LIST OF SOME RESEARCH FUNDING AGENCIES

1.       Commonwealth Academic Fellowships

          Administered by UGC

Scheme:      Commonwealth Academic Staff

Eligibility:  5-10 years research and up to 2 years teaching experience: age less than 40 years

Commonwealth Academic Fellowships are offered for early career academics from developing Commonwealth countries. These fellowships are funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID), with the aim of contributing to the UK’s international development aims and wider overseas interests, supporting excellence in UK higher education, and sustaining the principles of the Commonwealth.

Applications for 2017 Commonwealth Academic Fellowships are closed. Results were sent to nominating universities in April 2017.

Information on 2018 Commonwealth Academic Fellowships will be available on this page in November 2017.

Available at: http://CSUK.dfid.gov.uk

2.       Union for International Cancer Control (UICC)

The Fellowships Programme is a core activity of UICC with a 50-year long history and plays a major role in UICC’s mission and vision to build capacity and contribute to the professional development of cancer investigators, clinicians, nurses, cancer society staff, and volunteers, with a focus on low- and middle-income countries. UICC aims to reduce the global burden of cancer by promoting the exchange and dissemination of cancer control knowledge and technical skills.

UICC Fellows come from around the globe and work in all areas of cancer control. Over 6,000 fellowships have been awarded and UICC conducts regular surveys to analyse their impact. Awarded UICC fellows mention that their cancer knowledge has increased and their professional networks have expanded as a result of their UICC fellowship, and that their new skills are much valued by their Home Institutions. The most recent survey also showed that 60% of fellows have either published or are in the process of publishing with their hosts.

Fellowship Opportunities 

Through its fellowship programme, UICC aims to support health workers and cancer professionals focussing on cancer control, including cancer prevention, early detection, epidemiology, implementation and translational research, cancer treatment (surgery, radio- and chemotherapy), multidisciplinary patient care, rehabilitation, survivorship and palliative care.

New in 2017:

  • This year, the International Cancer Technology Transfer (ICRETT) fellowship programme has been renamed UICC Technical Fellowships (UICC-TF), with a focus on cancer control and less emphasis on basic research.
  • There are 2 new closing dates for the 2 YY Study grant calls: 15 March and 15 September 2017. 
  • The Chinese Fellowships pilot scheme has now been completed. The 2016 fellowships are currently underway and this scheme will be evaluated before a new call is opened.
  • A new fellowship call, Bourses pour l'Afrique Francophone (BAF), dedicated specifically to cancer professionals and health workers working in Francophone Africa was launched on World Cancer Day February 4th (see below for more details).
  • A new fellowship called the African Cancer Fellowship aimed at  enhancing educational opportunities for health care workers in cancer care and expanding workforce capability and improving cancer care for patients in Africa was launched on September 22 (see below for more details).

African Cancer Fellowships

A 1-month fellowship visit for African cancer professionals, linked to the 2018 World Cancer Congress and a common interest network for best-practice sharing.

UICC is offering 20 one-month fellowships with a regional award value of USD 3,000 with a strong emphasis on learning skills that will be shared with peers in the the fellow's home organisation or network

The objectives are to:

  • Enhance educational opportunities for health care workers in cancer care
  • Expand workforce capability 
  • Improve cancer care for patients  

Additional benefits include:

  • A dedicated workshop at the 2018 World Cancer Congress for fellows to share their fellowship and knowledge sharing experiences with other awardees.
  • An online common interest network where awardees can exchange acquired knowledge and share lessons learnt.

Closing date: 30 November 2017

Available at: http://www.uicc.org/what-we-do/capacity-building/grants/fellowships

3.       DST (SERB)

          Many active senior scientists who are passionate in research find it extremely difficult to continue their research after superannuation, and forced to stop doing research against their choice. The great amount of knowledge and more importantly the experience that they have accumulated over many years, which may be considered a non-replaceable treasure, can be lost if some avenues are not made available to them. In order to support research of eminent scientists who do not hold any administrative roles and functions but are active and performing, SERB has instituted Distinguished SERB Fellowship Award.

