Status Workshop in the Field of “Sustainable Intensification of Agriculture”

As part of the "Integrated 2-stage Initiative" (I2I) to initiate international collaboration "African-German Scientific Exchange in the Field of Sustainable Intensification of Agriculture", all funded research teams are invited to a two-day Status Workshop in Bonn. The aim is to facilitate a scientific and administrative exchange between the teams, but also with the DFG.

Group Picture

© DFG

The event opened on Tuesday, 9 April 2024, with a welcome speech by DFG President Prof Katja Becker. The two subsequent keynote speeches by DFG Senator Prof Georg Guggenberger and researcher Prof Vicky Temperton focused on the scientific and administrative aspects of the initiative. 

The core of the first day was formed by two group sessions in which the pre-projects of the research teams in the fields of "Economy, Sociology, Technology, Digitalisation", "Ecology", "Animal Sciences, Microorganisms" and "Soil Sciences, Plant Breeding, Plant Pathology" were presented and discussed. Afterwards, the scientists exchanged views on various challenges of international collaboration, such as the combination of knowledge-driven and applied research, as well as dealing with administrative regulations in the respective countries.

The second day began with an exchange on "Equitable Research Partnerships" with an input from Souleymane Thiam from IDRC (Canada's International Development Research Centre, Regional Office Senegal). Afterwards, the teams were informed about further funding opportunities from the DFG and the DAAD.

During the poster sessions, researchers were able to network, exchange ideas, identify overlaps and explore the potential for further collaborations.

The DFG Advisory Group "African-German Scientific Research Cooperation" also took part in the Status Workshop. The five experts from different research systems in Sub-Saharan Africa contributed further perspectives and emphasised key points during the Status Workshop. The Advisory Groups supports the further development of funding instruments to foster research collaborations between researchers from Germany and the African countries.

Further information on the initiative