Scientific & technological cooperation between Africa & the EU : Past achievements & future prospects.
Date: 2011-10-11
Institutions: Directorate-General for Research and Innovation
Subjects: Africa, earth sciences, environmental monitoring, geographical information system, satellite, scientific cooperation

E U R O P E A N
COMMISSION

Research &
Innovation

International
cooperation

Scientific & Technological  
Cooperation between  
Africa & the EU

Past Achievements & Future Prospects

Project inform tion

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Directorate-General for Research and Innovation 
Directorate D - International Cooperation

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Scientific cooperation between Africa
and the European Union

Today, entire economies are judged by the investment they make in education, science and technology, culture and 
innovation. Knowledge, particularly scientifically validated knowledge, is critical for turning the increasingly complex 
challenges society faces into opportunities for more sustainable development, achieving the Millennium Development Goals 
and implementing other joint commitments.

The major European policies which traditionally set the overall framework for cooperation with Africa are: 
• 

 the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), which includes the North African countries involved in the Barcelona 
Process, started in 2003 and which gained new momentum as the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM),  
launched in 2008;
 the Cotonou Agreement between the EU and 77 ACP countries, representing 1 billion people (a sixth of the world’s 
population), which came into operation in 2003 and is due to last for 20 years. A main principle of Cotonou is that 
poverty is incompatible with a global trading environment and therefore the ACP countries must be drawn into the 
world economy by a process based on sustainable development through Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs).
 the Trade, Development and Cooperation Agreement (TDCA) with South Africa, which entered into force provisionally 
in 2000 and became definitive in 2004. This free trade agreement complements South Africa’s political role as  
part of the ACP.

• 

• 

Scientific relations between what is now the European Union and Africa date back more than 25 years to the launch of 
the first Science and Technology for Development Programme (STD) in 1983 and have steadily developed since.
Under the 6th Research Framework Programme (FP6: 2002-2006), teams from 51 of the 53 African countries filed 3,888 
applications for participation in research and other collaborative projects together with their peers from Europe and 
other continents. 873 of these applications from 39 African countries were successful and received funding of some €93 M. 

During the first two years of the Cooperation Programme of the 7th Research Framework Programme (FP7: 2007-2013), 
projects involving 368 participants from 37 African countries have already been main-listed. The financial EC contribution 
to these teams is about €53 million, but the greatest value is in accessing international knowledge networks and 
strengthening African S&T capabilities through cooperation.

The themes offering greatest immediate opportunities for developing mutually beneficial S&T cooperation are health, agro-
food, environment (including climate change) and natural resources, information and communication technologies, where 
there is also the longest-standing experience and capacity in such cooperation.

In addition almost €9 million are allocated to activities with Africa in the Capacities Programme so far. Notable examples 
of such projects are the INCO-Nets ‘CAASTNET’ and ‘MIRA’ which disseminate information about opportunities offered 
through the FP and support S&T policy dialogue with Sub-Saharan Africa and Mediterranean countries respectively.

EU cooperation with Africa is underpinned by a number of agreements and working arrangements. Backing this up, 
there is a Joint EU/Africa Strategy, adopted in outline at the EU/Africa Ministerial meeting in May 2007. The Strategy 
is accompanied by a first Action Plan covering a number of selected priority actions, organised into specific “EU-Africa 
Partnerships”. The Action Plan was approved at the EU-Africa Summit in Lisbon on 8-9 December, 2007. The 8th 
Partnership covers Science, Information Society and Space.

Under the 8th Partnership the European Commission (EC) and the African Union Commission (AUC) have made substantial 
progress towards the identification of a broad range of S&T capacity building projects and initiatives intended to help 
reinforce the African Science and Technology basis and its research systems both in terms of production and use  
of knowledge and in terms of institutional S&T policy capability. These prospective activities are compiled in the so-called 
Book of “lighthouse projects”, a ‘living’ document for further refinement, e.g. through the involvement of the Member 
States and all relevant players on both sides. Six “early deliverables” (two in Science, two in Information Society  
and two in Space) were identified for first priority implementation.

The two lighthouse projects selected in the Science and Technology chapter are: 
• 

 African Research Grants: to promote sustainable science and technology research for Africa’s technical, economic  
and social development. This programme will focus on competitive grants to African researchers and will be 
managed by the AUC-Human Resources, Science and Technology (HRST) Department, thereby developing its capability 
to manage and oversee the implementation of research programmes;
 ‘Water and food security’ and ‘Better access to health’ in Africa initiativess: to strengthen the capacity in science 
and technology in order to cope with food security problems while promoting sustainable management of land and 
water resources. This will focus on cooperation between researchers in Europe and Africa and will be funded to the 
tune of about €63 million through the special ‘Africa’ call in FP7 published in July 2009.

• 

These science and innovation-oriented activities are largely complementary to and intended to be mutually reinforcing 
with bi-regional and bilateral development and trade cooperation operating through different external policies and their 
intervention instruments: particularly Development Policy, Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and Trade Policy. 

The following small selection of FP6 (2002-2006) and FP7 (2007-2013) projects illustrates the diversity and coverage of 
knowledge-focused collaborations, which are already delivering results or are in the process of doing so.

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CAAST-Net - Network for the Coordination and Advancement 
of Sub-Saharan Africa-EU Science and Technology Cooperation

This INCO-Net has been developed against the background of an emerging global consensus that capacity in S&T is essential not only 
to economic competitiveness, but also to sustainable development and poverty reduction. It is aimed at supporting S&T policy dialogue 
among the EU and the African partners as well as increasing the participation of the African researchers in the activities of the 7th 
European Research Framework Programme (FP7) and supporting greater synergies between research and cooperation activities under 
the European Development Fund. 

It strives to support existing intergovernmental processes, including dialogue with the African Ministerial Council for Science and Technology 
(AMCOST), through a ‘Steering Platform for EU-African S&T Cooperation’. Its primary activities focus on facilitation and promotion of the 
bi-regional dialogue process and on providing monitoring and analyses to provide feedback. Studies will include analysis of past and 
on-going Europe-Africa S&T collaborations taking into account not only the European Framework Programmes, but also major bilateral 
activities between European and African countries as well as other major European and international mechanisms for S&T cooperation 
as inputs for updating policies and priorities in international cooperation.

In addition to promoting African participation in 
FP7,  the  project  supports  the  identification  of 
specific research topics for European-African coopera-
tion and their recommendation for inclusion in FP7, 
particularly Specific International Cooperation Actions 
(SICAs). Its dissemination activities also encourage 
uptake and impact of research and aim particularly 
at influencing research policies.

CAAST-Net runs from 01/01/2008 to 
31/12/2011 with a budget of about €3 
million and is coordinated by Dr. Andrew 
Cherry of the Africa Unit of the Association of 
Commonwealth Universities (on behalf of the 
UK Government of Science). It mobilises 18 
partners representing funding agencies  
and major internationally active research  
organisations from the following countries: 
Cameroon, Cape Verde, Germany, Ghana,  
Finland, France, Kenya, Madagascar,  
Norway, Portugal, Rwanda, Senegal, South 
Africa, Sweden, Uganda and UK. 

www.caast-net.org

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MIRA - Mediterranean Innovation and 
Research Coordination Action

The starting point of this INCO-Net is the desire to intensify knowledge-based cooperation between Mediterranean Partner Countries 
(MPC) and Member States of the European Union as well as with countries associated with the 7th Research Framework Programme 
(2007-2013).

