Makerere University Research and Innovations Fund (Mak-RIF) Request For Applications, Round 5 Track 2 PhD Research Grants 2023/2024. Deadline: 8th March 2024.
Funding opportunity description: Makerere University received special funding from the Government of the Republic of Uganda, to support high impact Research and Innovations that will accelerate national development. The Financial Year 2022/24 is the fifth year of this fund’s availability. The fund illustrates the increasing importance that the Government attaches to Research and Innovation as a driver of socio-economic transformation. The objective of the fund is to increase the local generation of translatable research and scalable innovations that address key gaps required to drive Uganda’s development agenda. Over the last four Financial Years (2019/2020 – 2022/2023), government appropriated 105 Billion Uganda Shillings to support this Fund. Between the four years, MakRIF has funded a total of 1.062 projects across all sectors critical for development. In the current Financial Year (2023/24), Makerere University expects to receive about 30 Billion Uganda shillings (about US$ 8.1 million) under the Government Research and Innovation Fund (RIF). Of this, at least 1.5 Billion Shillings will fund PhD research ideas that generate knowledge that addresses national development priorities. The Makerere University Research and Innovation Grants Management Committee (GMC) therefore announces the second round of PhD research grants as part of the 5th round of RIF funding titled: RIF Round 5, Track 2 (PhD Research Grants). Available funds are obligated for the Financial Year 2023/2024, with an expectation of actionable results that speak to the National Research and Innovation Agenda. The GMC therefore invites applications from PhD students with original research ideas that demonstrate a clear link to key thematic areas of the National Research and Innovation Agenda. This is a closed call that is open to only PhD students. This funding call is specifically targeted to PhD students that are full time at Makerere University.
Grant amounts and estimated number of awards: The GMC estimates to award the following number and amount of PhD Research Grants:
Category
Amount per award
Approx. No.*
Total amount
A. Awards to new projects
Sub-Category 1: Arts and Humanities
Up to 25,000,000/=
25
625,000,000/=
Sub-Category 2: Sciences
Up to 35,000,000/=
25
875,000,000/=
Sub-total
50
1,500,000.000/=
B. Extension awards to projects funded before
Sub-Category 1: Arts and Humanities
Up to 25,000,000/=
25
625,000,000/=
Sub-Category 2: Sciences
Up to 35,000,000/=
25
875,000,000/=
Sub-total
50
1,500,000.000/=
Total
100
3,000,000,000/=
*Note: The numbers shown are only indicative. The MakRIF GMC reserves the right to adjust the numbers based on the quality of the proposals submitted.
Applicants should take into consideration the following:
Given that the MakRIF funds are received on an annual basis and are tied to a specific financial year, the current grant only commits to funding the awardee for a period of one year (12 months) of implementation.
However, the MakRIF GMC is cognizant of the fact that PhD research often spreads over more than one year in which case some projects require multi-year funding. Because of this reality, half of the awards under this round will fund extensions for eligible projects that were previously funded. Extension funding will not be automatic but will be competitive and conditional to the following: 1) Availability of funds, 2) Showing cause as to which additional areas of research will be covered in the extension funding, 3) Successful execution and completion of all the objectives for the previous funding period, evidenced by full submission of the required deliverables; 4) Full technical and financial accountability for all the funds given to the researcher during the previous year of funding. Prior grantees in need of extension funding must apply for the follow-on funding through the new PhD Research Grant call.
The GMC recognizes that the amounts indicated for this award may not be sufficient to cover all the necessary costs for a student’s project. In such cases, the award should be considered as a contribution and the students should mobilize additional funding to bridge the resource gaps.
The number of awards indicated are only estimated and the GMC retains the discretion to determine the amount and number of awards based on the actual funding that MakRIF funders will make available and the number of quality proposals submitted.
