The University of Bern presented their Initiative Afrique in Brussels, showing their engagement in the Clusters of Research Excellence from The Guild and ARUA.
The University of Bern, The Guild, and SwissCore jointly organised a Research and Innovation (R&I) Briefing on ‘Africa – Europe 360° cooperation based on equitable R&I partnerships: role and contribution from Switzerland’. Hosted by the Swiss Mission, the Briefing was an opportunity for experts to present their initiatives, achievements, and challenges faced while engaging in international cooperation. The slides presented during the event are available here.
In July 2023, the African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU) adopted the joint AU-EU Innovation Agenda, to enhance cooperation in science, technology, and innovation. The knowledge sector consists of valuable networked actors who play a crucial role in Europe’s approach to international partnerships with colleagues in Africa and beyond. An outstanding example of a universities-driven initiative is the Africa-Europe Clusters of Research Excellence (CoRE), which brings together top researchers from both continents and fosters long-term partnerships. Launched by the African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA) and The Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities, 21 CoREs have been established so far. The Clusters are an opportunity for sound investment to enhance cooperation between the continents by scaling up, consolidating existing efforts and building an ecosystem between a variety of actors in Africa and Europe. The experiences and successes of two CoREs co-led by the University of Bern were showcased at the Briefing: Genomics for Health in Africa co-led by the Multidisciplinary Centre for Infectious Diseases (MCID) and Sustainable Water and Land Resource Management for Human Well-Being co-led by the Centre for Development and Environment (CDE).
The event was opened by Ambassador Rita Adam, Head of the Swiss Mission to the EU, who highlighted the importance of international collaborations for Switzerland. Science diplomacy plays a fundamental role in Swiss foreign policy, because R&I is crucial to address ongoing global challenges such as climate change. This set the scene for fruitful discussions on how Switzerland and the EU can strengthen their collaboration in international partnerships, focusing on Africa. Prof. Dr. Hugues Abriel (Vice-Rector for Research and Innovation, University of Bern) took to the stage to highlight the University of Bern’s approach to equitable partnership: namely, Initiative Afrique. Focusing on collaborative Research Partnerships, this initiative brings together all academic activities – past, present, and future – from the University of Bern in and on Africa, ensuring that African colleagues and partners are involved from the start of the process.
Prof. Dr. Carmen Faso (Co-Chair of MCID, University of Bern) presented the Genomics for Health in Africa CoRE, as an excellent example of equity in collaborative Research with Africa. She began by acknowledging European colonial history on the African continent, and how science and research were primarily driven by empirical desires and well-being of the European populations. This cluster – with its emphasis on Biomedical research with Africa, as opposed to in or on Africa – signifies a radical shift in how we understand collaborations with African partners: equity and co-creation must underpin any partnership. She explained that the consequences of rare diseases are not limited to the affected individuals but extend to our population as a whole: in Europe, rare diseases result in temporary or persistent income losses in almost 30% of patients, which leads to economic losses for Europe as a whole. And given the demographic trends indicate that the future is African, a lack of African DNA in our datasets will inevitably result in a public health crisis in the future.
Prof. Dr. Shahida Moosa (Head of Medical Genetics, Tygerberg Hospital in South Africa) emphasised that unlike any other technology, genomics research has the greatest potential to improve the health and well-being of people across the globe. Currently, 50% of affected people living with a rare disease are children, and a third of this group will not live to see their fifth birthday. However, the situation of genomics research in Africa is dire, due to a lack of access to the necessary genomic technology and diagnostic expertise. This is where the CoRE Genomics for Health in Africa comes in: by jointly deciding to focus on quality innovation partnerships, skills transfer, and capacity building, this African-European partnership aims to yield the full potential of genomics research across both continents.
