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Recognizing the evolving knowledge and capacity building needs of the African continent, the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) is transitioning from its current Strategic Plan (2020-2025) to a transformative 10-year Strategic Plan (2025-2035) – “Re-Inventing the AERC for Africa’s Economic Prosperity” – that entails a comprehensive reorganization of AERC research, training, and policy engagement activities.

The re-engineering of economics training in Africa builds on the AERC success story of having established a robust pan-Africa network of institutions and faculty collaborating to deliver graduate training in economics, through the Collaborative PhD Programme (CPP), Collaborative Master’s Programme (CMAP) and Collaborative Master’s Programme in Agricultural and Applied Economics (CMAAE). Going forward, the AERC is seeking funding to embark on a step-change that not only enhances the pan-Africa collaboration framework now in place but also achieves the twinning of African universities with their peers in Europe and North America to deliver high quality graduate training in economics. Specifically, the key elements of the transformation include:

1. A twinned PhD Programme in Economics that is co-designed and co-delivered by research-intensive African universities with leading universities in Europe and North America. 
2. A new Master’s degree in Applied Economics, which will blaze the trail for innovative programmes that reflect recent developments in economics. In addition, the new programmes will be tailored to meet the knowledge and capacity building needs of fragile and underserved African countries.
3. A robust Quality Assurance and Enhancement System (AQAES) that will facilitate rigorous annual monitoring and evaluation of the Master’s and PhD programmes, students and faculty. 
4. Demand-driven, self-financing short-term executive courses designed to respond to continuous professional development needs of economists in government departments, private sector companies, and international organizations in Africa. These courses will leverage AERC’s research expertise and extensive capacity building networks.

In the interim, given the imminent expiry of the Strategic Plan 2020-2025, the AERC will not issue new scholarships or grants to support new enrolments into CPP, CMAP and CMAAE programmes; however, we will continue to support the ongoing pipeline of sponsored students on each of the three programmes until completion of their studies. 

 “This transformation, which is a key component of the upcoming AERC Strategic Plan (2025-2035), seeks to elevate the quality of our graduate programmes in economics to top global standards. I wish to extend my sincere gratitude to all our partner universities, esteemed trainers and mentors, dedicated students, and accomplished alumni for their unwavering support throughout the years. As the AERC embarks on the new ambitious 10-Year Strategic Plan, I eagerly anticipate stronger collaboration to collectively propel our respective organizations towards new pinnacles of success.” Prof. Victor Murinde, Executive Director, AERC.