Scope and Technical Description of the Research and Innovation Grant
The GMC conducted a comprehensive stakeholder consultation to identify priority thematic areas of interest for national development. The GMC triangulated this information with that from the National Development Plan III, the Makerere University Strategic Plan and Research Agenda to develop an instructive MakRIF research agenda that responds to national development priorities. The RIF Round 5, Track 2 (PhD Research Grants) will therefore specifically target research and innovation projects that align with priority thematic issues in the MakRIF instructive Research Agenda under 14 thematic areas as follows:
Theme 1: Transforming the Agricultural sector to drive development
Theme 2: Achieving Sustainable health as a means to sustainable development
Theme 3: Re-imagining Education to unlock capacity for economic development
Theme 4: Water, sanitation and the environment: A pre-requisite to sustainable development
Theme 5: Harnessing the social sector, culture and arts to drive development
Theme 6. Harnessing Tourism, wildlife and heritage for development
Theme 7: Sustainable Planning, finance and monitoring as catalysts for growth
Theme 8: Leveraging public service and local administration for efficient service delivery
Theme 9: Defence and security: Achieving sustainable peace and stability
Theme 10: Strengthening law, governance, human rights and international cooperation as prerequisites for development
Theme 11: Harnessing Information and Communication Technology to drive development
Theme 12: Works, manufacturing, science and technology as tools to accelerate development
Theme 13: Solutions to catalyse business and enterprise
Theme 14: Energy and Minerals as drivers of rapid economic development
The MakRIF PhD Research Grants will cover all technical disciplines in Makerere University as long as the research questions align with the instructive research agenda themes above. Particular attention will be paid to ideas that have clear potential for scalability to drive development.
Note: This grant covers the costs of research. It does not cover payment of tuition or living stipends for PhD students.
Eligibility
The new PhD research grants will only be open to PhD students who have been approved for full registration at Makerere University. Students who have already received full scholarships under other award programs are not eligible to apply for these grants as this will constitute double funding. Members of Academic staff who are not on the Makerere University Staff Development Program, as well as those who are on the Staff Development Program but received only a tuition waiver without research funding are eligible to apply, provided they do not have full funding for their research from elsewhere. This funding is only open to Makerere University students. PhD students registered in other universities are not eligible for this funding. Further specifications on the awards are as follows:
Applicants for new awards must be at a stage where they have been approved for full registration as PhD students at Makerere University. Being at the stage of full registration means that they have developed a full research proposal that has been approved by the respective Higher Degrees Research Committee in their academic unit, and that they have been recommended for full registration OR are fully registered by Makerere University. New grant applicants will be required to provide evidence of one of the following: Minutes of the Higher Degrees Research Committee in their Academic college, showing approval of their research proposal, OR a full registration certificate.
Because the research funds are provided for one year funding cycles, PhD students with provisional registration will not be eligible for funding under this award since the time required for them to complete full proposal development and to start data collection is unlikely to fit within the financial year.
New grants are limited to PhD students who do not have prior funding for their studies or whose funding is inadequate to cover their research. Applicants in the latter category must make full disclosure of their other funding sources and what they cover.
Applicants for extension awards should have been funded in the earlier PhD research awards. Only those who have completed and closed out their previous projects will be considered.
All applicants (new and extension) should provide a letter of support from any one of the following: 1) The Head of their Department, or 2) The Dean of their School, or 3) the Principal of their College (Only one of these is sufficient).
All applicants (new and extension) should provide a letter of support from one of their Supervisors within Makerere University. The letter should clearly indicate that they do not have other funding that fully covers their research/training activities, or where such funding is available, they should indicate what aspects of the student’s study program it covers and the funding gap. The supporting Supervisor will be designated as a co-Investigator on the research project.
GRANT GUIDELINES
MakRIF PhD Research Grant applicants will submit a competitive project proposal for the available funding. The proposal ought to specify the objectives for the full research project. It should also indicate which of the full research objectives will be specifically met by the available funding for this financial year.
Applicants intending to apply for multi-year funding in the subsequent years will be required to indicate so. In such cases, the students should indicate which study objectives would be covered by the extension funding.
The research problem: The proposal should clearly articulate the knowledge gap that the researcher targets to address, and why it is important to address this knowledge gap. The research problem should be aligned to at least one theme in the MakRIF research agenda.
Previously funded proposals applying for extension funding should indicate how the proposed research problem builds on the research problem of the previous phase.
