EU-Africa Conference: Applied Sciences as drivers for regional innovation ecosystems in Africa

5-6

September 2023

Brussels, Belgium

Hybrid

The DAAD Brussels office, in partnership with the European Commission, OBREAL Global, EURASHE, EDUFI, Nuffic and a network of German Universities of Applied Sciences have great pleasure to invite you to the joint conference “Applied Sciences as drivers for regional innovation ecosystems in Africa”, on 5 and 6 September 2023 in the Renaissance Hotel in Brussels.

 

Building upon previous Africa related events and a continuous engagement in fostering stronger Europe-Africa cooperation, this conference seeks to explore and promote the benefits of applied sciences as drivers for regional innovation in Africa. Against the background of the Sustainable Development Goals, the Africa-EU Joint Vision for 2030, the Global Gateway Strategy, the EU-AU Innovation Agenda and the African Union’s Agenda 2063, the need for a stronger focus on applied sciences is paramount.

Aims of the conference
  • Discuss the contribution of the applied sciences in fostering innovation and job generation in Africa.
  • Examine the complex interactions of regional innovation ecosystems.
  • Contribute to the further development of the EU-Africa Partnership in the field of higher education and research.
  • Discuss the importance of the Global Gateway as a framework for further cooperation.
  • Present different successful cooperation projects between academia and industry on both continents.
  • Engage in a dialogue with industry and other related education sectors (TVET) on training human resources and the mutual learning between stakeholders.
Conference structure

The conference is structured in two parts:

    • Day 1: The public conference targeting practitioners and policy experts that will set the scene and examine the various dimensions of the topic.
    • Day 2: (Higher) education cooperation projects will discuss and share practices in policy workshops clustered around four thematic tracks: (Renewable) Energy and Green Transition; Agriculture and Food Security; (Public) Health; IT/Technology and Innovation.
Programme

Find the updated programme at DAAD.