The GRASP Fellowship seeks to build a vibrant, highly connected, and intergenerational network of African women policy professionals from diverse disciplines to drive policy change for equitable agri-food systems in sub-Saharan Africa.
Fellows will be drawn from diverse organizations including government agencies, non-governmental organizations, academia, research organizations, the private sector, civil society, regional and sub-regional communities among others.
The Fellowship targets African women at different stages of their professional careers who are actively engaged in finding solutions that address gender inequalities in policies.
In this call, the Fellowship is targeting applications from Ghana, Rwanda, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, and Uganda.
Successful applicants, known as AWARD Policy Fellows, receive customized training in leadership, negotiations, gender, and agrifood systems policies. Coupled with mentoring, coaching, and peer learning support, this training is designed to sharpen their skills in analyzing policies from a gender perspective and equip them to lead policy processes.
Fellows will get an opportunity to apply their learnings and gain hands-on experience by designing and implementing policy innovation projects focusing on important policies of their choice.
Since the launch of its inaugural Cohort in December 2022, the GRASP Fellowship has supported more than 40 innovative projects focusing on policy reforms across various sectors, including extension and advisory services, seed systems, climate change, and land rights.
“Participation in the Fellowship and continuous mentorship has significantly enhanced my understanding of policy analysis. With this new knowledge, I reviewed agri-food policies in Uganda to understand gender gaps in the policy”. “I also secured a funding of £2,000 through a publication recognition award by the CABI Development Fund (CDF) and conducted Rapid Market Assessment on Gender and Food Safety in Kampala’s Fruit and Vegetable Markets. The findings, packaged in a Factsheet will inform the policy review process”, Monica Kansiime, 2022 AWARD Policy Fellow.
Successful applicants to the third Cohort will join a growing network of policy practitioners from more than 12 countries across Africa working to catalyze the design and implementation of gender-responsive policies and processes on the continent.
