- Strengthen their research and grant-making systems and procedures and scientific merit review.
- Digitise their online grant management systems and databases of peer reviewers.
- Integrate research excellence (particularly the knowledge and use of tools such as Research Quality Plus framework), research ethics, and emerging scientific practices in open and collaborative science (open access, open data and citizen science) in their work.
- Facilitate their access to the Good Financial Grant Practice (GFGP) certification to improve grants management.
- Facilitate peer-to-peer learning among Councils through staff exchanges and learning visits.
- Support proposal development skills among the SGCs’ research grantees.
- Design and monitor research programmes and to formulate and implement policies based on the use of robust science, technology and innovation indicators
- Generate and use data and evidence in policy and decision making, and to enhance their roles as national policy champions.
- Develop robust organizational-level monitoring, evaluation and learning frameworks and plans
- Develop data management frameworks and systems and systematically collect, analyse and use internal administrative, financial performance and grants management data for project/programme management and policy/ decision-making
- Conduct reviews of their national science, technology and innovation (STI) policies and deepen their policy process knowledge and understanding
- Engage in peer-to-peer learning and supports them to interact with policy and other decision makers in their countries.
- Strengthen their corporate governance systems, procedures and processes.
Cooperation Projects
We have partnered with the Councils in Botswana, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe to support research projects designed to promote:
- Knowledge exchange with the private sector
- Collaborations among Councils, in the form of bilateral, trilateral and multilateral projects
- Gender equality and inclusivity in research and innovation
In addition:
We have supported councils by conducting baseline and commissioned studies, supporting them to identify research priorities; in designing cooperation agreements; and to support partnership building for multilateral cooperation
- Develop and implement communication strategies and implementation plans
- Enhance strategic communications, writing of policy briefs and approaches for policy engagement
- Demonstrate the impact of SGCI’s activities through documentation and dissemination of stories of change/ impact and develops various communication materials
- Update and implement a strategy for tracking, assessing and reporting the uptake of knowledge products by SGCs and other stakeholders
- Support effective communication and dissemination of research results
- Support networking among the Councils and other science system actors
- Commission Masterclass papers annually to facilitate sharing of knowledge and experiences among Councils. These produce reports, policy briefs and journal articles.
- Plan and convene regional meetings and annual forums; commissions Masterclass papers and supports writing of and other publications arising from the Masterclass papers
- Plan and convene annual academic symposia with researchers
- Plan and convene the annual GRC regional consultative meetings
- Support the participation of councils in strategic STI meetings as the Annual GRC Meetings
- Mainstream gender and other forms of inclusivity in funding and other organizational policies and practices.
- Provide training in gender equality and inclusivity
- Support dialogue sessions on gender equality and inclusivity
- Mainstreaming gender and inclusivity into existing training modules
- Commission research on specific gender related themes such as: a) Status of women and other groups in research, including as scientists, and barriers they face to participating in STI; b) Impact of gender analysis and diversity on research; c) Evaluation of current initiatives by the SGCs and other approaches to promote gender and inclusion in research and organizational practice; and d) intersectionality in research and research funding
- Co-host gender and inclusivity sessions during the Annual Forums and support engagement by SGCs in the Global Research Council’s Gender Working Group
- Support research competitions involving the private sector actors
- Provide training on strategic communication with the private sector and support the development of communication action plans
- Expand research and innovation projects involving the private sector
- Support national platforms for dialogue between research bodies and private sector actors
- Conduct landscape and gap analysis studies to further identify, refine and prioritize private sector engagement needs of the Councils
- Develop the policy frameworks and strategies to promote private sector partnerships
- Support the implementation of the private sector engagement frameworks in selected pilot countries
- Develop manuals, toolkits, model strategies and other materials that the Councils and their partners can use to develop/ strengthen policies and structures for effective private sector engagement and commercialization of research
- Support the piloting and actual implementation of the tools in selected Councils to draw and share lessons and experiences
- Establish a commercialization grants scheme to pilot the application of the frameworks, tools and approaches developed under this work package.