute a
commitment by AIRD to pay the first funding instalments to the teams.
Costs will be borne as from the notification date, thereby allowing the teams to start their
work. The networks are expected to hold their start-up workshop, if planned, before August
2013.
The direct funding of beneficiary institutions is the preferred method of funding. The
instalments are paid on an annual basis in line with the funding plan put forward. An account
specific to the project may be opened or the funds can be paid into an institutional account.
Implementation of network and research projects
The coordinator is responsible for implementing the project. Even if the partner teams are
directly funded through their home institution, they report to the coordinator, who centralises
the technical and financial reports.
The coordinator can ask for technical or financial changes to be made to the project at any
time for any action or any team which belongs to the network for which he or she is
responsible. These changes will be negotiated by the Executive Secretariat of PARRAF, the
scientific committee and the teams concerned.
Monitoring
Each network will be monitored by one or two scientific committee members. The executive
secretariat and a representative from the scientific committee will visit the coordination teams
at least once and, depending on what is possible, the other teams involved in the project.
Each project will be closely monitored on a financial level and an expenses report will have to
be produced before each instalment payment request.
A mid-term review of technical and financial matters will take place at the end of 2014. This
mid-term review will be used to decide whether the networks' and projects' funding will be
continued, restructured or stopped.
PARRAF call for projects 10 10% of the total budget will be retained until the final report is submitted. The payment of the
remaining amount will allow the last costs incurred to be reimbursed.
In the appendix:
- List of eligible countries
PARRAF call for projects 11 Appendix 1: List of countries eligible to take part in the call for projects of the
programme to support network-based research in Africa
Component 1: Network funding
The networks' member teams will come from one of the following countries:
o
Direct beneficiaries: French-, Portuguese- or English-speaking Africa,
particularly, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon,
Cape Verde, Comoros, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Gabon,
Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar,
Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria,
Uganda, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda,
São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Seychelles, Somalia, Sudan, Swaziland,
Tanzania, Chad, Togo, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
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Indirect beneficiaries: South Africa, Algeria, Egypt, France, Morocco, Libya,
Tunisia.
Component 2: Project funding
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Countries with a limited capacity to conduct research, based on the number of
publications in relation to the size of the population (source: Web of Sciences) and/or
in a crisis or post-crisis situation: Burundi, Comoros, Côte d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Guinea,
Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic
of Congo, Chad.
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Projects from teams from other francophone African countries are eligible (Benin,
Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Congo, Rwanda, Senegal, Togo) insofar as these teams
form part of institutions whose research structure is not yet fully formed, such as
recently-created provincial universities.
PARRAF call for projects 12