Objective:

To support research of superannuated eminent senior scientists who are passionate in research and actively involved in R & D activities even after their retirement.

Eligibility:

  • The nominee should be a superannuated but an active resident Indian scientist/ academician who is associated with any recognized Indian laboratory / institute / university with proven track record of outstanding contributions in any one or more areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, during the last 10 years, including continued excellent research output in the last five years.
  • The nominee must have received recognition for his work from national / international scientific bodies such as membership in prestigious academies.
  • The nominee should not hold any administrative roles and functions and is not in receipt of any other fellowship / salary.

Grant:

  • Research grant of Rs.20.0 lakhs per annum and fellowship amount of Rs.60, 000 per month will be given to each Fellow.
  • The research grant shall be used for manpower, equipment, travel (including international), contingency, etc.
  • The award will be given initially for a period of 3 years and is extendable for another 2 years.

Who can nominate?

Past and Present Presidents of any of the national science academies (including Engineering, Agriculture and Medicine), Directors of National Laboratories, Vice-Chancellors of Universities and members of Science and Engineering Research Board.

Available at: http://www.serb.gov.in/sdf.php

4.       EARTH WATCH Institute US/International

          Scheme: Research Grants

          Eligibility:   Advanced Scholars and Professionals of any nationality, covering any geographic region.

          Deadline:     18months prior to research.

Available at: http://www.earthwatch.org

5.       GATES

          Scheme:      Grand challenges Explorations

          Eligibility:   Pump-priming Funding for Initial Ideas

Available at: http://www.gates foundation.org

6.       James McDonnell Academic Grant and Scholarships

          In 2000 the James S. McDonnell Foundation (JSMF) announced new grantmaking guidelines for a new funding initiative: the 21st Century Science Initiative.

JSMF believes that private philanthropic support for science is most effective when it invests in the acquisition of new knowledge and in the responsible application of knowledge for solving the real world problems. Applicants are encouraged to keep this in mind when preparing proposals. Projects supported through the 21st Century Science Initiative are expected to meet highly selective intellectual standards.

Interested in applying for a grant? JSMF supports research and scholarship via review of proposals submitted in response to to foundation-initiated programs and calls for proposals. Prior to submitting a request, please take a moment to review the Foundation's funding policies.

JSMF currently provides funding for grants in three program areas. For a brief comparison of the award types offered in each program, please review the JSMF Programs comparison chart.Unsolicited requests that do not fit into a program area and are not research related are not funded. 

Note: If you are unsure as to whether your proposal would qualify for funding by JSMF, please review the list of items the Foundation does not fund.

Available at: http://www.jsmf.org/

7.       USAID /NSF

          Partnerships for Enhanced Engagement in Research (PEER) is a USAID-funded competitive grants program that provides an opportunity to support scientists in developing countries who work with NSF, NASA, NIH, Smithsonian Institution, USDA, and USGS funded principal investigators (PIs) at U.S. institutions. PEER is intended to build scientific capacity and empower researchers in developing countries to use science, technology, innovation, and partnerships to address local and global development challenges. PEER funding may be used to train students and faculty, equip laboratories and field stations, and fund research, building scientific networks to address global challenges.

The National Academies, which administers the PEER program, will receive and review PEER proposals that have been prepared and submitted by developing country scientists and will make awards directly to institutions in host countries. Program questions regarding eligibility of NSF-funded partners are invited to contact the NSF program's staff at peer-nsf@nsf.gov .

PEER proposals will be accepted from researchers in eligible developing countries. Developing country applicants should either be actively engaged in or plan to be engaged in a collaborative research project with an NSF-funded PI. PEER proposals are not accepted from U.S. researchers.