The proposed solution: PhD Researchers should present the proposed solution in form of the research focus for the current phase of the funding. They should clearly articulate the objectives of the planned research. Researchers should also describe the critical content of the solution (i.e., the ‘research methodology’). Researchers should defend the relevance of the proposed solution to addressing key development outcomes in the respective sector and its alignment to one or more thematic areas specified in this call. Researchers should also demonstrate that at least one objective of their research project is implementable within one (1) year and will result in tangible results within one year of execution.
Research projects that require multi-year implementation will only be considered if they can show actionable intermediate results or objectives attainable within 1 implementation year, since funding will be on a yearly basis. Apart from a summary of the proposed approach, researchers will provide a more detailed description of their technical approach (research methodology) to enable a robust assessment of the rigor of the proposed methodology.
Previously funded proposals applying for extension funding should indicate how the proposed solution builds on the solution from the previous phase.
Outputs, outcomes, and impact: Researchers should articulate the overall scientific outputs, outcomes and anticipated impact of the PhD research project. They should state the primary (Direct) and secondary (Indirect) beneficiaries of the planned research project. They should state the anticipated outputs (the outputs of the activities of the entire project as well as the specific milestones to be attained with the one-year funding) and the outcomes (both the outcomes of the entire project and those for the current funding phase). Researchers should also state the anticipated impact of the the project (Note: Impact might not be achievable in one or even a few years in which case the current phase only contributes to it). Since this funding is specific to the current financial year, projects must demonstrate clearly the deliverables they expect within one year, matching the level of investment made and attainable in the 1-year timeframe. Multi-year projects should show clearly what will be achieved in the current year of funding as well as what would be achieved overall when the full PhD research is completed in the subsequent years.
Previously funded proposals applying for extension funding should indicate how the proposed outputs, outcomes and impacts build on those realized in the previous phase of funding.
Translation and dissemination for impact: Since this fund is aimed at supporting government and its partners to improve service delivery and to accelerate development, researchers should show a clear plan for disseminating their findings to audiences critical for policy and program change so as to achieve impact at scale. This will include a clear description of the knowledge translation and dissemination plan to stakeholders in the relevant sectors including the knowledge products anticipated to arise from the study (e.g., publications, policy briefs, knowledge briefs, etc.). Innovation-based projects should articulate a scaling strategy, including linkage to scaling partners within the industry (for commercially viable enterprises), or within the relevant public sectors (for innovations targeted to the public) or within relevant implementing agencies (for social enterprises). Innovations targeting commercial interest should demonstrate the anticipated commercial potential, anticipated demand, anticipated patents/copy-rights/industrial design claims/trademarks if applicable and the path to commercialization. Innovations targeting social impact (social innovations) should elucidate the path to wide scale community uptake.
Previously funded proposals applying for extension funding should indicate how the planned knowledge translation/scaling activities builds on those in the previous phase of funding.
Ethical implications: The implications of the research to human subjects, animal subjects and the environment should be articulated where necessary including how key ethical or environmental concerns arising from the study will be addressed. It is anticipated that at the time of full registration, projects requiring ethical approval will have already obtained that approval from their respective ethics committees.
Budget: Researchers will prepare a summary budget for the one-year phase of their project as well as a detailed budget. Budgets should be submitted in the official currency (Uganda Shillings). Because these are university funds, academic units (Departments, Schools and Colleges) will not charge institutional overheads to any of the research funds. Budgets should not spread beyond one Financial Year. Even if the projects to be funded under this mechanism are multi-year, researchers should provide a budget for only one Financial Year. The budgets will include the following sections:
Personnel costs
Travel
Supplies and services
Equipment
Program activity costs
Dissemination
Under Personnel costs, applicants should not budget for ‘Salaries’ for staff who are paid a salary by Makerere University or another Government of Uganda institution (whether on permanent or contract terms) as this would constitute double payment from government funds. However, such researchers can budget for ‘activity-based’ time input or ‘level-of-effort-based’ costs for their additional time input into the project in form of allowances. The latter should be justified by specifying the extra-time demands from the project for each individual involved.
