New phase of cooperation – University of Innsbruck
More than 130 representatives from universities and higher education institutions from Austria and 16 African countries met at Egerton University in Kenya in mid-October for the second Africa-UniNet General Assembly. Anke Bockkreis from the environmental technology department was confirmed there as a member of the Africa UniNet board.
The aim of the event at Egerton University in Kenya was to establish new and deepen existing research partnerships between higher education institutions. In addition, experiences and challenges of international research cooperation were discussed. The participants appreciate the opportunity to meet again in person after a long break caused by the pandemic.
Anke Bockkreis re-elected
During the 2nd General Assembly, the members of the Africa UniNet the opportunity to meet again more than two years after the first General Assembly in Vienna. Since many new members have joined the network since then, this was the first opportunity for many to get to know each other and to discuss the successes and challenges of the past two years. Two new members, the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) and the Austrian Foundation for Development Research (ÖFSE) were officially admitted during the General Assembly. This increases the total number of member institutions to 68 (26 from Austria and 42 from equivalent countries). In addition, the Board of Directors of Africa-UniNet were elected as provided for in the Africa-UniNet Statutes. Hubert Hasenauer (BOKU) and Nzula Kitaka (Egerton University) were confirmed for a further term as President and Vice President respectively, Anke Bockkreis from the University of Innsbruck remains a member of the Board.
Cooperation within the framework of Erasmus+
An Erasmus+ cooperation seminar provided a welcome opportunity to learn about European Union funding opportunities to complement the seed funding provided by Africa-UniNet. Since the European Union has significantly increased the funds for Sub-Saharan Africa in the new Erasmus+ program period (2021-2027) to 23% of foreign policy funds, the participants wanted to take the opportunity to build new institutional partnerships between Austrian and Austrian higher education institutions. In matchmaking sessions, the university and college representatives informed each other about their specific areas of interest and institutional profiles in order to lay the foundation for cooperation within the framework of Erasmus+.