Areas in which both NSF and USAID have strong mutual interests include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Food security topics such as agricultural development, fisheries, and plant genomics
  • Climate change impacts such as water sustainability, hydrology, ocean acidification, climate process and modeling, and environmental engineering
  • Other development topics including disaster mitigation, biodiversity, water, and renewable energy

Additionally, USAID missions and technical offices have made additional funding available for research conducted on specific topics of interest, as specified in the PEER Science solicitation

Available at: https://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=504726

8.       Human Frontier in Science Programme

          Company of Biologist

          Scheme:      Scientific Meeting Grant

          Eligibility:   Organisers must have a PhD and must be in the organising

                             group for the meeting. No nationality restrictions.

Available at: http://www.hfsp.org

9.       TWAS

          Scheme:      International Scientific meetings

          Eligibility:   Organiser must be from a developing country

Available at: http://twas..org

10.     BIRAC

          Scheme:      Contract research and service scheme to facilitate

                             Academia-Industry Collaboration

Eligibility:   The academic (primary applicant) plus Private Company partner.

Available at: http://www.birac.nic.in/

11.     DST

          Scheme:      Utilization of the scientific expertise of retired Scientists

          Eligibility:   Age Upto 67 years

Available at: http://indiabioscience.org/

12.     Wellcome Trust

Scheme:      International Engagement Awards

The scheme support individuals, teams, resources, seed ideas, places and major initiatives in these areas:

  • biomedical science
  • population health
  • product development and applied research
  • humanities and social science
  • public engagement and creative industries.

Eligibility:        Welcome Trust-funded researchers in low and middle-income countries for engagement with public and policy makers, strengthen capacity for public engagement in bio medical sciences and health research.

Available at: https://www.wellcome.ac.uk/

13.      National Institute of Health

Scheme:      Research Training and Career Development

Available at: https://research training.nihi.gov/

14.     Deutsche forchungsgemeinschaft (DFG)

Funding initiatives for scientific research include individual (e.g promoting young researchers) coordinated and International grant.

Individual Grants Programmes

Researchers who have completed their academic training (as a rule, those who hold a doctorate) are eligible to submit project proposals with a defined thematic focus and project duration.

Research Grants  

Research grants offered in the individual grants programme are the central form of the research funding provided by the DFG. A research grant can be used to fund staff, scientific instrumentation, consumables, travel as well as most of the other financial requirements of a research project. The DFG requires the institution at which the project will be carried out to supply the necessary core support and resources.

Scientific Networks

Scientific networks offer young researchers the opportunity to engage in scientific exchange and cooperation on topics of common interest. A network consists of a group of people, who, over a defined period of up to three years, will work on a common research topic to attain a specific outcome. Network members may include young as well as senior researchers from Germany or from abroad. This international programme component serves to strengthen the ties to the international research community.

Research Fellowships

Research Fellowships promote highly qualified young researchers. A fellowship is a personal, non-transferable award and is limited to a maximum of two years.

Available at: http://www.dfg.de/en/

15.     AAAS:

AAUW offers several opportunities, including dissertation fellowships, postdoctoral research leave fellowships, selected professions fellowships, international fellowships, and career development grants.

Association for Women in Science Education - Undergraduate and Graduate Educational Awards

www.awis.org/html/ed_foundation.html

These $1,000 scholarships support both undergraduate and graduate education and include one set-aside award for a student who has interrupted their education to raise a family.

Daphne Jackson Fellowship

www.sst.ph.ic.ac.uk/trust/

Daphne Jackson Fellowships enable women and men scientists and engineers to return to appropriate careers in UK universities or labs following a career break due to family commitments. A typical fellowship lasts two years and is held on a flexible part-time basis to enable the Fellow to meet ongoing family commitments.

Delta Gamma Women in Science Grants

www.deltagamma.org/deltagamma/found/scholar.htm

The Delta Gamma Foundation offers scholarships for undergraduate work, fellowships for graduate study, and loans for any form of higher education beyond the sophomore year. Women in Science Grants, awarded on an individual basis, encourage Delta Gammas to pursue careers in science.

