RSIF Weekly Vol.1 No.20

Vol.1 Issue 20

Welcome to the RSIF Weekly Newsletter, a digest of information, news and opportunities relevant to the African higher education, science, technology and innovation space. Please kindly share the newsletter with your network and encourage your contacts to subscribe here.

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NEWS AND EVENTS

(PASET-RSIF) As restrictions on international travel gradually ease, more RSIF Cohort 2 scholars have now reported to their RSIF African Host Universities after having worked remotely with their supervisors the last few months. This include RSIF PhD scholars in Materials Science and Engineering at the Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology (NM-AIST) and RSIF PhD scholars at the Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) in Tanzania.
Science in the time of a pandemic by Dr. Segenet Kelemu, Director General icipe, icipe e-bulletin Vol 10, Issue 1-2, 2020
16 October 2020 is World Food Day. Today only nine plant species account for 66% of total crop production, despite the fact that there are at least 30 000 edible plants. We need to grow a variety of food to nourish people and sustain the planet. Our future food systems need to provide affordable and healthy diets for all and decent livelihoods for food system workers, while preserving natural resources and biodiversity and tackling challenges such as climate change. RSIF doctoral scholars work on addressing these and other critical issues for Africa's socio-economic transformation.
Biopesticides offer hope for sustainable agriculture in Africa

MEET OUR SCHOLARS

We will introduce three RSIF scholars each week. See the complete list of Cohort 1 and Cohort 2 scholars here.

Name: Fréjus Ariel Kpêdétin Sodédji
Nationality: Beninese
RSIF African Host University: University Felix Houphouët-Boigny, Côte d'Ivoire. Africa Center of Excellence for Climate Change Biodiversity and Sustainable Agriculture (CCBAD)
RSIF International Partner Institution: Korea Institute of Science and Technology
PASET Thematic Area: Climate Change
Research Area: Genetics controlling legume pod borer (Maruca vitrata Fabricius) resistance in cowpea.

Name: Fatoumata THIAM
Nationality: Senegalese
RSIF African Host University: University Gaston Berger, St. Louis, Senegal, Africa Centre of Excellence for Mathematics, Informatics and ICT
RSIF International Partner Institution: Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Boston, USA
PASET Thematic Area: ICTs including Data Science and Artificial Intelligence
Research Area: Designing self-optimized irrigation in the Sahel area based on the Internet of Things.

Name: Humphrey Andalo Mabwi
Nationality: Kenyan
RSIF African Host University: Sokoine University of Agriculture, Tanzania, the SACIDS Africa Centre of Excellence for Infectious Diseases of Humans and Animals in Southern and Eastern Africa
RSIF International Partner Institution: Korea Institute of Science and Technology
PASET Thematic Area: Food Security and Agribusiness
Research Area: Micro-biome and Antimicrobial resistance metagenomics in Cattle.

PUBLICATIONS

COVID-19

(NEW) Coronavirus in Africa: Five reasons why Covid-19 has been less deadly than elsewhere
(NEW) The effect of COVID-19 on food companies in Eastern Africa
#BuildBackBetter Start-up Digital Innovation and AI Challenge Deadline: 23 October 2020
BIOPAMA Rapid Response Grants 2020 Deadline: 31 December 2020
UKRI GCRF/Newton Fund Agile Response call to address COVID-19
Elsevier’s Novel Coronavirus Information Center
Coronavirus: Research, Commentary, and News – free content from the Science journals
Coronavirus Funding Monitor

