The World Food Program’s Centre of Excellence against Hunger, in partnership with the University Centre of Brasília, invite research papers on the topic ”Sustainable Food and Nutrition Security: Building Bridges between Durable Agricultural Practices and School Feeding Programmes.” The contest is open worldwide to students enrolled in graduate programs, as well as professors and graduate researchers in social and political sciences, and nutrition. The three top winners will participate in international study trips organized by the WFP Centre of Excellence. Articles must be submitted in English. The application deadline is 02 April 2017. Link
agriculture
European Commission — Black Sea Cross-Border Cooperation
The EC announces the first call for proposals of the ENI CBC “Black Sea Basin Joint Operational Programme 2014-2020.” The program aims to promote business and entrepreneurship (including in agriculture), and to promote coordination of environmental protection and reduction of river and marine litter. Participating countries are Armenia, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Turkey, and Ukraine. The deadline for applications is 31 May 2017. Link
Feed the Future — Data-Driven Farming Prize
The Data-Driven Farming Prize seeks tools and approaches that use data to help smallholder farmers improve their agricultural productivity and value. Feed the Future invites proposals for data-driven approaches to be tested in Nepal to improve the productivity of rice, other cereals, and vegetables. Eligibility to compete for the prize extends worldwide to individuals, groups, organizations, and companies — in all sources and sectors — particularly local innovators in South Asia. The judging panel will award two grants of US$100 thousand each, and two others of US$50 thousand each, to the proposals with highest potential. The deadline for applications is 06 April 2017. Link
Young Innovators in Agribusiness — Postharvest Technologies Competition 2017
The East Africa Postharvest Technologies Competition aims to identify scalable post-harvest technologies in East Africa. Applications are open to both institutions and individuals of 18 years and above in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, and Tanzania. The competition will select top 50 technologies from successful entries and offer them accelerated training on scaling up and pitching. Twenty-five participants in the accelerated training will be invited to showcase and pitch to development partners, donors, governments, farmers/traders associations, and investors at the East Africa Postharvest Technologies Fair in May 2017. The top five technologies will divide seed awards totaling US$30 thousand. The closing date for applications is 20 February 2017.
International Development Research Center — Innovations to Improve Livestock Vaccines in Africa and Asia
Canada’s IDRC calls for proposals to support novel ideas or pre-existing innovations to respond to the challenges of existing livestock vaccines in Sub-Saharan Africa and South and Southeast Asia. The research should focus on vaccine improvement for one or more of the eligible livestock diseases identified in the announcement. Eligibility to participate in the call for proposals extends to applicants from research-focused organizations in the private sector, academia, and research institutes anywhere in the world. The program will fund up to six research projects at a maximum of CA$1 million each. The deadline for proposals is 21 March 2017. Link
RUFORUM — Community Action Research Programme 2017
The Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) is partnering with the MasterCard Foundation to implement the programme “Transforming African Agricultural Universities to meaningfully contribute to Africa’s growth and development (TAGDev).” TAGDev announces the 2017 call for proposals for the Community Action Research Programme. The objective is to extend university activities to work more closely with rural communities. The current call focuses on crops and livestock value chains of strategic importance in Kenya and Uganda. In this current call, proposals will be accepted only from Egerton University and Gulu University. The application deadline is 27 March 2017. Link
Asian Institute of Technology — Scholarships for Masters Degrees in Natural Resources
The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) offers scholarships for candidates from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam to pursue masters degrees at the AIT. Subject areas include water engineering; agricultural systems; aquaculture and aquatic resources; energy; environmental engineering; natural resources management; integrated coastal zone management; integrated watershed management; disaster preparedness and management; and others. The application deadline is 31 March 2017. Link
University of California at Davis — Trellis Fund for Horticulture
With funding provided through the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Trellis Fund makes small grants for horticultural projects in the following countries: Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Nepal, Rwanda, Senegal, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. The maximum funding is US$4 thousand per project. Successful applicants in these countries will be paired with U.S. graduate students that have relevant technical expertise. The closing date for applications is 03 April 2017. Link
Bestseller Foundation — Enterprises in Agriculture and Environment
The Bestseller Foundation provides financial support for agricultural value chains and for enterprises based on sustainable environment in Southern and Eastern Africa, China, and India. The foundation invests mainly with commercial actors in for-profit projects by means of loans and equity. Nonprofit organizations and projects may sometimes be eligible if they have clear and commercially viable objectives. In some cases, the Foundation may consider grants or donations. Potential partners in the eligible regions contact the Foundation by telephone or email, and present a short concept note. Link
International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology — Doctoral Scholarships 2017
In partnership with the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), icipe announces research scholarships in the African Regional Postgraduate Programme in Insect Sciences (ARPPIS). The program supports three-year doctoral research studies to prepare young researchers in Sub-Saharan Africa for internationally competitive research careers in insect and related sciences. Qualified female candidates, candidates from less privileged regions or groups, and candidates with disabilities are especially encouraged to apply. Qualified nationals of French- and Portuguese-speaking countries in Africa are also especially encouraged to apply. Scholarships cover all costs of the PhD program including travel, living expenses, medical insurance, university fees, and all research and training costs. The application deadline is 12 February 2017. Link