Maria Mitchell Women in Science Award

www.mmo.org/wis_info2000.shtml

This annual $10,000 award recognizes an individual, program, or organization in the U.S. that encourages the advancement of girls and women in the natural and physical sciences, mathematics, engineering, computer science, and technology.

http://www.aaaj.org/programs/international/wist/fund women.shtml

16.     European Science Foundation

Available at: http://www.esf.org

17.     British petroleum (BP)/

          Bird Life International/

          Conservation international/

          Flora and Faruna

Scheme:      Conservation Leadership Programme (CLP)-Kate Stokes Memorial Award

Eligibility:   Team based projects for Individuals from developing countries who are in their early conservation career.

Available at: http://www.african great lakesinform.org

18      International Brain Research Organisation (IBRO)

          Scheme:      Return home fellowship

          Eligibility:   Scientists who are developing a successful

Basic/clinical research career in a developed country and wish to return to their country of origin or to a less developed country.

Available at: http://www.ibro.info

19.     Alexander von-Humboldt foundation

          Scheme:      Fellowship for experienced researchers (Germany).

          Eligibility:   Independent PI (Assistant Professor/Junior Research GL) with less than 12 years experience

Available at: http://www.humboldt.foundation.de/web/home.html

 20     American Cancer Society

          Scheme:      International Fellowships for Beginning Investigators

          Eligibility:   Beginner Independent Investigator or Clinician.   

Available at: http://www.cancer.org

21.     USAID:      UNITED STATES AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Scheme:      The USAID University Scholarship Programme.

Fully funded Commonwealth PhD Scholarships for study in Singapore 2018

2018 International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) young Scientists Summer Programme for young researchers

University of Michigen NCID Post doctoral fellowship at USA, 2018-2019.

Available at:          worldscholarshipforum.com/category/international-scholarship

22.     World Bank:

Scheme: World Bank Scholarship programme Joint Japan World

Bank Graduate Scholarship Programme

Available at: www.opportunities for Africans/com/lag/African development.bank

23.     UNESCO

Scheme:      The UNESCO fellowships Programmes Available at: www.unesco.org/New/a/felloships/

24.     Ford Foundation

Theme:        Challenging inequality

Scheme:      Academic grant.

Available at:https://www.foundation.org/work challenging-inequality

25.     MacArthur Foundation

Scheme:      MacArthur fellows programme

Available at:          https://www.macfoundf.org/

26.     UNICEF

Scheme:      Post graduate, masters, MBS, PhD and Post doctoral scholarship

Available at:          www.opportunities for Africans.com/

27.     UNDP

Scheme:      United Nations Development Programe for developing countries.

Available at:          https: now.schoarship- positions.com/asia-pacific human-development-media-fellowship out dated.

28.     UNEP:

Scheme:      funding for UN Environment Development.

Available at:          https:’’www.staging.unep/training/news-events/grants.asp

29.     WHO:

Scheme:      Alliance for Health Policy and systems Research. Targets low-and middle-income countries.

Available at:          www.who.int/alliance-hpsr/call for proposals/en

30.       Bill Gates: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Scheme:      Funding Organizations

Available at:          https://www.gatesfoundation.org/How-We-Work/General-Information Grant Opportunities

31.     Alexander von Humboldt Foundation

Scheme:      Academic research scholarship

Available at: https://www.humboldt –foundation.de/web/home.html

32.     Rockefeller Foundation: Does Not Accept Unsolicited Proposals.

Available at:          https://www.rockseller foundation.org/

33      RISE Professional

RISE stands for Research Internships in Science and Engineering. RISE Professional offers summer research internships in Germany to Master’s and Ph.D. students from USA, Canada, Great Britain or Ireland at companies and non-university research institutions with strong relations to industry. RISE Professional is funded by the German Federal Foreign Office.

