Open Call – PhD Visiting Fellowships (VFP) – 2026 Cohort Application deadline: 15 November 2025

Background

In July 2025, the Swedish International Development Agency (Sida) agreed to support a new AfricaLics project on optimizing research capacity on Innovation and Development in Africa through the African Network on Learning, Innovation and Competence Building Systems (AfricaLics). The new Research Capacity Strengthening (RCS) project will run from July 2025 to December 2029.

Against this background, AfricaLics is now inviting suitable PhD student candidates from universities in African countries to apply for participation in the AfricaLics PhD Visiting Fellowship Programme (2026 cohort) focused on research in Innovation and Development (I&D).

The VFP was established in 2015, and since then, a total of 45 African PhD students from low and lower-middle-income countries have participated in the programme, obtaining training and mentorship support.

Successful candidates for the 2026 cohort will participate in a fellowship programme combining online pre- and post-activities with a study period of 3 months at the University of Johannesburg (UJ)[1] in South Africa.

Mentoring will be provided by a range of scholars in Innovation and Development (I&D) studies, including key members of the AfricaLics (www.africalics.org) and Globelics (www.globelicsnetwork.org) communities. The VFP 2026 will also receive support from the Trilateral Research Chair in Transformative Innovation, the Fourth Industrial Revolution and Sustainable Development (TRCTI) at UJ. The chair constitutes a key hub for research in I&D in the African context and provides excellent opportunities for candidates to engage with key scholars in the field as well as to promote their career opportunities. More information about the chair and key scholars working there is available here: https://www.uj.ac.za/faculties/cbe/SARChI-TRCTI).

The 2026 VFP cohort activities will kick off with a range of online activities starting in the first half of February 2026. The study visit at UJ is scheduled for 1^st September to 30^th November 2026 and will be followed up by various additional online activities in December 2026 and in early 2027. After engagement in the programme, students are offered the opportunity to continue engaging with the AfricaLics community, through participation in AfricaLics Alumni activities, AfricaLics research conferences, our webinar series, and activities organised by national chapters of AfricaLics in Nigeria, Ethiopia and Burkina Faso. Through such activities, VFP alumni can continue to benefit from network activities and support the development of African Innovation and Development studies. Possibilities to engage VFP alumni in the Research Coordination Areas (see: https://africalics.org/thematic-areas-rcas) will also be explored.

Within the AfricaLics community, innovation is broadly defined as spanning from “new to the world inventions” to the diffusion and use of technology new to the user or context in which it is introduced and includes competence building among users of innovation. Technology here can mean both a physical product; a new process e.g. for manufacturing a product, and new way of doing or organising things. Innovation and Development Studies research, as defined by the AfricaLics network, includes the study and management of processes that link technological and social innovation with development. This includes studies and improved understandings of how learning and competence-building systems contribute to development processes.

The programme gives priority to students working on topics identified by the AfricaLics network as important to the future of Africa. For more info on the main thematic areas and research coordination areas addressed by AfricaLics, please see: https://www.africalics.org/thematic-areas/.

Scholars in the field may have a background in economics and/or other social sciences (e.g. Sociology, Political Science, Science and Technology Policy, Geography, History or Development Studies). Some work within the STEM (science, technology, engineering or mathematics) subjects or even manufacturing. All scholars, regardless of their disciplinary backgrounds, look at one or more elements at the intersection between innovation and development. They work within a broad range of areas including energy and sustainable development/transformation, health, gender, agriculture, manufacturing and work organisation, big data and the fourth industrial revolution.

To understand more about the field of innovation and development and see if your work fits within this research area, please look at papers published in relevant journals including (but not only) the following: African Journal of Science, Technology, Innovation and Development; Innovation and Development; Research Policy; Journal of International Development; International Journal of Technology Learning, Innovation and Development; International Journal of Technology Management and Sustainable Development; Journal of Development Economics; Journal of Science and Technology Policy; Journal of Evolutionary Economics and Journal of Technological Forecasting and Social Change (see: https://www.africalics.org/innovation-and-development-studies-resources/).

On the AfricaLics Visiting PhD Fellowship Programme

Overall aim and organisation of the programme

The aim of the AfricaLics VFP and the scholarships is to help African PhD students working in the field of Innovation and Development to strengthen their academic/research qualifications; improve the quality of their dissertations and prepare for a career in innovation and development either within academia or outside (e.g. in the private sector or in government/policy making).