Researchers can budget for salaries for critical project staff that are not paid by Makerere or the Government of Uganda e.g., Project Coordinators, Administrative Assistants, Research Officers etc. Regular Personnel costs excluding field research assistants should not exceed 33% of the budget. Field research assistants (or Data collectors) if needed should not be included under ‘Personnel costs’ but should instead be included under ‘Program Activity Costs’. All salaries and all repetitive allowances will be subject to mandatory statutory deductions at source, to pay the relevant taxes. Because these funds are earmarked to support actual research, PhD students cannot budget for a monthly stipend under this award.
In addition to the summary budget, research teams will be required to attach a detailed budget (As an MS Excel attachment) that breaks down all expenditure line items, inclusive of a budget justification that explains the rationale behind the different budget items. The total budget in the budget summary should exactly match that in the detailed breakdown. You should budget within the category that your project was funded in RIF-1. Budgeting in another category will lead to disqualification. The total budget should not exceed the highest amount indicated for the respective funding category in which your project lies. Exceeding the indicated category maximum can result in disqualification.
PhD Researchers cannot budget for Tuition.
Workplan: Researchers will provide a list of key milestones for the project clearly demonstrating the deliverables expected at each point during the extension phase of the project. These milestones will be used as the basis for tracking implementation of activities towards project goals and outputs. Given the one-year time-frame for the awards, it will be important that researchers commit to a clear time-bound set of deliverables all achievable within one year for the main deliverable targeted during the current period of funding. Failure to articulate a one (1) year plan will imply inability to utilize the grant funds within one (1) year.
Previously funded proposals applying for extension funding should indicate how the current workplan/milestones build on those proposed and realized in the previous phase of funding.
GRANT PROCESS
Submission of applications: Submission of the applications will be online at https://rif.mak.ac.ug/portal. All submissions must be online and must be made within the stipulated period. To access the application form, the PhD Research Fund applicant will be required to create a MakRIF account. In your account, select the appropriate funding opportunity and fill out the application form.
Rules governing applications: All applications should be written in English. All applications should be submitted via the online portal mentioned above. Complete applications must be submitted not later than 11.59pm East African Time on the closing date. No submissions after closure of applications will be accepted. Any attempt at solicitation of acceptance beyond this date will not be entertained. The Grants Committee bears no responsibility for submissions that are not completed in time and incomplete submissions will not be considered. If none of the submitted applications meets the requirements to receive a grant, the call may be reopened at the sole discretion of the Grants Management Committee. An individual researcher should not submit more than ONE application.
Participants agree to assume any and all risks, and to waive claims against Makerere University and the Grants Management Committee for any injury, death, damage, or loss of property, revenue, or profits, whether direct, indirect, or consequential, arising from their participation in this grant implementation.
Evaluation and selection of projects: Applications will be reviewed by the GMC. Submission of an application does not mean the project must be funded. The GMC will evaluate five main aspects of the project:
The alignment of the proposed research to national priorities as stipulated in the MakRIF research agenda
Clear articulation of the knowledge gap and how the planned research will contribute to building new knowledge
Quality of the proposal in terms of the relevance and innovativeness of the proposed solution, the planned activities and the articulation of a sound methodology
Clear stipulation of outputs and outcomes and feasibility of tangible achievements within one year of funding
Potential impact and transformativeness of the proposed research idea, especially in contributing to national development
Submission of a realistic budget
Notification of successful applicants: Successful applicants will be informed by email to their designated point of contact.
Grant timeline:
Milestone
Date
Issuance of RFA
Friday 9th February 2024 (Closed to PhD students only)
On Monday, March 3, 2025, Makerere University hosted the launch of the 11th cohort of the Consortium for Advanced Research Training in Africa (CARTA) doctoral fellowship. The new cohort comprises 11 females and nine males, drawn from eight partner universities across nine African countries. For the next four years, the group will undergo advanced training through the consortium’s collaborative efforts to strengthen research capacity across the continent.
CARTA, formed in 2008, is a network of eight African partner universities, four research institutes, and eight international collaborators, dedicated to strengthening doctoral training and institutional research capacity in Africa. The consortium is co-led by the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC), based in Nairobi, Kenya, and the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa. Makerere University is a key partner, leading the consortium’s The Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases (TERID) East Africa Research Hub.