The project therefore aims to develop and support the EU-MPC dialogue, by bringing together MPC and EU policy makers and stakeholders 
in support of the general political dialogue structured by the Barcelona Process of Euro-Mediterranean dialogue and, more specifically, 
through the Monitoring Committee for the Euro-Mediterranean Science and Technology Cooperation, also named the Barcelona RTD 
Committee (MoCo). 

This project aims to help identify common interests in research areas, set-up S&T priorities, support capacity building activities, enhance 
the interaction between different cooperation instruments of the EC and the EU Members States. MIRA promotes activities to monitor, 
develop, promote and contribute to the creation of synergies among the different cooperation S&T programmes between the Mediterranean 
Partner Countries and EU Member States, and foster the participation of the MPC in the Framework Programme. An Observatory on 
EU-MPC cooperation in S&T has been created in the frame of the project.

Among the activities scheduled are, e.g. the creation of a Euro-Mediterranean Innovation Space (EMIS) discussion platform. It opens a 
dialogue space among companies, administrations and researchers on how the S&T cooperation could support the development of EMIS. In 
this conjunction, a pilot action promotes the establishment of a bi-regional Technology Transfer Network. It is a space for benchmarking 
and exchange of good practices regarding strategies, structures, resources associated with Technology Transfer and the underlying political 
and cultural aspects which influence the effectiveness and efficiency of Technology Transfer.

MIRA will also facilitate the participation in FP7 through capacity building in the MPC, notably by means of an evaluation of the existing 
Information Points, training of managers, scientists, auditors and other relevant actors, seminars on proposal writing and delivering 
recommendations to the national authorities (in English, French and Arabic).

 The INCO-Net runs from 01/01/2008 to 
31/12/2011 with a budget of about  
€3 million and is coordinated by  
Dr. Rafael Rodríguez-Clemente of the 
Spanish Council for Scientific Research 
(CSIC). The consortium is composed of 
28 research funding agencies and other 
relevant partners from Algeria, Egypt, 
France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, 
Jordan, Lebanon, Malta, Morocco,  
Palestinian administrated areas, Spain, 
Tunisia, Turkey and UK.

www.miraproject.eu

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EDCTP - European and Developing Countries Clinical  
Trials Partnership 

The European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP) was created in 2003 as a European response to the global 
health crisis caused by HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. EDCTP is a partnership of 14 EU Member States, Norway, Switzerland and sub-
Saharan African countries. EDCTP is jointly funded by the European Commission, its European partners and third-party contributions.

EDCTP was the EU’s first ‘Article 169’ programme. This article in the European Treaty enables EU Member States to develop their national 
programmes into a Joint Programme which can be co-funded by the EC and for increasing the impact of EU-funded research.

EDCTP aims to accelerate the development of new or improved drugs, vaccines, diagnostics and microbicides against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis 
and malaria, with a focus on phase II and III clinical trials in sub-Saharan Africa. To achieve this, EDCTP funds research by offering 
integrated research grants which focus on clinical trials that are supported by networking and capacity development activities to ensure 
successful and sustainable programmes.

The budget of EDCTP is €400 million. The national participation of the Member States towards the programme is € 200 million. The 
European Commission will contribute €200 million to match this contribution, to increase the impact of EDCTP. Additional co-funding 
is received from ‘third’ party sources such as Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) and the pharmaceutical industry. As many as 60% of 
EDCTP grantees are African.

Since 2003, EDCTP has launched 31 calls for proposals and funded around 100 projects. Many projects are still in progress. Two recent 
examples of results are:

Tentative FDA approval of treatment of HIV in minors: In August 2007, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave a tentative 
approval to a fixed-dose anti-HIV drug specifically formulated for paediatric use (Triomune Baby and Triomune Junior). EDCTP is the 
funder of the pharmacokinetic study leading to this tentative 
approval. The drug will now be included in the World Health 
Organization (WHO) Prequalification Programme and will 
become available under the Presidents Emergency Plan for 
AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and Clinton Foundation Programmes. 
The drugs have been approved and used to treat HIV infected 
children in Zambia and Uganda.

Establishment of national bio ethics committee in Gabon: 
EDCTP aims to reinforce the African ethics and regulatory 
environment  in  the  long  term.  It  has  funded  research  
ethics  committees  in  Zimbabwe,  Ghana,  Malawi,  Nigeria, 
Uganda and Gabon and is working i.e. with the World  
Health  Organization  (WHO)  to  strengthen  the  national 
regulatory frameworks. 
The recently established National Bioethics  Committee  of 
Gabon with 19 members recruited among key stakeholders is 
an example of the progress made to safeguard the well-being 
of African study participants. 

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EDCTP programme expires in 2010 but is seeking to build  
on its current success through a new and expanded programme. 
It is planned to extend its remit to include Phase I and  
Phase IV clinical trials, do more to bridge the gap between 
discovery and delivery by including health services  

research and enrol more support.

www.edctp.org

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VHF Diagnostics - Development of rapid field diagnostics  
for identification, control and management of haemorrhagic 
fever outbreaks

The control of Viral Hemorrhagic Fever (VHF) outbreaks depends critically on early detection and an early alert, so as to allow, define, 
and deliver an appropriate response. To improve this process, adequate tools are needed to enable early detection in the basic (field) 
conditions of local hospitals in Africa. Once the outbreak is identified, case management also needs on-site tools such as viral genome 
detection to contain the spread of the outbreak by carefully identifying and monitoring viraemic patients able to transmit the virus.  
The general objective of the present project is to make adequate tools available, so as to identify VHF outbreaks on-site at an early 
stage and to support the control of an outbreak.

The consortium has therefore developed the following: (a) line assays (LA) for antibody detection, as an easy-to-use frontline detection 
assay for healthcare workers in local hospitals; and (b) fluorescent reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (F-RT-PCR) assays to 
be used by specialised mobile outbreak investigation teams applicable at the scene of the outbreak.

Both assays will cover the following viruses: the Ebola virus (EBOV), Marburg virus (MRGV), Crimean-Congo virus (CCHFV), Lassa virus 
(LASV), Rift Valley Fever virus (RVFV), Yellow Fever virus (YFV) and Dengue virus 1-4 (DENV). The F-RT-PCR will additionally cover the 
most important viral differentials, Influenza A virus (FLUAV) and Influenza B virus (FLUBV).

The LA are designed for Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers circulating in Africa. Validation of the LA is achieved by using available sera in the 
consortium, centralised in a repository for VHF diagnostics development. Existing F-RT-PCRs are validated for field use (EBOV, MBGV 12, 
CCHFV 13, RVFV 14, DENV 15, FLUAV, FLUBV16).

Additionally, F-RT-PCRs not yet described for LASV and YFV are designed and validated for field use. To assess the sensitivity of each assay, 
RNA-standards are generated for each aetiological agent derived from sections of the respective genomes. The specificity of the assays is 
evaluated with recent isolates of each aetiological agent and patient and/or rodent sample provided by the collaborating laboratories. 
The extraction of nucleic acids from blood samples is adapted to 
field conditions. The development of lyophilised ready-to-use PCR 
mixes for each aetiological agent, allows field PCR without the need 
for refrigeration facilities. 

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This FP6 INCO research project runs from 01/12/2006 to 
30/11/2010 with a budget of € 853,000. It is coordinated 
by Dr. Manfred Weidmann of Bereich Humanmedizin of the 
Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Germany, mobilising 
teams from Burkina Faso, France, Germany, Guinea, Mali, 
Senegal and Sweden.

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In the case of LA, the line assays are tested for applicability in local 
hospitals in Mali and Guinea. This easy-to-use frontline test is indeed 
a tool able to reduce alert time in the case of an outbreak.

