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Join on Telegram Rabat – During the latest Excellence in Africa (EXAF) call to postdoctoral applications, Moroccan universities were some of the most applied to institutions on the continent.
In the latest call for proposals through the “100 PhDs for Africa” program, which closed on April 20, 854 African applicants applied to the initiative. The program aims to encourage young African researchers to follow through with post-graduate studies by providing financial and practical support for their doctoral studies.
According to Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, who is participating in the program, the 100 PhDs for Africa “is one of three pillars of the EXAF initiative… designed to fund science and engineering graduates intending to complete a PhD at an African higher education institution.”
Figuring in the top five study destinations in Africa, Moroccan universities received 70 applications through the program. Other heavy hitters were Benin — the only other Francophone country on the list — with 66 students applying for postdoctoral studies through the initiative, Nigeria, with 93 applicants, South Africa which saw 91 students apply for the program, and Kenya, with 69 applicants.
Read also: Morocco’s Cadi Ayyad University Ranks 4th in North Africa
According to Jerome Chenal, the co-director of the program at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), the call was a success. “The number of applications submitted increases with each EXAF call for proposals. This shows that our efforts to promote the initiative are successful,” he said.
Two Moroccan universities are participating in the project, namely Mohammed VI Polytechnic University in Benguerir near Marrakech, and the Mohammadia School of Engineers in Rabat. Overall, 37 countries in Africa are represented in the program.
“The large number of applications reflects the ambition of our African youth to meet the challenges for the development of our continent,” said Hicham El Habti, President of Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, and the co-director of the EXAF program. “Our commitment at UM6P is to put our skills and resources at the service of these young people to support the development of research and innovation in Africa.”