  • The program is open for students in the field of biology, chemistry, Computer science, physics, earth science, engineering or a closely related field
  • All participants receive a scholarship from DAAD and an additional stipend from their host company/institution to help cover living expenses
  • Funding is possible for a period of three months in summer or fall
  • German language requirements vary according to the internship placement
  • Undergraduates who are Alumni from the RISE Germany program are also eligible to apply
  • Recent graduates are not eligible to apply
  • All applicants have to be enrolled during the time of the internship

Available at: https://www.daad.de/rise/en/rise-professional/

National Institutes of Health - Reentry Programs

NIH has two programs open to both men and women looking to reestablish a research career after taking time off to attend to family matters:

  Mentored Career Development Award (K01)

grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-00-019.html
Postdocs can apply for up to 4 years of mentored support.

  Supplements to Promote Reentry into Biomedical and Behavioral Research Careers -

grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-99-106.html
Mentors with existing grants from the NIH can apply for these grants to support a person looking to reenter research.

34.     National Science Foundation

www.nsf.gov

The Professional Opportunities for Women in Research and Education program is no longer active. Look for the announcement in the fall of a new program--dubbed ADVANCE--that will look for institutional solutions to address the challenges faced by women faculty.

35.     Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) University Faculty Awards program

www.nserc.ca/programs/schol4_e.htm

Canada's government science and engineering funding agency created the University Faculty Awards (UFA) program in 1998 to encourage Canadian universities to appoint promising women and aboriginal researchers to tenure-track or tenured positions in the natural sciences and engineering (NSE). Read NSERC Program Officer Candice Robinson's description and defense of the program published on Science's Next Wave.

36.     Sigma Delta Epsilon - Graduate Women in Science Fellowships

www.gac.edu/Groups/gwis/

Fellows receive between $2,000 and $3,000 for predoctoral or postdoctoral study. Graduate students can also apply for $500 travel fellowships. There are no restrictions on nationality or place of study. Must be a member, but women can join Sigma Delta Epsilon ($25) when they apply.

37.     Sloan Foundation Pre-Tenure Leave Fellowships

www.sloan.org/programs/edu_pretenure.htm

Provides up to $20,000 in matching funds to regular faculty--untenured or tenure-track--at selected institutions in the fields of mathematics, science, engineering, or technology faced with urgent family responsibilities so that they can take a leave with salary or, after a leave, resume research.

38.     UNESCO-L'Oréal Grants for Young Women Scientists

www.forwomeninscience.com/awards/grants.asp

In January 2000, UNESCO and L'Oréal announced the first 10 recipients of this new award program geared to supporting female postdocs in the life sciences. The $10,000 scholarships are the result of a partnership between L'Oreal and UNESCO and are aimed at helping women under age 30 establish careers in research. Recipients were selected from 90 nominees put forward by the UNESCO National Commissions.

39.     The Royal Society Grant Scheme:

Provides grants and fellowship for outstanding researchers in the UK and internationally, Delivers several packages which are available on the website,

URL: http://royalsociety.org/grant-schemes-awards/grants/industry-fellowship/

40.     National Institute of Nursing Research

          Theme: Building the scientific foundation for clinical practice,

          URL: https://www/ninr.nih.gov

41.     COST: European Cooperation in Science and Technology

Cost is EU founded programme that enables researchers to set up their interdisciplinary research networks in Europe and beyond.

Provides funds for organizing conferences, meetings and scientific exchanges

URL: www.cost.eu

42.     Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC):

https://www.epsrc.ac.uk

43.     National Science Foundation

          A funding and research community for science

          URL: https://www.nsf.gov

44.     Human Frontier Science Programme

          Theme: Funding frontier research into complex biological system

Research grants are provided for teams of scientists from different countries who wish to combine their expertise in innovative approaches to questions that could not be answered by individual laboratories.

URL: www.hfsp.org/funding/research-grants

45.     International Foundation for Science (IFS)

          URL: www.ifs.se

46.     Simons Foundation Austism Research initiative

          URL: https://sferi.org/funding/grants/explorer-awards-rfa

47.     The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS)

TWAS funds several programmes that provide grants to researchers in some developing countries.