For the F-RT-PCR, the development of an integrated toolbox for 
mobile  outbreak  investigation  teams,  enables  them  to  perform 
initial differential diagnostics and follow-up on patients during the 
containment of the outbreak. This consists of a field-evaluated set 
of lyophilised PCR mixes for VHFV, plus FluA and B virus detection, 
in combination with a field-evaluated simple extraction protocol. 
If successful, it may be possible to produce the LA assay for the 
African market.

 
TRYPADV AC2 - Development of an “anti-disease” vaccine 
and diagnostic tests for African trypanosomosis

Rearing livestock, mostly in extensive settings, is a major economic activity in many African, Latin American and other developing 
countries. The project contributed to the improvement of livestock productivity in the developing world through the limitation of 
trypanosome-associated pathologies and accurate diagnostics of trypanosome infections. A non-conventional vaccine strategy was developed, 
aimed at limiting pathology through immunisation against pathogenic factors of trypanosomes. The project aimed at (a) identifying major 
pathogenic factors of trypanosomes, especially those responsible for anaemia, and producing these molecules in suitable forms for use in 
a multicomponent vaccine; (b) developing new diagnostic tools based on antibody and antigen detection.

The specific objectives of the project were:
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

to further assess the protective potential of cysteine proteases of Trypanosoma congolense, T. vivax and T. evansi;
to characterise other trypanosome proteases and protease inhibitors and assess their respective roles in pathogenicity;
to evaluate the vaccine potential of recently identified candidate antigens;
to identify and characterise novel pathogenic factors;
to produce candidate molecules for initial immunisation trials;
 to evaluate the diagnostic potential of recombinant and synthetic products from various trypanosome antigens 
in antibody and antigen detection tests.

The project expanded initial work on trypanosomal cysteine proteases to screening, characterisation, and assessment of the protective 
potential of other pathogenic molecules, especially those responsible for anaemia. Trypanosomal cysteine, serine, and metallo-proteases 
have been characterised for their biological roles in the parasite and host. Natural protease inhibitors present in trypanosomes have 
been examined for their possible immuno-modulatory effects. The potential of trypanosome proteases and their inhibitors to modulate 
disease have been examined in immunisation trials. Non-proteolytic pathogenic factors, such as the glycosyl phosphatidyl inositol (GPI) 
anchor of the variant surface glycoprotein, have also been assessed for their protective potential. Finally, recent developments in the 
field of proteomics as well as progress in the genome mapping of trypanosomes were used to provide tools to study new pathogenic 
pathways and molecules.

Procedures  for  antibody  detection  based  on 
recombinant technology were developed and/or 
validated. Recombinant and synthetic peptides 
from cysteine proteases and heat shock proteins, 
both previously identified as major antigens, as 
well as newly described molecules have been 
assessed for their diagnostic potential. Techniques 
for the detection of parasite antigens in host 
tissues were re-examined using recently developed 
monoclonal antibodies. 

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This FP6 research project ran from 01/06/2005 to 31/05/2008 with a budget of €900,000 and is coordinated by Dr. Alain  
Boulange of the Centre de coopération internationale en recherché agronomique pour le développement (CIRAD) in France.  
The collaboration brings together 10 teams from the following countries: Belgium, Burkina Faso, France, Mozambique,  

Portugal, United Kingdom, South Africa, Switzerland, Uganda and Venezuela.

http://trypadvac2.eventos.usb.ve

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Making the links that make a difference 

Linking research and innovation 

Research companies in developing countries may participate in FP7, and particularly so in the Industry Academia Partnerships and 
Pathways scheme in the People Programme, thus stimulating cooperation between different social actors in the EU and Africa in terms of 
research innovation through training and mobility of relevant staff. A recent example is a funded project directed at developing malaria 
vaccines involving universities in Italy and the UK, together with three SMEs from the UK, France and Uganda respectively. Involvement 
of the research-active company in Uganda aims to stimulate innovation policy and implementation in sub-Saharan Africa in support of 
Millennium Development Goal 6, by facilitating contact with academics and companies in Europe. The total budget for the consortium 
is € ~1.9 million over 4 years.

Linking research, policy and development cooperation

In 2008, DG Research together with DGs Development, EuropeAid and External RELEX developed Guidelines on Agricultural Research for 
Development that will direct Commission support in the area of agricultural research for developing and emerging economy countries. 
In addition, a new strategy for the coordination of European research and development policies supporting agricultural research for 
development has been developed with Members States plus Norway and Switzerland through the European Initiative for Agricultural 
Research for Development (EIARD)1. 

In the same vein, DG Research is promoting, together with DGs Development and EuropeAid, an innovation system and multi-stakeholders 
approach to research involving research institutions along with Civil Society Organisations (NGOs, Farmers Organisations) and private 
companies. For example, a multi-stakeholders platform between Africa and Europe has been created 2 that facilitates the identification 
of research priorities and the submission of research proposals to the EC instruments (FP7, Food Security Thematic Programme of the 
Development Cooperation Instrument and the European Development Fund).

1 See http://www.eiard.org
2 Platform for African and European Partnership in Agricultural Research for Development (PAEPARD): 
  http://www.fara-africa.org/networking-support-projects/paepard/

CROP MONITORING FOR FOOD SECURITY
This action by the Commission’s Joint Research 
Centre (JRC) aims at supporting the European 
Union Food Security and Food Aid Policy.  
Particular focus is given to Africa where food 
insecurity problems are widespread. Technical 
advise, monitoring and evaluation is given to EC-
funded projects and programmes in food security, 
mainly with the United Nations agencies FAO and 
World Food Programme (WFP). It also contributes 
to the Global Monitoring for the Environment and 
Security (GMES) initiative e.g. in the GMES Food 
Security component and contributes to relevant 
GMES activities.

http://mars.jrc.it/mars/About-us

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BAMLINK: Molecular, Environmental and Nutritional 
Evaluation of Bambara Groundnut (Vigna subterranea 
L.Verdc.) for Food Production in Semi-Arid Africa and India

Bambara groundnut can contribute to food security for some of the world’s poorest people. Traditional landraces have good nutritional 
properties; drought tolerance and can yield protein-rich pods where other crops may fail. 

Recent EU-funded research has developed the first hybrids of Bambara groundnut landraces. This project links partners in Africa, Europe 
and India in a research endeavour that combines molecular, environmental and nutritional studies and end-users of Bambara groundnut. 
By dissecting the underlying genetics of the crop and testing its performance across a range of environments, the project establishes 
criteria and resources required for systematic, regional breeding and improvement programmes that minimise duplication of effort. 

Within four years collaborators produced the first varieties of the crop, assessed products for a range of uses and identified cultivars  
and management practices to optimise performance in specific environments. Two genetic linkage maps of Bambara groundnut were 
made - a ‘wide’ cross (cultivated x wild relative) and a ‘narrow’ cross (cultivated x cultivated), using AFLP, SSR and DArT markers. 
Collaborators identified genes and QTL’s for drought, heat and cold tolerance and photoperiodic control of pod filling and link genetic 
and biochemical composition of seeds from genotypes to quantify nutritional composition, nutritive value and processing potential. 

The development of micro-array-based accessions for landraces, micro-satellite markers and genetic maps for Bambara groundnut, were 
coupled with agronomic and physiological assessment through multi-environment QTL analysis and the testing of common landraces across 
locations. Key traits were dissected and markers developed. The genetics underlying nutritional and processing value were assessed and 
new products developed through SMEs. At all stages end users guided researchers towards desirable traits from new genetic material 
and novel products.