The second CoRE showcased was the Sustainable Water and Land Resource Management for Human Well-Being cluster. Prof. Dr. Thomas Breu (Director, CDE, University of Bern) highlighted that it is in the DNA of the CDE to work in close partnerships between the continents. Sustainable development, in his view, does not stop at national borders and can only be achieved when we join forces at international level; this means, with people and experts in the Global South. Considering that soils, after the oceans, have the greatest potential for carbon sequestration, it is of great concern that 40% of our land is degraded. But using a concrete example of a mountainside in Tajikistan, Breu emphasised that options to make a difference – often local and indigenous ones – do exist. The key question that this cluster addresses is how sustainable land management practices can be maintained while increasing productivity without destroying the soil and landscape for human well-being. In short: long-term soil health is at the heart of this CoRE. To achieve this goal, this cluster focuses on: (1) developing a systematic understanding of degradation; (2) governance for sustainable solutions; (3) upscaling and out-scaling best practices; (4) land user agency for adoption; and (5) capacity development. Dr. Gete Zeleke (Director, Water and Land Resource Centre, Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia) complemented Breu’s presentation, sharing highlights from the Learning Water Shed Approach in transforming both the ecosystem and livelihoods.
Following the overview of the CoREs, Jean Claude Makangara (PhD Candidate, University of Bern) took the audience on his journey as a beneficiary from the Initiative Afrique, which began in 2018. Makangara moved from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to Bern as a MD-PhD candidate to do research in microbiology, specialising in infectious diseases. The DRC is a major hotspot for infectious diseases, which poses a major challenge to a country that suffers from numerous logistical and technical shortcomings. Unequal distribution of sequencing platforms, lack of adequate research infrastructures, insufficiently trained researchers and scientists in genomics and in molecular sciences, and ongoing conflicts make conducting science extremely difficult. Through his current work on the development of novel metagenomics approaches for viral discovery in low-resources countries, he hopes to fill some of these gaps in the long-term.
The Briefing concluded with a policy-focused panel discussion with representatives from the European Commission and the South African Mission to the EU on International cooperation: the way forward for equitable partnerships. Key issues discussed were: the 360 degrees approach in making the EU a distinct and attractive partner for Africa, notably by building true ecosystems with different sectors and stakeholders, but also to partner in specific value chains; on an institutional level, how researchers are incentivised to be part of African-European partnerships; the future of the relationship between the EU and Africa; and the opportunities Horizon Europe provides for wider diplomacy among countries.
The second day of the programme provided an opportunity for colleagues from the University of Bern and experts from the two CoREs to exchange views and knowledge, with inputs from experts from the European Commission and the ecosystem (e.g., the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement [IRD]). The first round-table was an opportunity to discuss Horizon Europe and calls for participation for African partners, and concluded by acknowledging that focus cannot solely be on investing in excellence; this must be combined with investment in hard infrastructure. This discussion set the scene for the theme of the second round-table: equitable partnerships. Colleagues discussed how partnerships can be based on equity, and shared their best practices and challenges in achieving this.
“Africa needs Europe, as much as Europe needs Africa”. In an increasingly politicised, yet interconnected world, the importance of equitable partnerships cannot be understated. Deepening our understanding how such networks can be established, and what opportunities there are for strengthening Europe’s ties with Africa further is imperative, and this is what this event aimed at. From the perspective of Vice-Rector for R&I, Prof. Dr. Hugues Abriel: “Internationalisation is one of the objectives of the University of Bern Strategy 2030. In this frame, partnerships with African academics and Universities has become a priority. This has been made possible in part thanks to the support from The Guild of European research intensive-Universities and ARUA who established in 2023 the Europe-Africa Clusters of Research Excellence. Thanks to the good connection with SwissCore, the event organised in Brussels has become such an excellent opportunity to connect the dots with policymakers and other stakeholders from the European and Swiss ecosystem of R&I. This visit was even more important now that Swiss researchers and innovators can apply fully to Horizon Europe. Finally, one can say that this Briefing was a real crash course in European Policy for Science!”