The Megatrends Afrika Fellowship Program 2025 (Africa)

Megatrends Afrika is a cooperation between the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP) in Berlin, the German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS) in Bonn and the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW). The project conducts policy-relevant interdisciplinary research on Africa and provides policy advice to decision-makers. Its three core re-search themes are:

• actors of violence and the changing nature of conflict,
• the effects of meg-atrends on democratization and autocratization, and
• global power shifts and multipolarity.

Themes

• They are interested in proposals for a Megatrends Policy Brief that tackles an issue of relevance to the three research themes:
  • Violent Actors and Transformation of Conflict: how violent conflict transforms political order; how megatrends such as technological innovation, digitalization or shifts in global power relations affect armed conflict in Africa
  • Megatrends and Democratization vs. Autocratization: under which conditions megatrends such as demographic change, digitalization, urbanization or climate change promote democratization or autocratization.
  • Global Power Shifts and Multipolarity: how the role of external actors such as China, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, the United States and others is changing Africa’s international relations and how African foreign policies are evolving in a more fragmented world.

Benefits

• Fellows will receive a monthly grant of € 2,800.
• An economy-class return trip between their place of residence and Germany as well as some financial support for public transport, mobile phone credit and other ancillary costs in Germany.

Eligibility Criteria

• Preferably completed PhD in political science, economics, social sciences, geography, international relations, or relevant area studies;
• Originating from an African country
• Strong research and publication track record in areas of relevance to the Megatrends Afrika project
• Experience in scientific policy advice is an advantage

Selection Criteria

• In choosing applicants, they will put particular emphasis on the following criteria:
  • Academic and professional merit based on the applicant’s publications and work experience;
  • Academic and policy relevance of the project;
  • Feasibility of the project during the period of the fellowship;
  • Candidates’ ability to communicate effectively and make complex ideas accessible to a broad audience.

Application Requirements

• Applications must be submitted as a single PDF document and must contain a one-page letter of motivation, an academic CV including a list of academic publications, a sample of 2 recent publications, copies of relevant academic transcripts and/or diplomas (no translations needed), a written concept note containing the description of the applicant’s project.
• The concept note should not exceed 2,000 words and include a discussion of the project/research topic, its academic and policy relevance, feasibility and theoretical and methodological grounding.
• The scope and ambition of the project should be appropriate for a Megatrends Policy Brief of 4-8 pages that will be finalized by the end of the fellowship.

For more information, visit Megatrends Afrika.