The project runs from 
01/01/2006 to 31/12/2009 
with an EC contribution  
of €1,500,000 and is  
coordinated by Dr. Sayed 
Azam-Ali of the University 
of Nottingham, UK. The 
consortium is composed of 
7 partners from: Botswana, 
Denmark, Germany, Ghana, 
India, Namibia, Tanzania 
and UK.

www.nottingham.ac.uk/tcru/
activities.html

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INSTAPA - Novel staple food-based strategies to improve 
micronutrient status for better health and development  
in sub-Saharan Africa

Malnutrition, and especially deficiencies of micronutrients like iron, zinc and vitamin A, undermine the progress towards most of the 
Millennium Development Goals. In view of the serious coverage, compliance and safety concerns of supplementation, the INSTAPA project 
aims to identify novel staple food-based approaches to improve micronutrient malnutrition for better health and development of women 
and children in sub-Saharan Africa. 

It focuses on the improvement of millet, sorghum, maize, and cassava based (complementary) foods. The genetic potential of staple foods 
for increasing the micronutrient and antinutrient content will be evaluated and the determinants of success and failure of introducing 
biofortified staple foods in local farming systems will be assessed. 

The efficacy of biofortified staple foods with adequate levels of provitamin A will be determined. Concerning fortification, the project will 
develop and test new approaches to optimise iron and zinc fortification of staple food-based foods. 

The project will develop improved (traditional) processing methods of the staple foods concerned to enhance micronutrient uptake and 
bioavailability. The approaches developed in the area of biofortification, fortification and processing will be compared on efficacy of 
improving iron and zinc intake and status. The safety of the improved staple foods on immunity and infections will be evaluated as well 
as the impact on cognitive development of young children. 

Through capacity building and strengthening the scientific and technological excellence in the field of staple food-based approaches in 
Africa and Europe, the project seeks to significantly contribute to the improvement of the dietary quality of young children and their 
mothers living in resource poor areas in sub-Saharan Africa. 

New scientific knowledge will be exploited to strengthen the competitiveness of local SMEs targeted at evidence-based production of 
healthier (complementary) foods for African children.

The INSTAPA (FP7 SICA – Specific 
International Cooperation Action) runs 
from 01/06/2008 to 31/05/2012 with a 
total budget of €5 million. The project 
is coordinated and managed by Inge 
D. Brouwer of Wageningen Universiteit 
in the Netherlands. The activities are 
carried out by a consortium of four 
European, six African and two interna-
tional partners based in the following 
countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, France, 
Kenya, Mali, Nigeria, South Africa,  
Switzerland, UK and the USA.

www.instapa.org/instapa

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AQUASTRESS – Mitigation of water stress through 
new approaches to integrating management, technical, 
economic and institutional instruments

Access to water and its efficient use is one of today’s larger challenges and consequently water stress is a pressing environmental problem 
facing global trade policy and research impacts, with economic, social and environmental implications. Within Europe, and in particular 
in the Mediterranean region, the imbalance between water demand and availability is becoming increasingly serious. Responses to water 
stress are varied and determined by local geographical, political, socio-economic and cultural conditions and decision-makers’ need to be 
able to integrate advances in technology with culturally appropriate institutional, economic and social responses.

The overall objective of AquaStress was to enhance sustainable development and strengthen knowledge building, innovation, competitiveness 
and cohesion in Europe and neighbouring regions. The project 1) developed approaches for the diagnosis and mitigation of water stress; 
these approaches were European wide in scale, comprehensive, multi-sectoral and integrated (institutional, socio-economic, technical 
aspects); 2) empowered actors at different levels of involvement, at different stages of the planning process, and working at different 
spatial scales, to mitigate water stress; 3) prioritised actions that allowed gradual improvement and flexibility to adapt to change in global 
systems, knowledge, technology and society: It also 4) promoted a cultural change in the European approach to water management, 
moving from typical central infrastructures towards more distributed, bottom-up, adaptive integrated systems.

The work plan was driven by a case study approach in three working phases: (i) characterisation of selected reference sites and their 
relative water stress situations, (ii) research of options for solutions responding to the highlighted problems, and (iii) implementation of 
case studies evaluating the applicability of those options taking into account end-users interests and expectations.

The project delivered the following results: 
1) sustainable water stress options following 
a  multi-stakeholder  participatory  process; 
2) integration of local water stress issues 
and concerns into the European dimension; 
3) new knowledge management tool and 
approach  to  support  stakeholder  and 
society-driven research in water stress; 4) 
background for a change in the political 
and  cultural  approach  to  water  stress; 
and  5)  contribution  to  the  EU  Water 
Initiative.  The  project  produced  a  series 
of final outputs including thematic reports 
on  industrial  water  saving,  sustainable 
agriculture, economic instruments and public 
participation, integrated reports on testing 
and evaluation of water stress mitigation 
options,  an  Integrated  Solution  Support 
System  (I3S),  plans  and  guidelines  for 
sustainable agriculture practices in selected 
case  studies,  policy  recommendations  for 
sectoral water stress mitigation and water 
saving plans in selected industries.

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This FP6 Integrated Project ran from 01/02/2005 to 31/01/2009 with an EC 
contribution of €10.3 million. It was coordinated by Dr: Alberto Puddu, Istituto di 
Ricerca Sulle Acque of the Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Italy mobilising 37 
partners from 17 countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus; Denmark, France, Germany, 
Greece, Hungary, Italy, Morocco, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain; 
Tunisia and UK.

www.aquastress.net

16

 
INCOFISH – Integrating multiple demands on coastal zones 
with emphasis on aquatic ecosystems and fisheries 

INCOFISH conducted specifically targeted strategic research towards reconciling multiple demands on coastal zones. It has evaluated 
and integrated data, tools and concepts suitable to contribute to the goals set by the World Summit for Sustainable Development in 
Johannesburg, such as restoring healthy fish stocks and ecosystems by 2015. 

INCOFISH focused its research activities on the following Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) issues: (a) it documented historical 
performance of ecosystems to deal with the ‘shifting baselines’ syndrome and provide sound reference points for resource restoration; (b) 
it provided electronic maps for all coastal species to establish authoritative species inventories and explore scenarios of global change and 
invasive species; (c) created spatial ecosystem models for all coastal systems treated in this project as a basis for better understanding the 
resource; (d) provided guidelines and tools for best sizing and placement of marine protected areas; (e) researched impacts of ecotourism 
on coastal ecosystem and provide best-practice guidelines; (e) identified suitable simple indicators to promote and monitor sustainable 
fisheries; (f) provided valuation of coastal ecosystem products and services and of different management regimes; (g) reviewed legal 
instruments for sustainable fishing in coastal zones; (h) revisited coastal transects as a tool for structuring and understanding multiple 
demands on coastal zones; (i) provided an archive and web portal for easy, public access to all data and tools relevant for ICZM. 

The tools and concepts resulting from INCOFISH research have been tested in real-world scenarios in selected coastal systems worldwide, 
including Africa. Together they form a package with the potential to contribute to solving societal problems in coastal zones. Several 
knowledge products and services of the project linked e.g. to biodiversity and resource conservation have already been picked up outside 
academia, such as seafood guides accessible through mobile phones. 