URL: https//twas.org/opportunities/research-grants

48.     International Development Research Centre

Funds projects that aim to bring employment, food security, health, peace and prosperity to developing regions of the world

URL: https://www.idrc.ca/en/funding

49.     Company of Biologists

          Scheme: Scientific Meetings Grant

Organizers must have a PhD and must be in the organizing group for the meeting. No Nationality or geographic restrictions but preference given to events where organizers have sought maximal feasible diversity in speaker’s gender and age.

Home

50.     The British Ecological Society (BES): Ecologists in African Grant Programme

Theme: Developing skills & knowledge for innovative ecological research

          http://www.britishecologicalsociety.org/funding/.eclogists –in africa

Professor B.A. Oso

Director of Research

GUIDELINES ON RESEARCH PROPOSAL WRITING FOR FUNDING

THE BASIC STRUCTURE OF A PROPOSAL:

  • Title: A good proposal should have a good, eye-catching and appealing title that paintsa quick picture of the key idea(s) of the project. Avoid starting the title with “Studies on”. The title is followed by a strong introduction providing a brief overview that shows what the proposal is all about and a literature search on the topic showing what has been done on it by earlier workers, what still needs to be done, and why earlier research did not achieve the desired objectives.
  • Objectives: A good research proposal must have clearly stated objectives. Objectives are the goals you set out to attain in your study. They inform the reader what you meant to attain through the study, hence it is very important you word them clearly

Objectives should be listed under two headings namely:

a. Main Objective

b. Sub-Objectives

  • The main Objective is an overall statement of the thrust of your study.
  • The sub-objectives are the specific aspects of the topic that you want to investigate. Each sub-objective should contain only one aspect of the study.

The Objectives should start with words such as:

  • - To determine
  • -To find out
  • -To ascertain
  • -To measure
  • -To explore, etc.
  • Executive summary/abstract: Identify the basic content of a proposal quickly and accurately and determine the relevance of the proposal to their interests
  • Literature review
  • Problem/need statement
  • Methodology/work-plan: It should be clearly stated the way you want to approach the research question and the techniques you intend to use including the equipment and other materials.

Scope of Work: The scope of work to be covered and the duration of the research should be stated.

Budget: A budget for the execution of the research should be included to cover all envisaged expenses, but should not be over-bloated.

Structure of a Grant-winning Proposal

  • Expected significance
  • Evaluation plan
  • Dissemination plan
  • Future plan
  • Collaborators and team members
  • Scope and Durationof research
  • Budget and justification:
  • References/appendices

What Reviewers are Looking for in a Grant Proposal

  • The way you structure your proposal to reflect the review/evaluation criteria
  • How convincing you explain the value of your project to the arts, humanities or social sciences
  • The quality of the work
  • How you are able to explain the feasibility of the project, noting the likelihood of completing the project within the stated period
  • Originality and importance of the research
  • The contributions of the project to the mission and vision of the funder
  • The methodology and cost adequacy of the research project
  • The justifications for the project
  • The intellectual significance of the proposed project
  • Methods and work plan
  • Competencies, skills and access
  • Address final product dissemination

Typical Grant ‘Call for Proposal’ – Solicited Grants

  • Donors announce their interest in funding research by issuing a “call for proposal” or “request for application”
  • These calls, describe the type of projects intended to be funded
  • Often, these calls specify eligibility for submitting proposals and may include the following:
  • Eligible organizations and countries
  • Thematic area(s)/goal(s) addressed/covered
  • Deadline for submission of proposals
  • Permitted length of proposals
  • Format to be used for the proposal
  • Sites and locations that are of interest
  • The amount of grants available
  • Desired number and types of partners
  • The desired impact
  • The criteria for assessment of proposals

Unsolicited Grants

  • An unsolicited proposal is a written proposal for a new or innovative idea that is submitted on the initiative of the researcher or team of researchers, and/or an institution for the purpose of obtaining a grant with a grant-maker, which is not in response to a request for proposals or any other initiated solicitation or program.
  • The proposal must be specially convincing because the grant maker has not anticipated, planned or budgeted for the proposal. Although not solicited but can be funded once discovered to be convincing and exceptional.
  • The proposal must however be aware that the grant maker’s eligibility criteria as well as the thematic focus can be a stumbling but not an insurmountable block, if only the proposal can be EXCEPTIONAL!


