Training early career scientists to respond to Africa's challenges in global health

Nairobi, Kenya I Tuesday 16 August 2022

The African Academy of Sciences (AAS), in partnership with the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), announces a call for applications for the 3^rd cohort of the African Postdoctoral Training Initiative (APTI) fellowships. APTI Fellows are trained and supported to become scientific leaders who can advocate for increased research and innovation projects in Africa. This is done through 4-year postdoctoral fellowships where APTI Fellows are placed in various laboratories of the NIH Institutes or Centers (i.e., Intramural Research Program) for 2 years before returning to their home institutions in Africa for another 2 years of research. Ultimately, APTI fellows are expected to be a part of an African regional and global web of collaborations connecting to their home institutions.

APTI fellowships are open to applications from fields of health research, with a focus on innovation aimed at the discovery and translation of transformative solutions to global health problems that are priorities for their home institutions and countries. Additionally, proposals should align with the focus areas of BMGF, the NIH, and the AAS.

Eligibility requirements:

To be eligible, applicants must:

• Be citizens of an African country, currently employed in an academic, research, or government position in an African country
• Have a relevant doctoral degree (e.g., PhD, MD, MBBS) awarded no more than 7 years before the application submission deadline. Applicants whose doctoral degrees were awarded earlier may be considered on a case-by-case basis subject to justification (e.g., where one took a career break for family-related reasons or to seek asylum due to political instability). Such applicants should submit a request (with justification) for consideration
• Have less than 5 years of relevant research experience after the award of their doctoral degree, by their start date at the NIH. Brief periods of clinical work and/or teaching, that does not include research, may be allowable, but cannot exceed 2-3 years total.
• Be fluent in English – reading, writing, speaking, and listening.

Additional information:

• All applications and their supporting documents must be submitted in English. Supporting documents issued in a language other than English should be accompanied by their English translation.
• Applications must be submitted via the AAS Grants Management system (Ishango).
• Submission of applications opens on 16 August 2022 and closes on 30 September 2022, at 17:00 East African Time (GMT +3).

For more information on this call, please visit the AAS funding opportunities webpage here.

NOTES TO EDITOR

The African Academy of Sciences 

The African Academy of Sciences (AAS) is a non-aligned, non-political, not-for-profit pan African organisation whose vision is to see transformed lives on the African continent through science. Our tripartite mandate is recognising excellence, providing advisory and think tank functions and implementing key STI programmes addressing Africa’s developmental challenges.

Join us on Facebook AASciences I Twitter@AASciences I Website www.aasciences.africa

The Fogarty International Center

The Center addresses global health challenges through innovative and collaborative research and training programs and supports and advances the NIH mission through international partnerships.

Website www.fic.nih.gov.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH)

NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases.

Website visit www.nih.gov.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty.

Media inquiries 

The African Academy of Sciences

Nairobi, Kenya 

communication@aasciences.africa