Among the first initiatives to use fish rulers to help push back the percentage of baby fish being caught and marketed was a case study 
in Senegal. It’s all about not eating baby fish and enrolled cooperation of all stakeholders in the industry to protect their livelihoods 
by taking better informed fishing and purchasing decisions. The African partners experienced many other benefits to participating in 
INCOFISH including the chance to work together on cross-ecosystem comparisons using ecological software modelling systems. These 
have provided a solid basis on which they were able to test ecological hypotheses and strategies of fisheries management. Participants 
also developed skills in mapping and GIS planning and compiled data on alternative livelihoods for fishers: for example, research was 
carried out into sea cucumbers in Kenya, a highly valuable bottom-dwelling animal (bêche de mer), but currently undervalued in the 
country. IUCN recently published INCOFISH country profiles of how international environmental commitments are translated into national 
laws, rules and regulations.

The project ran from 01/04/2005 to 30/04/2008 with a budget of €4.9 million and was 
coordinated by Dr. Rainer Froese and Dr. Silvia Opitz of the Leibniz Institute for Marine  
Sciences in Kiel, Germany. The consortium combined the expertise and experience of  
35 teams from the following countries in four continents: Brazil, Chile, China, Columbia,  
Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, Germany, Italy, Kenya, Mexico, Namibia, Nicaragua, Norway, 
Peru, Philippines, Senegal, South Africa, Sweden, Thailand, UK, Uruguay.

www.incofish.org

17

DIGITALWORLD - Digital world forum on accessible and 
inclusive ICT

Information and communication technologies (ICT) have a big role to play in improving the lives of people in developing countries, 
particularly in rural areas. The Internet and mobile phones can create vital lines of communication that are often non-existent otherwise. 
For example, internet access in Africa could bring learning to children in areas that lack teachers or schools, or information about health 
issues to areas that have no doctor or health centre.

The main problem with trying to introduce ICT into Africa is that standard communication technologies need infrastructure, which costs 
money. There are very few fixed telephone networks in Africa and poverty and under-development is hampering their construction. 
There are, however, millions of people with a mobile phone, and Africa is currently the most active world market here. Mobiles as a 
platform to access the internet may be the most cost-effective way of spreading web access in Africa, along with low-cost technologies 
such as wireless and broadband, and low-cost laptops.

Digital World carried out a comprehensive technological evaluation of existing and emerging technologies and the research challenges for 
low-cost ICT implementation in developing countries. The most important aim was to identify the barriers that exist to implementation 
and to find effective research solutions to overcome these.

The consortium drew up a series of appropriate initiatives to be undertaken at EU level for broadband internet access on a large scale 
in Africa and Latin America. An agenda was established for R&D needs in developing countries that will be the basis for future actions. 
Both local and international stakeholders in the ICT industry, such as web and mobile phone experts, manufacturers, policy makers and 
development organisations, were brought together to discuss and 
develop plans for action in what will be an ongoing dialogue.

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This dialogue resulted in a set of ‘roadmaps’ focusing on the three 
most promising development areas. Two of them – low-cost access 
infrastructure for wireless and broadband technologies, eg WiFi, 
WiMAX, CDMA, HSPA and LTE, along with mobile phones for web 
access – have great potential for attracting telecommunications 
service companies as they can be provided in a package, opening 
a new market.

The third roadmap concerned low-cost terminals. Market research 
companies are currently predicting that PCs will continue to fall 
in price, which would allow manufacturers to expand markets to 
developing countries, helping the ICT industry to take off in Africa 
and Latin America. The One Laptop per Child project, which has 
created learning opportunities for the world’s poorest children, 
shows how to help push down prices. 

Each development roadmap has a dedicated public forum for 
information  exchange  and  to  coordinate  development.  Such 
roadmaps will also help align to ICT research priorities between 
Europe and developing countries.

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This FP7 Coordination and Support Action in the ICT theme 
ran with a budget of €7.1 million from 01/01/2008 to 
30/06/2009 and was technically coordinated by Stéphane 
Boyera of W3C in France and mobilised research, industrial 
and development partners from France, Ghana, Italy,  
Nigeria, South Africa and Spain.

www.digitalworldforum.eu

18

 
 
TRANSAFRICA – Promoting public transport in Africa 

More than half of Sub-Saharan African citizens are expected live in urban areas by 2025. With a population of one billion people, public 
transport now attracts greater attention from African public authorities, economic analysts and international organisations as an essential 
vector of growth, poverty reduction and sustainable human development.

The project addresses diverse aspect of running a public transport activity in Sub-Saharan Africa, from the existing legal and regulatory 
context to its financial, operational and technical conditions. A large survey among public authorities and operators is carried out to 
determine the working environment and conditions for developing public transport, including important maintenance issues. A consultation 
draft was published in 2008 for refinement and support of future planning. 

Based on results, some technical performance indicators will be developed adapted to the African context, which will also allow improving 
understanding of the economic impact of transport. It should also help with the gathering of practical information on the technical 
standards to consider under the particularly difficult operational circumstances (vehicle overloads, poor road maintenance, climate 
conditions…). It is expected to result in a technical specification book of public transport vehicles in Africa, which may be used by the 
operators as a basis for future discussions with industrialists.

Working groups will then reflect on modalities of applicability or generalisation to other parts of Africa of some reforms and innovations 
already achieved in order to propose and help develop alternatives to sometimes chaotic development prevailing at the moment. The 
working groups will also address other related issues such as the professionalization of the informal, integration of urban planning and 
public transport or renewable energy considerations.

It is expected that these contributions will formalise the priorities and conditions of application of particular public transport related 
policies. The outputs of these analyses and discussions should serve as a basis for the submission of potential future projects to backers 
for further development and implementation.

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TRANSAFRICA is a Support Action under the Transport theme  
of FP7 running from 01/06/2008 to 31/05/2010. It is led  
by a consortium formed y the International Association of  
Public Transport (UITP), which has over 3100 members in  
90 countries throughout the world, and the African  
Association of Public Transport (UATP), the Africa Division  

of UITP, which has over 50 members.

www.uitp.org/knowledge/projects-details.cfm?id=444

 
COMPETE - Competence Platform on Energy Crop and 
Agroforestry Systems for Arid and Semi-arid Ecosystems – 
Africa

The objective of the project ‘Competence Platform on Energy Crop and Agroforestry Systems for Arid and Semi-arid Ecosystems - Africa’ 
(COMPETE) is to stimulate bioenergy implementation in arid and semi-arid regions in Africa. 

COMPETE has established a platform for policy dialogue and capacity building in the major multi- and bi-lateral funding organisations, 
and for key stakeholders throughout the bioenergy provision and supply chains.

As global fossil energy resources become constrained, bioenergy is emerging as a major potential resource. The arid and semi-arid 
regions of Africa and Latin America have, in theory, very large areas of land (and associated water and human resources) ‘available’ for 
bioenergy production. However, the production of biomass for energy will have substantial impacts (positive and negative) on ecosystems 
and cultures of these target regions.

The protection of biodiversity, rural livelihoods and management of scarce water resources are critical considerations in any analysis 
of the potential for sustainable bioenergy provision in arid and semi-arid regions. Similarly, while modern bioenergy could contribute 
significantly to poverty alleviation in rural areas, the effects of changes to the supplies of natural resources and ownership of those 
resources must be an integral part of the development options proposed.

Therefore, a comprehensive, multidisciplinary assessment of current land use, energy demand and technology innovation focused  
on Africa, will be carried out through COMPETE. It will link implementation activities, policy development, trade, funding and  
South-South-EU cooperation.

The improved knowledge of national and regional land use and technology options generated, will provide the local and international 
partners with the basis for a complete assessment of social, environmental and economic impacts. Finally, all the outputs of COMPETE 
are integrated into a carefully designed dissemination strategy in order to inform and engage decision-makers and stakeholders.

