Climate change (CC) constitutes the most striking environmental risk on which the attention of the whole world is focused because of its global dimension and its negative effects on socio-ecological systems.

The effects of climate change will increase in the coming years, with the greatest impacts on the most vulnerable populations and ecosystems in the world.

The training of highly qualified people, together with adequate infrastructure and equipment, is required to strengthen scientific knowledge on agriculture and climate interactions.

Objectives of the CC&A Program

The PhD program in CC&A aims:

• To train highly qualified human resources in West African countries to anticipate the effects of climate change;
• To define and implement strategies towards mitigation of and adaptation to the negative effects of CC in agriculture;
• To strengthen the synergistic relationship between the West African universities; and
• To strengthen the partnership between German and West African universities.

Objectives of the call: The CC&A Program intends to select candidates for a Ph.D. program to be conducted at IPR/IFRA.

PhD Scholarships in Climate Change & Agriculture: Student Eligibility

The entry requirements into the program are as follows:

• Candidates must be from the one of the WASCAL countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, and Togo);
• Candidates must not be more than 40 years old;
• Candidates must have a Master’s Degree, or its equivalent, in Agronomy, Soil Science, Crop Science, Agro-forestry, Forestry, Animal Science or other relevant disciplines, with at least an average of 60 % (Second Upper Class, Assez Bien);
• Experience with modeling routines and/or GIS would be an advantage but not a prerequisite;
• Candidates must submit the following documents:

1. official MSc transcript,

2. letter of motivation,

3. detailed CV, and

4. both soft and hard copies of their project preproposal, which will be fine-tuned under the guidance of their supervisors, if admitted;

• Candidates must provide the names and contact details of three referees, one of whom must be his/her Master’s supervisor.

Female candidates are encouraged to apply.

PhD Scholarships and Research Support

The scholarship and research support will normally be provided based on the criteria below:

• After admission, students will be required to maintain a graduate level Grade Point Average (GPA) of B or a minimum of B from the course;
• During the course curriculum phase, students will be required to develop a detailed research programme, including budget;
• During the project/research stage, students are expected to present their progress reports regularly and be evaluated accordingly.

All scholarship-holding PhD fellows will receive a stipend of € 500.00 per month (€350.00 during the pre-course language preparations) to cover accommodation and other expenses for their study period.

Research funds will also be made available to students after approval of their research budget by their advisor/supervisor and WASCAL.

The student will travel to Germany once during the course of the PhD fellowship period to work with scientists at German universities or research centers. Airfare will be paid for by the project and a monthly stipend of about €1000.00 will also be provided for each month spent in Germany.

PhD Scholarships Application Deadline: April 15

For more information and scholarship application, see: PhD Scholarships in Climate Change & Agriculture