New partnerships can promote positive change in East Africa
ISIM researchers are leading a brand new partnership with the University of Hargeisa in Somaliland to strengthen and develop research and research-based learning and administrative systems for the benefit of the region. The partnership is part of the DKK 70 million grant from Danida supporting the Building Stronger Universities-programme Phase IV, where three universities in East Africa will collaborate with Danish universities.
The partners from East Africa
The three East African universities – the State University of Zanzibar in Tanzania (SUZA), Gulu University in Uganda and the University of Hargeisa in Somaliland - have embraced the opportunity to participate in the new BSU IV-programme unfolding over the next five years. BSU IV builds on the results and experiences of the previous three phases (2011- 2023) which aimed at increasing the capacity of African universities to undertake teaching, research and outreach with the ultimate goal of generating and applying new knowledge to tackle priority development challenges.
The Danish Consortium led by ISIM researchers
As for the brand new collaboration with University of Hargeisa in Somaliland, a Danish consortium has been formed with participants from the University of Copenhagen, Roskilde University, the Danish Institute for International Studies and University of Southern Denmark.
The Danish consortium is led by Associate Professor Michael Alifrangis and Project Manager Dorte Holler Johansen from the Center for Medical Parasitology (CMP) at the Department of Immunology and Microbiology, UCPH. This partnership has been granted DKK 20 million for the project.
Based on our longtime experience and success with collaboration between Danish and African universities, we are very excited to engage in this new partnership with the University of Hargeisa. We expect an actual project kick-off at the end of 2023, meanwhile we meet virtually and in Hargeisa in the beginning of September.
During the summer, together with their colleague Associate Professor Christian Wang from CMP, Michael and Dorte also participated in a BSU IV Inception workshop in Zanzibar with partners from the University of Hargeisa as well as from Gulu University, SUZA and partners from the other Danish universities. The workshop was about planning activities for the project for the coming years, but also specifically for the University of Hargeisa-project to get to know each other better.
As this programme BSU4 unfolds over the next five years, it is expected to foster sustainable development, enhance educational opportunities, and promote positive change in East Africa.