FELLOWSHIPS, GRANTS AND AWARDS

Deepening Knowledge and Implementation of Research Ethics in the African Context Deadline: 15 October 2020
Support the Development of Research Management Frameworks, Manuals and Procedures For SGCs Deadline: 15 October 2020
Johnson & Johnson WiSTEM²D Scholars Award Program. Deadline: 15 October 2020
University of Michigan African Presidential Scholars Program (UMAPS) - fellowship for faculty from African universities Deadline: 15 October 2020
IWA Women in Water Award Deadline: 15 October 2020
Alibaba Cloud Global AI Innovation Challenge Deadline: 16 October 2020
(NEW) Global AgriInno Challenge 2020: Connecting youth-led innovation to agri-food sector by FAO and Zhejiang University Deadline: 17 October 2020
WFP Innovation Challenge 2020 Deadline: 18 October 2020
6^th edition - Science by Women Program Request for Applications for Visiting Senior Research Fellowships in Spanish Centers of Excellence Deadline: 20 October 2020
African Development Bank - AgriPitch Competition Deadline: ongoing
International Potato Center (CIP) Research Fellow – position open until filled
Agri-tech catalyst round 10: agriculture and food systems, early stage , mid stage or late stage Deadline: 21 October 2020
AI for Earth Innovation Deadline: 21 October 2020
National Geographic Early Career Grants Deadline: 21 October 2020
(NEW) John Innes Foundation International PhD Fellowship in Data-Driven Plant Science Deadline: 22 October 2020
2021 IBM PhD Fellowship Award program Deadline: 23 October 2020
IDEAL Applied Research Award Deadline: 23 October 2020
Harnessing Data Science for Health Discovery and Innovation in Africa (DS-I Africa) Funding Opportunities Deadline letter of intent: 23 October 2020
Canadian Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Scholarships program (QES) – Advanced Scholars-West Africa Deadline: 26 October 2020
(NEW) African agriculture knowledge transfer partnerships (KTP), round 4 (UK led) Deadline: 28 October 2020
Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development (SATREPS) 2021 in Environment/Energy, Bioresources, Disaster Prevention and Mitigation. Deadline: 30 October 2020
ILRI Training Fellowships on 3rd-Generation Genomics Deadline: 31 October 2020
Jeanie Borlaug Laube Women in Triticum (WIT) Early Career Award Deadline: 31 October 2020
IITA - two (2) PhD positions in Molecular Biology/Genetics and Metabolomics of Chemical Ecology of Pests. Deadline: 31 October 2020
Georg Forster Research Award Deadline: 31 October 2020
Swiss Government Excellence Scholarship : PhD, Post-Doc and Research fellowships Deadline: varies by nationality until December 2020
(NEW) University of Liverpool PhD Fellowship: The Burden of Animal Disease in Working Equids – Ethiopia Deadline: 1 November 2020
Design Solutions for Responsible AI: CIFAR Solution Networks - AI governance in low-middle income countries Deadline: 2 November 2020
TWAS-SISSA-Lincei Research Cooperation Visits Programme Deadline: 2 November 2020
TWAS Research Professors in LDCs. Deadline: 3 November 2020
Wege Prize 2021. Deadline: 9 November 2020
Schlumberger Foundation Faculty for the Future Program Deadline: 9 November 2020
(NEW) PhD Fellowships at Vienna International School of Earth and Space Sciences Deadline: 15 November 2020
(PASET-RSIF) Call for Applications from Universities/Africa Centers of Excellence in sub-Saharan Africa to become PASET-RSIF African Host Universities in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology Deadline: 23 November 2020
African Union Kwame Nkrumah Awards for Scientific Excellence (AUKNASE) Continental Award 2020 Edition Deadline: 25 November 2020
IARC Postdoctoral Fellowships 2021-2023. Deadline: 30 November 2020
Olam Prize for Innovation in Food Security Deadline: 30 November 2020
(NEW) TWAS-UNESCO Associateship Scheme Deadline: 1 December 2020
Stanford Center on Food Security and the Environment Postdoctoral Fellowships Deadline: 1 December 2020
Hong Kong PhD Fellowship 2021/22 Deadline: 1 December 2020
Immana Postdoctoral Fellowships Deadline: 31 December 2020
Hult Prize 2021 Challenge – Food for Good
Shift Prize for Transformative Agroecological Research for Development Deadline: 11 January 2021
Louis Malassis International Science Prize Deadline: 11 January 2021
PhD Research Fellowships. IIASA Young Scientists Summer Programme Deadline: 14 January 2021
Building a low-carbon, climate resilient future: Research and innovation in support of the European Green Deal. (20 different topics in this H2020 call) Deadlines: 26 January 2020
Horizon 2020 - Accelerating the green transition and energy access Partnership with Africa Deadline: 26 January 2020
(NEW) STIAS Iso Lomso Fellowship Deadline: 15 February 2021
Alexander von Humboldt International Climate Protection Fellowship Deadline: 1 March 2021
Volkswagen Stiftung Freigeist Fellowships Deadline: 1 April 2021
(NEW) Einstein Fellowship by the by the Einstein Forum and the Daimler and Benz Foundation Deadline: 15 May 2021
SPIRIT – Swiss Programme for International Research by Scientific Investigation Teams
NRF One Call for Proposals in 2020 and 2021. Various categories, see general call guidelines

