IST-Africa Background

Supported by the European Commission (EC) and African Union Commission (AUC), IST-Africa is a strategic collaboration between IIMC (Ireland) and Ministries and National Councils responsible for Information Society, ICT and Innovation Adoption, Policy and Research in 18 African Countries.

Founded by IIMC in 2002, and Co-Funded under the European Framework Programme since 2005 (Current Contract 723240), IST-Africa has gradually introducing new Partner Countries on a phased basis, which are often at different stages of research capacity, technology adoption and socio-economic development.

- Phase 1: Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania

- Phase 2: Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, Uganda

- Phase 3: Burundi, Cameroon, Egypt, Kenya, Mauritius, Senegal

- Phase 4: Angola, Ethiopia, Malawi, Swaziland, Tunisia

IST-Africa facilitates and supports

- Strategic engagement with Africa focused on International Research, Innovation and Policy Cooperation, fostering greater coordination of ICT-related research and innovation activities

- Knowledge sharing, capacity building and skills transfer between IST-Africa Partner Countries

- Strengthening ICT-related research and innovation linkages, increasing awareness of research and innovation capacity and cooperation opportunities, and supporting mutually beneficial collaboration

- Collaborative Open Innovation, ICT-enabled Entrepreneurship (including Social Entrepreneurship) and Global Development (including ICT4D)

- Africa - EU Strategic Partnership (ICT-enabled Research and Innovation supporting Sustainable Development)

IST-Africa directly supports Innovation, Science and Technology aspects of the Africa-EU Strategic Partnership and the Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa (STISA-2024).

IST-Africa Activities

IST-Africa activities include:

- Monitoring ICT-related research and innovation activities across IST-Africa partner countries to Inform policy and identify cross-border collaboration opportunities - see Research Reports

- Coordination of national Innovation ecosystem stakeholders to formulate research and innovation priorities and activities addressing socio-economic challenges

- Raising awareness of opportunities for EU-Africa research and innovation cooperation under Horizon 2020 including Horizon 2020 Workshops, disseminating calls for proposals and help desk support

- Hosted by IST-Africa Partner Countries since 2006, IST-Africa Week showcases international research collaboration and African Information Society, ICT and Innovation Adoption, Policy and Research Developments and Success Stories.