3 RISE Networks Announced
July 28, 2008
The Regional Initiative in Science and Education (RISE) today announced that grants, each worth US$800,000 over 2.5 years, will be awarded to three networks of sub-Saharan universities. The three awardees were selected from among 48 proposals involving 29 countries by a blue ribbon panel of international scientists. Proposals were evaluated based on scientific merit, training capacity, research activities, evidence of institutional support, added value of the network structure and potential for sustainability, including strategies for retaining faculty. More.

12 Finalist network proposals selected
April 2008
Finalists in the RISE competition were notified of their status on April 16th and asked to submit supplementary information for the final round of competition by June 2. Proposals in the final round focus on or include elements from the following areas of scientific inquiry: water, geophysics, mathematics, materials, information and communications technology, natural products, renewable energy, chemistry, biology, and marine science. The proposed networks involve nodes in fourteen different sub-Saharan countries. Three networks will be selected to receive funding totaling $800,000 each over three years. The winners will be notified by mid-July. As the program gets underway, SIG will work with RISE networks as needed to help them establish international partnerships outside of Africa.

inaugural rise competition attracts 48 proposals
March 2008
Concept proposals for RISE networks have been received from 48 applicants and involve 29 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, from Angola to Zimbabwe. All six priority areas specified in the Request for Proposals (materials, mathematics, chemistry, ICT, energy, water) are represented, as are several other fields. Multi- and interdisciplinary networks are proposed as well. Some applicants plan to build on existing networks; others envision new partnerships.

A committee of six scientists from five countries, including three in Africa, will select twelve finalists who will be invited to submit fully developed proposals. Selection will be based on viability of the network, quality of the research and training, and other factors enumerated in the RFP, with consideration given to geographic and subject area diversity. Where the committee determines there is more than one excellent concept proposal in any given field, applicants may be given the option of submitting a joint proposal rather than competing against each other.

Carnegie corporation announces grant to sig/ias for rise
December 2007
The Africa Regional Initiative in Science and Education (RISE) will prepare PhD- and MSc-level scientists and engineers in sub-Saharan Africa through university-based research and training networks in selected disciplines. Its primary emphases will be on training new faculty to teach in African universities and on upgrading current faculty. With its focus on human capacity development, RISE complements ongoing efforts of Carnegie Corporation and other foundations to strengthen Africa’s universities by meeting the needs of individual scholars. Carnegie Corporation will support the initial three-year phase of the Initiative with a $3.3 million grant.

new regional initiative in science and education
June 2007
The African Academy of Sciences and SIG convened a two-day workshop in Nairobi, Kenya, in June 2007, to plan RISE.  Sponsored by Carnegie Corporation of New York, the workshop brought together scientists, educators, administrators, government officials, and development experts from Africa and abroad to help shape the initiative. Workshop goals were several-fold: to confirm demand for a regional initiative; to determine priority scientific and/or problem-focused areas; to coordinate with related and complementary initiatives; and to explore avenues of support from foundations, development banks, and potential partner organizations. Click here for a workshop summary.