The AfricaLics VFP does this by increasing the mobility and level of exposure of the selected PhD students to international knowledge in the field of innovation and development. The programme forms part of the broader AfricaLics efforts to contribute to the development of a vibrant research community in Africa in this emerging and highly multidisciplinary field. Swedish Sida has provided financial support for the VFP since 2015, and we are obviously extremely pleased that they have decided to continue doing so for the next 4-5 years through the new AfricaLics RCS project.

The Sida support to AfricaLics RCS activities 2025-2029 will be channeled through the African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) based in Nairobi, Kenya. The AfricaLics Scientific Board (ASB) provides advice on scientific matters and issues of strategic importance. Members of the ASB Working Group on research capacity strengthening activities also participate in the assessment of applications received and advise on the final selection of PhD candidates. The AfricaLics PhD Visiting Fellowship Programme 2026 will be jointly organized by a small AfricaLics RCS team based at ACTS and UJ’s DSI-NRF Trilateral Research Chair in Transformative Innovation, 4IR and Sustainable Development (‘UJ-TRCTI’) in South Africa.

The programme implementation will furthermore be supported by AfricaLics and Globelics scholars based at other relevant African and international universities active in the field of Innovation and Development.

Eligibility and selection criteria

The scholarship option is open to PhD students from countries in Africa classified by the OECD/DAC as low and lower-middle-income countries whose studies – irrespective of sectoral discipline – focus on the relationship between innovation and economic, social or environmentally sustainable development. Female PhD students are particularly encouraged to apply as AfricaLics endeavours to contribute to increasing the currently low number of female scholars in Innovation and Development research studies in Africa. Likewise, PhD students from low-income countries are particularly encouraged to apply because AfricaLics endeavors to strengthen research capacity in Innovation and Development in low-income countries in Africa.

Applicants must be enrolled as PhD students in a relevant programme at an African university and should preferably have completed their first year of PhD studies by December 2025. The final number of accepted visiting fellows will depend on the in-depth assessment of the quality and relevance of applications, funding available and possibilities to secure relevant mentors that matches the topics of PhD candidates applying for the fellowship. The visiting scholarship is complementary to the studies of the PhD students at their home universities, and applicants must already have secured basic funding for their PhD studies from other sources (e.g. African governments, other organisations, self-financing).

Fellowship period, joint face-to-face meetings and work plans

The VFP provides successful PhD students with the opportunity to engage in several online activities including a course on writing skills and a course on ‘How to write an Academic Journal Article’, a course on how to do systematic literature reviews, and up to 5 paper presentation seminars during the study period at UJ. VFP participants will be offered the opportunity to apply for and participate in the AfricaLics PhD Academy 2026, which is scheduled to take place from 26^th October to 6^th November 2026 at Wits University, Johannesburg back-to-back with the 7^th AfricaLics International Research Conference 10^th – 12^th November 2026.

The study visits to UJ are scheduled to take place from 1^st September to 30^th November 2026. The study visits will expose students to an international research environment focusing on Innovation and Development studies, including transformative innovation processes and the 4IR. Students will do presentations of their project work and benefit from interaction with other visiting fellows and PhD students working on innovation and development issues as well as scholars at UJ-TRCTI. The study visit will provide students with time off from their duties in their home country to focus on consolidating and improving their research, analyzing data collected from fieldwork, and writing articles or chapters for their PhD thesis. During the fellowship period, each student will be “matched” with one or two scholars with competencies in the field in which the student is active, who will act as mentors for the PhD visiting fellows. In this way, the AfricaLics Visiting Fellowship Programme will help strengthen research capabilities in Innovation and Development, drawing on internationally renowned scholars. The final selection of mentors depends on the topic and background of successful applicants.

Mentors for the 2026 cohort will be volunteers from the AfricaLics and Globelics network. Mentors are not formal supervisors, and full responsibility for the PhD study process remains with the PhD student and his/her supervisors from the university where the student is enrolled. Close interaction between the PhD student, home supervisor(s), and the mentors is required to ensure the fellowship and the study stay contributes constructively to the studies of the PhD student. Hence, trilateral meetings will be organised from the beginning of the scholarship period. Students are expected to stay in touch with mentors and home supervisors through e-mail and to document and share notes from meetings with mentors and home supervisors to ensure transparency in the joint supervision and mentoring process.