Among its key interventions, the consortium facilitates targeted and structured training and mentorship aimed at strengthening university-wide research systems. One such initiative is the doctoral fellowship programme’s Joint Advanced Seminars (JAS) started in 2011. JAS is a sequence of four annual seminars designed to support doctoral students registered in different CARTA partner institutions to progress seamlessly through their PhD journeys.
At the center, MakSPH Dean Prof. Rhoda Wanyenze speaks with Dr. Florah Karimi, CARTA Program Manager for Institutionalization, during the launch of the 11th Cohort of CARTA doctoral fellowship at Makerere University on March 3, 2025. To the left is CARTA Board Member Dr. JB Isunju, alongside Facilitator and CARTA Alumnus Dr. Andrew Tamale.
Now, since its inception over a decade ago, the consortium has supported many early career researchers across its partner institutions in Africa, admitting at least 265 doctoral Fellows and graduating over 183 of them. In turn, the Fellows have gone on to contribute to over 4,000 peer-reviewed research publications and secured more than $43 million in research grant awards, applying the skills gained through the intensive CARTA four-year programme.
Of the 183 CARTA graduates, Makerere University has had its fair share, with 25 PhD graduates supported through the consortium. One of them, Dr. Kato Charles Drago of the 3rd CARTA doctoral fellowship cohort who completed his PhD in clinical immunology and molecular genetics at Makerere University in 2016, is currently a Lecturer and Head, Department of Biotechnical and Diagnostic Sciences, and the Principal Investigator for the TERID Research Hub at Makerere University, where he is leading the efforts to improve disease diagnosis, treatment, and research capacity development within the region.
The ongoing Joint Advanced Seminar One (JAS 1) for the 11th cohort of the CARTA doctoral fellowship, launched last week at Makerere University School of Public Health’s (MakSPH) Resilient Africa Network in Kololo, Kampala, Uganda, runs for three weeks until March 21. Dr. John Bosco Isunju, CARTA Board member and institutional focal person at Makerere University noted that JAS 1 is designed to build critical thinking, technical skills, and core research competencies, critical for exposing the Fellows to key theories, seminal readings, and interdisciplinary research methods to interrogate public and population health.
“For our Fellows, you are joining the best consortium on the continent, to give you the best skills and make you change agents in your institutions. That is really CARTA’s vision. To create a critical mass that will go back and transform the situation in your institutions. What you are going to get here is the skills to write grants and attract resources, and skills to network and make partnerships. The first partners are the colleagues you have around you,” Dr Isunju said.
Dr. JB Isunju addressing the Fellows during the opening of JAS 1 for the 11th Cohort. 3rd March 2025.
He revealed that the emergence of COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the 10th cohort, whose JAS 1 training was prematurely concluded in 2020. Since then, no new cohort of CARTA doctoral fellows had been admitted until now. “It has been a long struggle, but thanks to our dedicated partners worldwide who recognize the need and the gap, we are finally here,” Isunju shared.
The current 11th cohort was possible with support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and the Oak Foundation (OAK), selected from a competitive pool of more than 150 eligible applicants from CARTA partner institutions.
Notably, for the first time, the consortium is having two PhD Fellows coming from Somali National University (SNU), that is: Ms. Amina Hassan Husien and Mr. Gallad Dahir Hassan. The two students will be hosted at Makerere University for their doctoral studies, to aid with capacity development and mentorship. Their research focus will be around maternal and reproductive health, and vaccine-preventable disease surveillance, respectively.
At the centre, Gallad listening keenly to Uganda’s Justine Okello, during JAS 1 training for the 11th Cohort in Kampala. 3rd March 2025.
Expressing optimism, Gallad said the fellowship will equip them with the requisite skills to conduct policy-relevant research, ultimately enabling them (the Fellows) make meaningful impact in their home institutions and contribute to Africa’s research and development agenda.
“My research is in disease surveillance system especially vaccines preventable diseases. I want to fill the gap in reporting from the community level. I appreciate CARTA for providing us with this invaluable opportunity and Prof. Rhoda Wanyenze for her efforts to secure the two positions for Somalia National University to be mentored at Makerere University.” He said.