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This FP6 coordination action runs 
from 01/01/2007 to 31/12/2009 
with an EC budget contribution of 
€1,497,000 and is coordinated by 
Dr. Rainer Janssen of WIP Renewable 
Energies in Germany. The collabora-
tion brings together 43 teams from 
the following countries: Austria, 
Belgium, Botswana, Brazil, Burkina 
Faso, China, Germany, India, Italy, 
Kenya, Mali, Mexico, The Netherlands, 
Norway, Senegal, South Africa, 
Senegal, Sweden, Tanzania, Thailand, 
Tunisia, United Kingdom, USA and 
Zambia.

www.compete-bioafrica.ne

20

 
TERMISOL: New low-emissivity and long lasting paints for 
cost-effective solar collectors

The project aims to develop improved types of selective paints, with high photothermal performance in solar energy conversion, for 
coating solar collectors. 
Solar thermal devices converting solar radiation into heat are mainly flatplate collectors. Their most important and critical part is the 
absorber surface which is often expensive and mainly based on the application of heavy metals. 

Nowadays, some manufacturers use alternatives based on painting the solar panels, presenting a substantial economical advantage but 
of limited use due to drawbacks related to high emissivity, low energy efficiency and low durability in service life. 

To help overcome these drawbacks, new coatings provide hybrid-structured surfaces at defined thickness ranges as a result of control 
in application methods and by combining multilayer systems to adjust the whole system performance. The project shows that the 
development of this technology to be applicable anywhere. Moreover, it is especially suited for implementation in Mediterranean countries, 
which benefit from optimal solar radiation conditions and demand solar infrastructures in remote places, such as rural areas and villages, 
in addition to buildings of high public frequentation requiring particularly reliable energy supplies e.g. hospitals and hotels.

The technical aspects of the project concerning research, technological development and innovation-related activities are defined by the 
following key phases: 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

search, characterisation and selection of raw materials;
formulation and development of the selective paint;
optical and physico-chemical characterisation;
application methods, design and building-up of multilayer systems;
artificial ageing and following of the degradation;
construction of real prototypes and optimisation of performance;
evaluation of economic feasibility and energetic performance;
field tests and control of performance.

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This FP6 project runs from 01/01/2006 to 30/09/2009 with  
an EC contribution of €875,000 and is coordinated by Dr. Javier 
García Jaca of the CIDEMCO Centro de Investigación Tecnológica 
in Azpeitia, Spain. The consortium is composed of 11 partners 
from the following countries: Egypt, Italy, Morocco, Spain,  

Tunisia and Turkey.

www.ictp.cnr.it/termisol.html

 
HAMMAM - Hammam, Aspects and Multidisciplinary 
Methods of Analysis for the Mediterranean Region

The Islamic public bath ‘hammam’ is a gift from the past to the future. The aim of this research was to develop strategies and scenarios for 
the safeguarding, revitalisation and adaptive reuse of historic Islamic public baths or hammams as important social spaces and facilities within 
the contemporary and future conditions of Mediterranean Islamic cities. 

The hammam is a central place of cultural heritage of the Mediterranean civilisation. Hammams are an integral part of the Islamic city and well 
embedded in the historic urban fabric. With the disappearance of hammams, Islamic cities are about to loose a major feature of their cultural 
heritage with deteriorating consequences on the urban, societal and architectural qualities. The HAMMAM project developed sustainability-oriented 
strategies for the adaptive revitalisation of hammams in Mediterranean countries to improve their role as places of cultural heritage that serve 
both the local communities and tourists. 

The project applied an interdisciplinary and transsectoral approach, based on the concept of sustainability. It integrated architectural and 
technological considerations with the socio-cultural and economic dimensions in order to ensure ways of sustainable restoration of these important 
cultural heritage sites. The HAMMAM consortium used the methodology of case studies to fulfill the need for an integrative approach to the 
research issue. Starting from the investigation and analysis of the local situation (technical, socio-cultural and economic) of specific carefully 
selected hammams in six different Mediterranean countries (Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Palestinian-administered areas, Syria and Turkey), the 
consortium developed sustainable future scenarios for these hammams. 

The project team assigned a four-month-orientation phase to produce first results of the background studies in order to configure a common 
scientific basic knowledge of the hammams. The data-collection phase set the basis for the case study approach, at the same time establishing the 
beginning of the participatory sustainability process in the neighbourhoods. During this phase, Mediterranean participants hosted members of the 
HAMMAM project team from other countries. This constituted a phase of intense contact with the hammam users and the stakeholders concerned. 
Ten months were assigned to the analysis phase where the existing patterns and typologies of hammam usage and restoration became more 
visible. This phase relied heavily on the cooperation of the researchers in order to integrate their findings in an efficient way. It was also the 
time for an intense participatory process in 
the hammam neighbourhoods and exchange 
between local and expert knowledge.

The so-called ‘Future concepts phase’ took 
eight months and was dedicated to scenario-
developments  and  futures  strategies.  This 
time of renewed intense contact between 
the  researchers  during  writing  workshops 
served to strengthen the interdisciplinarity 
of the scientific results. 

The  dissemination  and  documentation 
phase of HAMMAM lasted for five months. 
As  dissemination  and  policymaking  is  an 
important  part  of  this  research,  special 
attention was given to the visual appearance 
of the findings. An exhibition on the move 
that  has  started  already  in  the  previous 
phase received its final configuration. 

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This FP6 INCO research project ran from 01/09/2005 to 31/08/2008 with an EC 
contribution of €1,900,000 and was coordinated by Dr. Heidi Dumreicher of The 
Vienna Institute for Urban Sustainability, Austria. The collaboration brought together 
18 teams from: Algeria, Austria, China, Egypt, France, Jordan, Luxemburg, Morocco, 
Palestinian-administered areas, Syria, Turkey and United Kingdom.

www.hammams.org

22

 
Mini-Profile of International Cooperation Partner Countries in  
Reports (2007/2008) and successful participations in the    
Africa is the second largest and second most-populous continent after Asia and represents about 6% of the Earth’s surface, 20% of the land 

  Africa Indicators based on latest UNDP Human Development  

  6th European Research Framework Programme

   area. It is recognised as the cradle of humanity.

Land area 
[km2]

Population 
(2004)
[‘000]

Participations  
in FP6  
(2002-2006)

EC Contributions 
for S&T  
cooperation 
[€’000]

Life expect-ancy 
at birth (2005)

Adult literacy 
rate  
[15 years & 
older] 

Total gross  

enrolment ratio 

2004 gross  

(primary, second-

enrolment (female 

ary & tertiary)

as % of male)

Country/Territory

2005 Ranking  

for human  

development 

indicator  

(out of 177)