Most meetings will be online, but for the 2026 cohort, two face-to-face events are scheduled: one from 11^th – 13^th March 2026 and another during the students’ study stay at UJ. The focus of the face-to-face meetings will be on how to get the most out of joint supervision, including tools for joint PhD supervision and alignment of views between students, home supervisors, and mentors on the direction that each PhD student should take. Students will have the opportunity to present papers and/or chapters of their dissertations and get feedback both in paper presentation seminars and in smaller bi-lateral meetings with their home supervisors, and in trilateral meetings involving students, home supervisors, and mentors.

Activities under the AfricaLics PhD Visiting Programme should form an integrated part of the PhD work plan for each applicant. Depending on the rules and regulations at different African universities where applicants are enrolled, such plans typically include initial theoretical studies/taught courses, fieldwork in the home country or country where the student is already enrolled as a PhD student, exchange visits, and time for writing up articles and dissertation work.

Successful applicants for the AfricaLics VFP 2026 will also be asked to develop a specific workplan for the fellowship period, closely related to the PhD plan approved by their university. These plans will include:

Detailed information on papers (or chapters) that the student will work on and present during paper presentation seminars.
Participation in online AfricaLics VFP courses and seminars (introduction seminar, writing courses, paper presentation seminars, and wrap-up activities) according to events list to be shared later.
Participation in online AfricaLics webinars (monthly events), which showcase research in the field of Innovation and Development.
Participation in the three-month study visit at UJ to focus on writing up thesis or articles
Participation in the 2026 AfricaLics PhD Academy from 26^th October – 6^th November 2026 at Wits University, Johannesburg. VFP fellows, are responsible for applying for participation in the 2026 AfricaLics PhD academy. Students may also apply to participate in other PhD courses or academies, such as e.g. those organised by our parent network, Globelics.

After the study visit , AfricaLics VFP students will return to their home country and continue work on PhD dissertation to finalise and submit according to the rules and regulations at the university where the student is enrolled.

AfricaLics PhD visiting fellows are also encouraged to work on and submit papers to upcoming relevant conferences, such as the AfricaLics Conference 2026 and the Globelics Conference 2027. Participation in such events provides exposure to the wider AfricaLics/Globelics community, networking opportunities, and the possibility of finding collaborating partners for future research projects. AfricaLics PhD visiting fellows must apply for participation in such events on the same conditions as all others and should agree with their home supervisors and mentors on which events to prioritise depending on where they are in their PhD process. AfricaLics may offer travel support to the extent that funding is available.

The visiting fellows are thus encouraged to remain engaged with the AfricaLics network after the fellowship period through activities in the AfricaLics alumni network, webinars, and other events.

Activities of the alumni network are advertised here: https://africalics.org/alumni-events/. Online webinars are advertised on the AfricaLics website and SoMe.

Current and former participants in the AfricaLics VFP are listed on the AfricaLics website (see: https://africalics.org/vfp/. Examples of what previous visiting fellows have gained from participating in the AfricaLics VFP and other AfricaLics activities can be found in the AfricaLics flip-book and in the various videos available on the AfricaLics YouTube channel.

Student Requirements and Application Form

Applicants for the AfricaLics PhD visiting fellowship programme should:

Be working actively on a subject relevant to innovation and development as defined above.
Be enrolled as a PhD student at a university in Africa.
Have preferably completed their first year of studies by December 2025
Have a background (BSc, MSc etc.) in Economics, Sociology, Political Science, Science and Technology Policy, Geography, History or Development Studies. Applicants may also work within the STEM (science, technology, engineering, or mathematics) subjects or even manufacturing but from a social science perspective.
Possess adequate skills in English (documentation may be requested).
Submit a brief application of one page/500 words explaining their background, motivation for applying and expected outcomes of participation in the AfricaLics PhD visiting fellowship programme

The following documents must be submitted with the brief application:

Brief outline of current PhD project, including PhD training plans (max. 5 pages)
Curriculum Vitae – CV (including PhD courses attended so far)
Letter of support from the main PhD supervisor confirming that the PhD student will have completed her/his upgrade/probation by the end of December 2025 OR reasons why the student is deemed suitable for inclusion in the fellowship programme if this is not the case.
Letter of support from the University Administration at the university where the PhD student is enrolled
Copies of academic certificates (copies of Bachelor and Master Certificates as a minimum)
One writing sample (article or chapter) from current PhD program

Applicants are NOT expected to submit a copy of their passport when applying for the PhD visiting fellowship programme. Successful candidates will be asked to handle any visa issues that may be relevant with support from the AfricaLics Secretariat and UJ. Collection of personal data will be kept to a minimum, and information received will be stored safely and will not be used for any other purposes.

Please use the application form when you submit your application. You can download the form through this link

Applications with all relevant attachments should be forwarded to visitingphd@africalics.org by 23.00hrs East Africa time on 15^th November 2025.

An information session on the VFP and the application process will be held on 24^th October on Zoom. If you are interested in attending this information session, please register using this Zoom link

Applications not fulfilling the requirements above will not be considered, so please forward any questions you may have to visitingphd@africalics.org and you will be assisted.

Interviews of shortlisted and potentially successful candidates will take place on 12^th November and on 15^th November 2026.

Successful candidates will be notified by mid-December 2025 or early January 2026, following which they will be required to sign a study agreement form confirming that they will participate in the fellowship programme.

The final notification date will be communicated after interviews have taken place.

Visa

Successful PhD candidates are responsible for ensuring that their passport is valid for the time they will be staying in Johannesburg in South Africa, and for dealing with any issues related to the legality of their stay in South Africa (letters of invitation will be forwarded). Details of how to apply for your visit visa in South Africa will be sent to successful candidates in due time.

Accommodation and workspace

The AfricaLics RCS team at ACTS and staff at UJ will help organise accommodation for students during the study visit in Johannesburg. The accommodation will be near the business school campus of the University of Johannesburg, where the students will have their working space.

Additional information on terms and conditions

Return flight costs from your nearest international airport (economy class) to Johannesburg will be covered by AfricaLics through the new Sida-supported RCS project.
Visiting fellows on the AfricaLics VFP must take out a comprehensive health insurance for the study period. Costs may be reimbursed by the AfricaLics secretariat if funding allows.
Living costs during the study visit to UJ are normally covered through a stipend amounting to approximately $600 per month. This amount should cover all costs while in Johannesburg related to living expenses and travel around Johannesburg including to and from UJ campus.
Costs for participation in joint courses and mentorship fees will be covered by AfricaLics. The AfricaLics RCS project will cover costs related to the two face-to-face meetings between students, home supervisors and mentors.
If AfricaLics agrees to fund the three-month study visit to Johannesburg, the scholarship will only cover costs related to the student’s visit. Any costs related to accompanying spouses, children, or others will not be covered. The scholarship does not cover the costs of any additional avel in South Africa that the student may wish to undertake unless as part of selected and approved VFP activities.

Contact us

Questions regarding the AfricaLics Visiting PhD Fellowship Programme and the call should be forwarded to: visitingphd@africalics.org

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[1] The University of Johannesburg (UJ) is one of the largest contact universities in South Africa of the 26 public universities that make up the higher education system. UJ is a diverse, inclusive, transformational, and collegial institution, with a student population of over 50 000, of which more than 3000 are international students from 80 countries. More information can be found at https://www.uj.ac.za/faculties/cbe/SARChI-TRCTI

(2) African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) is a regional think tank based in Kenya, dedicated to policy research, innovation, and sustainable development in Africa. Established in 1988, ACTS works at the interface of science, technology, innovation, environment, and society to support evidence-based policymaking. ACTS is internationally recognized for its thought leadership, capacity-building initiatives, and impactful programmes implemented across multiple African countries. More information can be found at https://acts-net.org/

(3) AfricaLics is an African network focused on advancing research, capacity building, and policy dialogue on innovation, learning, and sustainable development. It brings together scholars, policymakers, and practitioners to generate knowledge on how innovation and competence building can drive inclusive growth in Africa. AfricaLics plays a central role in strengthening innovation ecosystems, enhancing research capabilities, and shaping policy debates across the continent. More information can be found at www.africalics.org.