AREF call for Applications: Women Grant Writing Programme

The Africa research Excellence Fund (AREF) is calling for applications for its Women Grant Writing Programme.

The Programme aim is to enable talented early-career health- and health-related researchers from countries in Africa to build skills to develop their own research and fellowship proposals of the quality required to win competitive international, regional and national funding.

AREF welcomes applications for this Programme from researchers who are actively working on challenges to human health and are trained and experienced in one or more of the following disciplines: biomedicine; physiology and pharmacology; clinical sciences; epidemiology; mathematics and statistics; environmental health; “one health” (veterinary science); behavioural, mental health, public health, data science for health, social and economic sciences; and health policy and systems research.

Eligibility: 

• Be a citizen of a country in Africa.
• Bein the early stages of your research career.
• EITHER have been awarded a research doctorate (PhD/DPhil/MD) from a recognised academic institution normally within the previous 6 years, (i.e. awarded on or after 1 January 2019); OR have a medical/clinical qualification PLUS a research-relevant Master’s degree, both awarded normally within the previous 6 years (i.e. awarded on or after 1 January 2019).
• Be currently employed in Africa by a recognised university and/or specialist research institution.
• Have not participated already in equivalent proposal development / grant-writing training with AREF.
• A significant part of your current employee role is to develop and conduct health research.
• Do not already have a significant portfolio of international research grants (Combined value of £250,000 or more).

Format of the Programme Series: 

• Monday 30^th June to Friday 04^th July 2025: daily 3-hour on-line sessions, 08:30 – 11:30 GMT
• Monday 1^st to Wednesday 3rd September 2025: daily sessions 3-hour on-line sessions, 08:30 – 11:30 GMT

Participants will be provided with appropriate learning materials including preparatory exercises before the first session and between sessions.  Each session will be delivered through Zoom.  Participants will work in on-line groups and offline subgroups. All sessions will be conducted in English.

Read here for more information. 

Application deadline, 14th of April 2025.