GDP per capita 

2004 Total 

2004 per capita 

[US$] PPP

emission Mt CO2

emission t CO2

Algeria

Angola

Benin

Botswana

Burkina Faso

Burundi

Cameroon

Cape Verde

Central African Republic

Chad

Comoros

Republic of the Congo

Democratic Republic of 
the Congo

Côte d’Ivoire

Djibouti

Egypt

Republic of Equatorial 
Guinea

Eritrea

Ethiopia

Gabon 

Gambia

Ghana

Republic of Guinea

Guinea Bissau

Kenya

23

2,381,740

1,246,700

112,622

581,726

274,000

27,830

475,442

4,033

622,984

1,284,000

2,235

342,000

2,344,858

322,460

23,200

1,001,449

28,051

117,600

1,104,300

267,668

10,380

238,534

245,857

36,125

580,367

32,854

16,095

8,490

1,836

13,933

7,859

17,795

507

4,191

10,146

798

3,610

58,741

18,585

804

72,850

484

4,527

78,986

1,291

1,617

22,535

9,003

1,597

35,599

56

2

11

8

22

0

10

4

0

1

0

3

5

4

0

90

0

0

15

7

5

19

7

2

45

3.441

452

1.810

951

3.959

1.397

437

192

174

856

428

6.634

1.389

1.468

252

2.772

718

466

5.599

71.7

41.7

55.4

48.1

51.4

48.5

49.8

71.0

43.7

50.4

64.1

54.0

45.8

47.4

53.9

70.7

50.4

56.6

51.8

56.2

58.8

59.1

54.8

45.8

52.1

69.9

67.4

34.7

81.2

23.6

59.3

67.9

81.2

48.6

25.7

-

84.7

67.2

48.7

-

71.4

87.0

-

35.9

84.0

-

57.9

29.5

-

73.6

73.7

25.6

50.7

69.5

29.3

37.9

62.3

66.4

29.8

37.5

46.4

51.4

33.7

39.6

25.3

76.9

58.1

35.3

42.1

72.4

50.1

50.7

45.1

36.7

60.6

102.4

85.0

72.5

101.6

76.8

82.8

83.0

99.7

64.6

59.8

83.9

89.1

72.6

67.1

75.3

-

81.7

71.0

76.4

94.0

96.8

90.8

73.9

64.7

95.2

104

162

163

124

176

167

144

102

171

170

134

139

168

166

149

112

127

157

169

119

155

135

160

175

148

7,602

2,335

1,141

12,387

1,213

699

2,299

5,803

1,224

1,247

1,993

1,262

714

1,648

2,178

4,337

7,874

1,109

1,055

6,954

1,921

2,480

2,316

827

1,240

193.9

7.9

2.4

4.3

1.1

0.2

3.8

0.3

0.3

0.1

0.1

3.5

2.1

5.2

0.4

5.4

0.8

8.0

1.4

0.3

7.2

1.3

0.3

10.6

158.1

5.5

0.7

0.3

2.4

0.1

0.0

0.3

0.7

0.1

0.0

0.1

1.0

0.0

0.3

0.5

2.3

0.2

0.1

1.0

0.2

0.3

0.1

0.2

0.3

10.5

Mini-Profile of International Cooperation Partner Countries in  

Reports (2007/2008) and successful participations in the    

Africa is the second largest and second most-populous continent after Asia and represents about 6% of the Earth’s surface, 20% of the land 

  Africa Indicators based on latest UNDP Human Development  
  6th European Research Framework Programme
   area. It is recognised as the cradle of humanity.

Population 

Participations  

for S&T  

EC Contributions 

Adult literacy 

rate  

Country/Territory

Land area 

[km2]

(2004)

[‘000]

in FP6  

(2002-2006)

cooperation 

Life expect-ancy 

[15 years & 

[€’000]

at birth (2005)

older] 

Total gross  
enrolment ratio 
(primary, second-
ary & tertiary)

2004 gross  
enrolment (female 
as % of male)

2005 Ranking  
for human  
development 
indicator  
(out of 177)

GDP per capita 
[US$] PPP

2004 Total 
emission Mt CO2

2004 per capita 
emission t CO2

Algeria

Angola

Benin

Botswana

Burkina Faso

Burundi

Cameroon

Cape Verde

Chad

Comoros

Central African Republic

Republic of the Congo

Democratic Republic of 

the Congo

Côte d’Ivoire

Republic of Equatorial 

Djibouti

Egypt

Guinea

Eritrea

Ethiopia

Gabon 

Gambia

Ghana

Republic of Guinea

Guinea Bissau

Kenya

2,381,740

1,246,700

112,622

581,726

274,000

27,830

475,442

4,033

622,984

1,284,000

2,235

342,000

2,344,858

322,460

23,200

1,001,449

28,051

117,600

1,104,300

267,668

10,380

238,534

245,857

36,125

580,367

32,854

16,095

8,490

1,836

13,933

7,859

17,795

507

4,191

10,146

798

3,610

58,741

18,585

804

72,850

484

4,527

78,986

1,291

1,617

22,535

9,003

1,597

35,599

56

2

11

8

22

0

10

4

0

1

0

3

5

4

0

0

0

7

5

7

2

90

15

19

45

3.441

452

1.810

951

3.959

1.397

437

192

174

856

428

6.634

1.389

1.468

252

2.772

718

466

5.599

71.7

41.7

55.4

48.1

51.4

48.5

49.8

71.0

43.7

50.4

64.1

54.0

45.8

47.4

53.9

70.7

50.4

56.6

51.8

56.2

58.8

59.1

54.8

45.8

52.1

69.9

67.4

34.7

81.2

23.6

59.3

67.9

81.2

48.6

25.7

84.7

67.2

48.7

71.4

87.0

35.9

84.0

57.9

29.5

73.6

-

-

-

-

-

73.7

25.6

50.7

69.5

29.3

37.9

62.3

66.4

29.8

37.5

46.4

51.4

33.7

39.6

25.3

76.9

58.1

35.3

42.1

72.4

50.1

50.7

45.1

36.7

60.6

102.4

85.0

72.5

101.6

76.8

82.8

83.0

99.7

64.6

59.8

83.9

89.1

72.6

67.1

75.3

-

81.7

71.0

76.4

94.0

96.8

90.8

73.9

64.7

95.2

104

162

163

124

176

167

144

102

171

170

134

139

168

166

149

112

127

157

169

119

155

135

160

175

148

7,602

2,335

1,141

12,387

1,213

699

2,299

5,803

1,224

1,247

1,993

1,262

714

1,648

2,178

4,337

7,874

1,109

1,055

6,954

1,921

2,480

2,316

827

1,240

193.9

7.9

2.4

4.3

1.1

0.2

3.8

0.3

0.3

0.1

0.1

3.5

2.1

5.2

0.4

158.1

5.4

0.8

8.0

1.4

0.3

7.2

1.3

0.3

10.6

5.5

0.7

0.3

2.4

0.1

0.0

0.3

0.7

0.1

0.0

0.1

1.0

0.0

0.3

0.5

2.3

10.5

0.2

0.1

1.0

0.2

0.3

0.1

0.2

0.3

24

Land area 
[km2]

Population 
(2004)
[‘000]

Participations  
in FP6  
(2002-2006)

EC Contributions 
for S&T  
cooperation 
[€’000]

Life expect-ancy 
at birth (2005)

Adult literacy 
rate  
[15 years & 
older] 

Total gross  

enrolment ratio 

2004 gross  

(primary, second-

enrolment (female 

ary & tertiary)

as % of male)

2005 Ranking  

for human  

development 

indicator  

(out of 177)

