Africa-Europe Innovation Platform (AEIP) Scholars Programme 2026/2027 for African Scholars

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Applications are open for Africa-Europe Innovation Platform (AEIP) Scholars Programme 2026/2027. The AEIP Scholars Programme is a collaborative research impact initiative that brings African and European scholars together to advance joint research and strengthen Africa-Europe cooperation. The programme supports peer learning, research and innovation, and science communication, while encouraging scholars to address shared global challenges through knowledge exchange and practical solutions.

At the initial stage, ten scholars will be selected and matched into five Africa-Europe scholar pairs. Each pair will collaborate on a joint research activity and develop a collaborative research output. Following evaluation, the top three scholar pairs will be selected as finalists and invited to present their work at the AEIP Stakeholders Event in June 2027.

AEIP Scholars Programme Objective

The programme aims to foster collaborative research and innovation between African and European scholars by aligning academic work with the AU-EU Innovation Agenda, particularly the Capacities for Science action, and by strengthening intercontinental partnerships through solution-driven research.

Benefits

The top three scholar pairs will be selected based on evaluation scores.
Winning teams will be recognised for presenting impactful and scalable solutions and will besponsored to showcase their collaborative outputs at the final AEIP Stakeholder Meeting in Europe, June 2027.
The top three scholar pairs will be invited to present their work at the Africa-Europe Innovation Dialogues 2027 in Europe, with sponsorship to showcase their collaborative outputs.

Eligibility Criteria for AEIP Scholars Programme

The programme is open to scholars who meet the following eligibility criteria:

Aged between 25 and 35.
Based in Africa or Europe.
Enrolled in PhDs, Post-Docs, or further studies at the time of application.
Have ongoing or completed research projects, theses or dissertations aligned with the AU-EU Innovation Agenda Capacities for Science action.

Evaluation Criteria

Interested scholars are invited to share abstracts of their research. Applications will be screened and assessed based on:

Relevance
Academic quality
Innovation potential
Alignment with Africa-Europe cooperation priorities

How it works

A total of 10 scholars will be shortlisted from Africa and Europe.
They will be paired on a 1:1 Africa-Europe basis according to shared or complementary research themes. Each pair will collaborate to develop a solution-based study addressing challenges relevant to both Africa and Europe.
Each scholar pair will design a practical, solution-oriented innovation derived from their research. Proposed solutions will be reviewed by a panel of experts and presented through a pitching process.