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ACU provides additional services to its members.
Partnerships and Networking
With over 500 institutional members and a range of networks connecting higher education professionals from across the Commonwealth, the ACU is well positioned to enable new partnerships, facilitate the sharing of good practice, and help generate new opportunities for collaboration.
The ACU leads and supports a range of programmes that bring experts together from around the world, including higher education managers, academic staff, and other stakeholders in research, teaching and learning, and development. The ACU leads on certain programmes, while we also help support other externally-led programmes, contributing our own expertise in generating partnerships and networking opportunities.
Please find more information on our partnership and networking services in the list of programmes below, or contact us for further details.
ACU Professional Networks
The ACU’s five networks connect professionals in key areas of university management and administration with colleagues in similar roles across the Commonwealth. The networks allow members to share knowledge and best practice, and provide fora for debate and discussion on key policy and operational issues. By linking to our programme and research work, they also offer a valuable platform to engage wider HE policy makers at an international level.
The networks ensure that the ACU maintains strong links with its members at multiple levels of the organisation and also means that it is well placed to assemble expertise from institutions across the world. Recent projects have benefited particularly from the ACU’s ability to identify key personnel quickly and efficiently, while individual members have benefited as they sought expertise and guidance to solve particular problems or develop aspects of their services.
Click here for more information about our professional networks
Development Partnerships in Higher Education (DelPHE)
The Development Partnerships in Higher Education programme, or DelPHE, is a £3 million per annum programme, supported by the UK Department for International Development, and administered by the British Council with the support of the ACU. It is designed to support partnerships between universities to develop projects that address the UN's Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
The principal aim of DelPHE is to help higher education institutions to contribute to poverty reduction and sustainable development in their home countries and regions. HEIs in 22 target countries are eligible to lead applications for DelPHE, whilst HEIs in any country are eligible to participate as partners. Partnership teams can apply for between £10,000 and £50,000 per year for three years to support their collaborative projects.
The ACU can help to broker new partnerships and mentor applications to the DelPHE scheme. Click here for more information on the ACU's role in DelPHE
CAAST-Net
The Africa Unit of the ACU provides Overall coordination of the CAAST-Net programme. It is a high-level joint Africa-Europe project whose goal is to pursue more and better cooperation in science and technology between Africa and Europe in both policy and research. CAAST-Net’s goal is an increase in the quality and quantity of bi-regional cooperation in science and technology between Europe and Africa, targeting areas of mutual interest and benefit through greater use of instruments under the FP7, as well as through other instruments of international cooperation and through lobbying for greater synergy between R&D and development instruments.
More information can be found on the CAAST Net website
EuroAfriCa-ICT
The ACU’s Africa Unit is a consortium partner and Work package leader in the EuroAfriCa-ICT project. Funded by the European Union’s seventh Framework Programme (FP7), the project aims to promote and enhance research cooperation between African, Caribbean and European stakeholders in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector. The project is a platform for exchanging ICT knowledge, experiences and ideas and to identify joint projects with the objective of using ICT as a tool for bridging the scientific and digital divides, reducing poverty and encouraging socio-economic development.
In support of the overall aim, EuroAfriCa-ICT consortium partners address a range of objectives through activities and events that facilitate and contribute to ICT cooperation policy dialogue, that identify areas of common interests and mutual benefits for African and European experts, and that offer practical support to predominantly African experts.
4th Euro-Africa Cooperation Forum on ICT Research - Call for Papers: extended deadline
The “4th Euro-Africa Cooperation Forum on ICT Research” (Cape Town, Nov. 14-15, 2011) organizers are calling for papers.
Being July-August a holiday period in Europe, with most companies closed and staff on leave, at the request of many European colleagues the Organizing Committee has decided to extend the deadline for the submission of papers until August 26, 2011. Authors of a selected paper will be notified by Sept. 2, 2011.
Contributions are welcomed from players across the entire ICT sphere and are intended to reflect ongoing technological advances and capabilities within R&D/ICT communities as well as forthcoming commercial deployments. Contributions have to include a consideration of relevant challenges in emerging economies and markets. All received abstracts will be carefully evaluated on the following criteria: originality, significance, technical soundness, clarity of expression and interest to a wide audience. Authors are invited to submit half-a-page abstracts to the conference selection committee (info@euroafrica-ict.org). Submissions have to be written in English and commercial presentations will be automatically rejected. Papers must be submitted electronically.
The complete Call for Papers is available here for download.
More information can be found on the EuroAfriCa-ICT project website
DocLinks
ACU has been awarded a grant by the European Commission, EACEA Erasmus Mundus Programme to implement a two year project on promoting networking between African and European doctoral candidates and early career researchers. The project Increasing Understanding and Establishing Better Links between African and European Doctoral Education Candidates (DocLinks) will enhance mutual understanding through the creation of a unique network and website bringing together African and European research students.
More information can be found on DocLinks project webpage
Conferences and Workshops
The ACU participates in, and leads on, a range of workshops, seminars, and conferences involving its members, as well as stakeholders from across the higher education community.
Click here for more information on ACU conferences and workshops