GDP per capita 

2004 Total 

2004 per capita 

[US$] PPP

emission Mt CO2

emission t CO2

30,355

111,369

1,759,540

587,041

118,484

1,240,192

1,030,700

2,040

446,550

801,590

825,418

1,267,000

923,768

26,798

964

196,723

451

71,740

637,661

1,221,037

2,505,813

17,364

945,087

56,785

163,610

236,040

752,614

390,757

1,981

3,442

5,918

18,643

13,226

11,611

2,963

1,241

30,495

20,533

2,020

13,264

141,356

9,234

153

11,770

86

8,196

47,939

36,900

1,125

38,478

6,239

10,105

28,947

11,478

13,120

0

0

0

2

7

18

2

0

128

11

7

15

3

1

0

37

1

0

0

125

5

0

29

1

111

27

11

6

257

460

2.346

112

11.480

1.173

690

1.442

172

115

6.226

151

14.436

763

4.571

328

8.304

4.821

1.595

603

42.6

-

73.4

58.4

46.3

53.1

63.2

72.4

70.4

42.8

51.6

55.8

46.5

45.2

64.9

62.3

72.7

41.8

47.1

50.8

57.4

40.9

51.0

57.8

73.5

49.7

40.4

40.9

82.2

-

84.2

70.7

64.1

24.0

51.2

84.3

52.3

38.77

85.0

28.7

69.1

64.9

84.9

39.3

91.8

34.8

-

82.4

60.9

79.6

69.4

53.2

74.3

66.8

68.0

89.4

66.0

-

94.1

59.7

63.1

36.7

45.6

75.3

58.5

52.9

64.7

22.7

56.2

50.9

65.2

39.6

82.2

44.6

-

77.0

37.3

59.8

50.4

55.0

76.3

63.0

60.5

52.4

102.8

-

105.9

104.3

95.4

97.9

74.7

95.8

98.3

87.5

82.9

72.2

83.4

99.1

99.1

88.7

72.6

-

-

89.0

93.7

94.9

72.3

101.0

106.3

97.0

92.0

95.4

138

-

56

143

164

173

137

65

126

172

125

174

158

161

123

156

50

177

-

121

147

141

159

152

91

154

165

151

3,335

-

10,335

923

667

1,033

2,234

12,715

4,555

1,242

7,586

781

1,128

1,206

2,178

1,792

16,106

806

-

11,110

2,083

4,824

744

1,506

8,371

1,454

1,023

2,038

-

-

59.9

41.1

2.7

1.0

0.6

2.6

3.2

2.2

2.5

1.2

0.6

0.1

5.0

0.5

1.0

-

114.0

436.8

10.4

1.0

4.3

2.3

22.9

1.8

2.3

10.6

-

-

9.3

0.1

0.1

0.0

0.8

2.6

1.4

0.1

1.2

0.1

0.9

0.1

0.5

0.4

6.7

0.2

-

9.8

0.3

0.8

0.1

0.4

2.3

0.1

0.3

0.8

Country/Territory

Lesotho

Liberia

Libyan Arab  Jamahiriya

Madagascar

Malawi

Mali

Mauritania

Mauritius

Morocco

Mozambique

Namibia

Niger

Nigeria

Rwanda

São Tomé e Príncipe

Senegal

Seychelles

Sierra Leone

Somalia

South Africa

Sudan

Swaziland

Tanzania

Togo

Tunisia

Uganda

Zambia

Zimbabwe

25

 
Population 

Participations  

for S&T  

EC Contributions 

Adult literacy 

rate  

Country/Territory

Land area 

[km2]

(2004)

[‘000]

in FP6  

(2002-2006)

cooperation 

Life expect-ancy 

[15 years & 

[€’000]

at birth (2005)

older] 

Total gross  
enrolment ratio 
(primary, second-
ary & tertiary)

2004 gross  
enrolment (female 
as % of male)

2005 Ranking  
for human  
development 
indicator  
(out of 177)

GDP per capita 
[US$] PPP

2004 Total 
emission Mt CO2

2004 per capita 
emission t CO2

Libyan Arab  Jamahiriya

Lesotho

Liberia

Madagascar

Malawi

Mali

Mauritania

Mauritius

Morocco

Mozambique

Namibia

Niger

Nigeria

Rwanda

Senegal

Seychelles

Sierra Leone

Somalia

South Africa

Sudan

Swaziland

Tanzania

Togo

Tunisia

Uganda

Zambia

Zimbabwe

São Tomé e Príncipe

30,355

111,369

1,759,540

587,041

118,484

1,240,192

1,030,700

2,040

446,550

801,590

825,418

1,267,000

923,768

26,798

196,723

964

451

71,740

637,661

1,221,037

2,505,813

17,364

945,087

56,785

163,610

236,040

752,614

390,757

1,981

3,442

5,918

18,643

13,226

11,611

2,963

1,241

30,495

20,533

2,020

13,264

141,356

9,234

153

11,770

86

8,196

47,939

36,900

1,125

38,478

6,239

10,105

28,947

11,478

13,120

0

0

0

2

7

2

0

3

1

0

1

0

0

5

0

18

128

11

7

15

37

125

29

1

111

27

11

6

257

460

2.346

112

11.480

1.173

690

1.442

172

115

6.226

151

14.436

763

4.571

328

8.304

4.821

1.595

603

42.6

-

73.4

58.4

46.3

53.1

63.2

72.4

70.4

42.8

51.6

55.8

46.5

45.2

64.9

62.3

72.7

41.8

47.1

50.8

57.4

40.9

51.0

57.8

73.5

49.7

40.4

40.9

38.77

82.2

-

84.2

70.7

64.1

24.0

51.2

84.3

52.3

85.0

28.7

69.1

64.9

84.9

39.3

91.8

34.8

-

82.4

60.9

79.6

69.4

53.2

74.3

66.8

68.0

89.4

66.0

-

94.1

59.7

63.1

36.7

45.6

75.3

58.5

52.9

64.7

22.7

56.2

50.9

65.2

39.6

82.2

44.6

-

77.0

37.3

59.8

50.4

55.0

76.3

63.0

60.5

52.4

102.8

-

105.9

95.4

97.9

74.7

95.8

98.3

87.5

82.9

104.3

72.2

83.4

99.1

99.1

88.7

-

72.6

-

101.0

89.0

93.7

94.9

72.3

106.3

97.0

92.0

95.4

138

-

56

143

164

173

137

65

126

172

125

174

158

161

123

156

50

177

-

121

147

141

159

152

91

154

165

151

3,335

-

10,335

923

667

1,033

2,234

12,715

4,555

1,242

7,586

781

1,128

1,206

2,178

1,792

16,106

806

-

11,110

2,083

4,824

744

1,506

8,371

1,454

1,023

2,038

-

-

59.9

2.7

1.0

0.6

2.6

3.2

41.1

2.2

2.5

1.2

114.0

0.6

0.1

5.0

0.5

1.0

-

436.8

10.4

1.0

4.3

2.3

22.9

1.8

2.3

10.6

-

-

9.3

0.1

0.1

0.0

0.8

2.6

1.4

0.1

1.2

0.1

0.9

0.1

0.5

0.4

6.7

0.2

-

9.8

0.3

0.8

0.1

0.4

2.3

0.1

0.3

0.8

26

 
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©

27

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©

 
 
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28For more information

Information on the 7th Research Framework Programme (2007-2013): 
http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7

International scientific and technological cooperation policy and action by the 
EU:  
http://ec.europa.eu/research/iscp/index_en.html

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Africa-EU partnership: 
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Group on Earth Observation (GEO): the Group 
on Earth Observations is coordinating efforts to build 
a Global Earth Observation System of Systems, or 
GEOSS. GEO promotes international collaboration 
for exploiting the potential of Earth observations in 
decision making in an increasingly complex and 
environmentally stressed world. As of June 2009 this 
voluntary collaboration had 79 governments and the 
European Commission as members. The Commission’s 
Joint Research Centre coordinates the infrastructure 
development for spatial information in Europe. 
Moreover, 56 intergovernmental, international and 
regional organisations are recognised as participating 
organisations. 17 African countries are currently 
members of GEO. Uganda and South Africa sit currently 
on the Executive Committee representing Africa (South 
Africa as Vice Chair).
http://earthobservations.org/index.html

Project inform tion