SCHOLARSHIPS AND TRAINING

Call for MSc and PhD applications at Haramaya University. The Africa Center of Excellence for Climate Smart Agriculture and Biodiversity Conservation. Deadline: 15 October 2020
Baobab Digital Innovation Scholarship for MasterCard Foundation alumni to study at ASU. Deadline:19 October 2020
East Africa Community Masters Scholarship Programme Deadline: 22 October 2020
Start-up and make it social. Webinar Young Entrepreneurs in Science. Deadline: 27 October 2020
Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program - University of Edinburgh Deadline: 30 October 2020
Southern Cross University International Women in STEM Scholarship Deadline: 30 October 2020
Chevening Scholarships and some Chevening Fellowships for study in the UK. Deadline: 3 November 2020
(NEW) University of British Colombia 2021/22 Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program Deadline: 6 November 2020
Engineering for Development (E4D) Continuing Education Scholarship Programme at ETH Zurich. Deadline: 30 November 2020
Making Agribusiness Work – iCRA training from 30 Nov-11 Dec 2020, Kenya
Gates Cambridge Scholarship Deadline: 3 December 2020
Open Doors: Russian Scholarship Project Deadline: 10 December 2020
Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at the Berkeley University of California Master’s degree. Varying deadlines from December 2020
French Government Eiffel Excellence Scholarship for Master and PhD studies in France. Deadline: 8 January 2021
ARES Master’s and Training Programmes in Belgium Deadline: 15 January 2021
VLIR-UOS Master Scholarship - Road Safety in the South. Deadline: 1 February 2021
(NEW) University of Cambridge Scholarships Varying deadlines until January 2021
Japanese government MEXT scholarships for study in Japan 2021
Call for NRF Postgraduate Scholarships 2021
Development-Related Postgraduate Courses (EPOS) • DAAD Deadlines: see list

CALL FOR PAPERS AND CONFERENCES

West African Research Center Travel Grant. Deadline: 15 October 2020
(NEW) World Food Day 2020/ FAO75 Celebration and Digital lecture by Prof. Joachim von Braun, Chair of the Scientific Group for the UN Secretary General’s Food Systems Summit on the “Role of Policy, Innovation, Bio-economy and SDGs in Agri-Food System Transformation.” Date: 16 October 2020 online from 2 pm CET
2020 Borlaug Dialogue, Breaking New Ground. Building Resilience Today for Improved Global Food Systems Tomorrow, Virtual, Date: 12-16 October 2020
(NEW) CGIAR Platform for Big Data in Agriculture, 2020 online convention, Date: 19-23 October 2020
First Eastern Africa Bioeconomy Conference virtual, from 21-22 October 2020
7th ICSTR Singapore – International Conference on Science & Technology Research, 5-6 November 2020. Deadline for abstracts: 15 October 2020
Berlin Science Week, virtual, 1-10 November
The 2020 IEEE 92nd Vehicular Technology Conference, online only, 18 November - 16 December 2020. PASET-RSIF scholar Emmanuel Effah, UGB who is doing his sandwich programme at WPI will present.

ONLINE RESOURCES AND DISTANCE LEARNING

(NEW) Building African Entrepreneurial Universities in the Context of Responsible Innovations and Sustainable Development Learning from the Finnish Experience. Web-based e-learning course by UNECA and University of Turku. Deadline: 19 October 2020
(NEW) What will employability mean in the digital age and how should higher education adapt? Free webinar by Mastercard Foundation and University World News. Date: 28 October 2020
A Digital Edge: Essentials for the Online Learner, free interactive online course by Dublin City University
Korea Education and Research Information Service (KERIS), “Leapfrogging the Challenges of Higher Education During COVID-19: Early Lessons from Korea”
Susan McConnell (Stanford): Designing effective scientific presentations - Youtube
Structure of a 10-minute scientific presentation
(PASET-RSIF) Solution Session: Continue Teaching Your Course Online during the Covid-19 Crisis
UNESCO portal of distance learning solutions.

Please continue to follow local health regulations and observe physical distancing to keep yourself and others safe.

All the best,

The Regional Coordination Unit at icipe
PASET Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund

Call for Information. Please share news, events or opportunities of potential interest to the PASET-RSIF network that could be featured in future newsletters.

Disclaimer. Reasonable care is taken to ensure that the information provided is accurate. However, icipe does not vouch for the accuracy of information provided on external websites to which the digest links.