WHAT DONOR AGENCIES PREFER TO FUND

  • Projects likely to make marked, measurable and rapid improvement in the living conditions of poor or marginal people (PRO-POOR)
  • Therefore the research project should demonstrate the path between the results of the research and how those results will benefit the end users. (IMPACT PATHWAY)
  • Projects that can make a mark, measurable improvement in the environment e.g. ecosystem conservation (biodiversity, water, soil, erosion prevention, sewage and waste management, pollution control and management, etc)
  • Projects with low risks and high returns (i.e. projects that are likely to achieve set objectives within a specific time frame and budget and within the constraints of the location, while likely to give impression benefits for the end users).
  • Projects that beneficiaries (end users) define as their priorities
  • Proposals that offer a team composed of strong research partners whose experience and qualifications give them a comparative advantage over others to carry out the project
  • Collaborative research whose project leaders have known track records. The roles of the participants and their areas of expertise should be clearly stated.
  • Note: These days only very few projects (except very small ones) are implemented by just one organization. Therefore build linkages with potential partners to complement own in-house skills
  • Proposals whose details indicate that the authors have given robust and prudent consideration to the design and implementation of the project

Convincing the Reviewer/Evaluators

  • Why you are the right person to do the project- highlight the skills and resources at your disposal
  • You have thought through the  project
  • What you have done so far? Showing that you have started work in the area that needs to be completed always helps in persuading the reviewers/evaluators
  • Intrigue the reviewers that you have a great idea that will solve a problem in a creative way!
  • Part of those things that are capable of convincingthe reviewer is the quality of referees provided, below are the points to note concerning Referee:
  • Always use somebody higher or of great experience, probably a professor, a former supervisor, or some high academic you have worked with
  • Never use somebody lower than you or outside the discipline, unless specifically asked for
  • Use one referee from within and another from outside. A former supervisor or a successful; fellow grantee will be helpful as he or she knows the inside of the program
  • Give your referees details of what you are applying for to allow them enough time to take their time in writing a great reference for you.

Research Priorities

The two pillars of research policy are the drive for excellence and innovations. Identification of research priorities at the local and national levels is of utmost importance:

  • There are environmentally relevant priorities
  • There are health relevant priorities
  • There are agriculturally relevant priorities and
  • There are industrially relevant priorities and curiosity driven research.
  • Cross-institutional, multi-disciplinary and collaborative research should be encouraged.
  • There should be collaboration between universities, government, research agencies and industries.
  • Research to provide for and shape the future should receive serious attention.

Some identified Research Areas of National Interest

Some of the identified areas of interest in the country on which research attention can be focused for the benefit of the people and the national economy include, among others:

  • Environmental Pollution Management
  • Solid Waste
  • Sewage & Industrial Effluents
  • Oil Pollution
  • Heavy metal Pollution
  • Air Pollution
  • Agric. Wastes
  • Pesticides
  • Energy Generation – Renewable energy
  • Hydropower
  • Bio-gas
  • Solar energy
  • Health
  • Drugs production from medicinal plants to cure various diseases
  • Cure for HIV/AIDS,Sickle cell anaemea, diabetes, malaria, typhoid, cancer etc.
  • Discovery of new antibiotics
  • Development of vaccines
  • Agriculture and Industry
  1. Increased food Production biotechnology, genetic engineering, organic fertilizer production technology etc.
  2. Food Preservation
  3. Food Processing
  4. Development of bio-pesticides
  5. Up-grading existing practices in food technology

vi   Microbial metabolites useful in industries

vii Up-grading and modernizing existing technologies in agriculture and industry.

  • Engineering – Fabrication of equipment locally to replace some of the expensive imported ones etc.

Prof B.A Oso

Director of Research