Intra-Africa Mobility for Training Agribusiness and Food Systems Scientists for African Agriculture (TAFSA)

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About TAFSA Project

Intra-Africa Mobility to Train Agribusiness and Food System Scientists for African Agriculture (TAFSA) is funded by the European Union (EU). The project is run by 5 African Universities i.e., Eduardo Mondlane University (Mozambique); Gulu University (Uganda); Makerere University (Uganda); University of Abomey Calavi( Benin), and University of Pretoria (South Africa). The goal of TAFSA project is to enhance synergetic cooperation amongst selected Agricultural Universities in Africa. Specifically, the project aims at supporting these African universities with research and training of skilful and competent professionals to contribute to the improvement of food systems, and agribusiness to respond to challenges associated with food insecurity and malnutrition, poverty and unemployment.

Through students training and staff mobility, TAFSA  project  is expected to contribute to:

1. Improving the skills and competencies of students to increase their employability;
2. the improvement of improving the quality of higher education in Africa and its relevance to Africa's development vision; and
3. Strengthening partnerships and research collaboration amongst African higher education institutions and research collaboration.

Through this project, a total of 39 fellowships are available for  training(28 Masters and 11 PhD students). Of these, 13(10 MSc, 3 PhD) are short-term credit seeking mobilities, while 26 (18 MSc, and 8 PhDs) are degree seeking mobility in the areas of agribusiness, consumer science, food security, nutrition, agricultural economics and agricultural policy. This programme will run  from 1^st February 2022 until 15^th November 2024 (MSc) and up to November 2025 (PhD).

Target beneficiaries

Beneficiaries of TAFSA scholarship are categorized into two target groups (TGs). TG-I include staff and students from TAFSA’s hosting countries i.e., Mozambique, Uganda, Benin and South Africa). To qualify for TG-1, a candidate must either be a former student(degree seeking) or current student(credit seeking) of a participating university. TG-II includes all students from other African countries, priority being given to students from conflict-affected disadvantaged countries, including Mali, Cameroon, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Burundi. Both TG-I and TG-II candidates are eligible to apply as credit and degree seeking students. TG-I is allocated 16, and 6, while TG- II 13 and 5 slots for Masters and PhD, respectively. Candidates are eligible to apply to more than one academic programme of their choice. Details of the programs for mobility and numbers are summarised in the mobility table below.

Selection Criteria

Selection of applicants will be carried out by a designated TAFSA admission committee. This committee will evaluate the eligibility of both TG-I and TG-II candidates based on TAFSA’s selection criteria which includes the student's academic profile, professional background, and motivation. TAFSA selection criteria will ensure equitable access, inclusion,  and will give opportunity to participants from all backgrounds, including those with fewer opportunities such as junior academic staff, professional athletes, disadvantaged people, people living with disabilities and women. The identification of beneficiaries of the Mobility Program will be through a 2- step process which will first include admission of the candidates to the host institution program applied to, and second, selection of mobility program beneficiaries.

The assessment of eligibility of candidate will follow the following criteria:

1.         Proof that the candidate is from an eligible country;

2.         The candidate fulfils the Target Group requirements;

3.         The application deadline is respected;

4.         The right application form is used;

5.         All required supporting documents are provided and are official and legible;

6.         The application is in the language of instruction for that country (see table below)

For admission into the TAFSA Master’s degree program students must hold a Bachelor’s degree of at least a second class or equivalent from an accredited university. Students applying for a PhD degree must hold a Master’s degree from an accredited university in a field relevant to the area of PhD studies. Further details on entry requirements into a specific course for study can be found on the host institution website or the TAFSA project website, https://www.tafsa.org. Additionally, applicants must be willing to study in an institution outside of their home countries and must demonstrate proficiency in the language of instruction. Females and  candidates with disabilities are highly encouraged to apply.

Language of Instruction: The language of instruction varies with the TAFSA project hosting institution/country. This will range from English (Uganda, South Africa), Portuguese (Mozambique) and French (Benin).  Details of the language of instructions is provided in the program summary table. Language proficiency is required for students to be considered for the training. For those students with language deficiency in the language of instruction, they will be offered a language course before the mobility at their home university (short-term mobility), and for long-term mobility students they will be offered a language course at the beginning of the mobility at the host university. 

Application Deadline

The call for applications and scholarship is open from 1^st  October and will close on the 15^th  November 2021. Interested candidates should download the application form, fill it and submit through email to the project  coordinating office, tafsa21@gmail.com, with copy to the project coordinator, 3ngiva@gmail.com. Additional information on admission criteria and application forms are  available on the TAFSA website, https://www.tafsa.org, or can be accessed through the following link. All applications must be submitted before or by the deadline date (November 15^th 2021, before midnight). Late applications will not be considered. 

Scholarship Package: TAFSA grant will cover all student costs, during the training period, which include a monthly allowance, insurance (accident, travel and health), travel costs, tuition fees and Research associated costs.