For her part, officiating the launch of the 11th cohort of the CARTA doctoral fellowship, Makerere University School of Public Health Dean, Prof. Rhoda Wanyenze, expressed gratitude for the support to help the Fellows through their PhD journeys. However, she challenged the Fellows to look beyond simply earning their PhD qualifications and instead focus on making meaningful contributions that improve lives and impact communities.
“I know each of you has likely defined what success looks like at the end of this programme or even 10 years from now. But I urge you to go beyond personal achievement and add to that impacting others, shaping the world around you, starting with Africa, and speaking for something you are really passionate about,” Prof. Rhoda Wanyenze emphasized.
Prof. Rhoda Wanyenze encouraged the 11th Cohort of CARTA doctoral fellows to look beyond their PhD qualifications and impact people. 3rd March 2025.
She also noted that the 11th cohort is unique, because they are starting their PhD journey amid major global changes. While these shifts may pose a challenge, she said they also present an opportunity to rethink how health systems are structured, financed, and coordinated, to enhance the promotion of global health equity and access to critical services.
The CARTA doctoral fellowship supports PhD students at partner institutions through the Joint Advanced Seminars (JAS), in addition to offering stipend, research funding, essential equipment and software, and coverage for tuition, medical insurance, and travel. Fellows also receive mentorship, supervisory support, networking opportunities, and training in grant writing and research dissemination, including support for presentations at international conferences. The fellowship is open to staff from CARTA partner institutions.
Dr. Florah Karimi recognized Prof. Rhoda Wanyenze’s support for CARTA at the JAS 1 for the 11th CARTA doctoral fellowship opening. 3rd March 2025.
Dr. Florah Karimi, the CARTA Program Manager for Institutionalization and Scientific Quality and the Head of Research and Capacity Strengthening at APHRC, Kenya, stated that CARTA’s structured doctoral model has transformed PhD education in African universities, integrating mentorship and interdisciplinary approach to training to produce scholars who are well equipped for global academic and policy engagement.
“CARTA has grown, and we now consider ourselves a proven concept. We deeply appreciate the support from our partner institutions, which have been instrumental in shaping what CARTA is all about. As more institutions come on board, we have reached a point where this is no longer just about us. We are influencing our universities, shaping individual careers, and now, we must extend that impact to other institutions,” Dr. Karimi noted passionately.
The College Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity (CoVAB) is delighted to share a call for manuscripts for potential publication in two distinguished journals: the African Journal of Animal and Biomedical Sciences (AJABS) and the One Health and Global Health Security Journal (One Health-GHS).
AJABS: A leading platform for innovative research in animal science and biomedicine.
One Health-GHS: A global journal addressing infectious diseases, public health at the human-animal-environment interface, and biomedical research focusing on human, animal, and ecosystem health.
As the Consortium for Advanced Research Training in Africa (CARTA) family, we close 2024 celebrating the collective efforts that have upheld our commitment to building a vibrant multidisciplinary African academy leading world-class research. This year, a significant focus has been on institutionalizing CARTA interventions within our African partner institutions, reflected in this issue’s theme: ‘Model of Sustainable Research Capacity Strengthening.’
Since CARTA’s establishment in 2008 and the launch of its first PhD fellowship in 2011, our mission has been clear: to train PhD fellows as research leaders and transform research training in Africa. Over time, innovative research capacity-strengthening interventions have proven highly effective. With this success, CARTA has prioritized the mainstreaming of these interventions at partner institutions during its second (2016 – 2020) and third (2021 – 2025) strategic phases. Substantial resources have been invested to ensure these efforts reshape individual institutions’ research environments and Africa’s broader Research and Development (R&D) ecosystem.
Key achievements include research infrastructural grants, the publication of adaptable research training curricula, and training over 2000 partner institution staff as supervisors, research support staff, and Trainers of Trainers (ToTs).
As these interventions are mainstreamed, hundreds of postgraduate students including master’s, PhD, and postdoctoral fellows are benefiting directly or indirectly, as research cultures evolve. Six institutions have already adopted CARTA’s training interventions, with others in the process.
Mentorship remains central to CARTA’s approach. By fostering mentorship at individual, departmental, and institutional levels, CARTA has cultivated change agents driving the philosophy of research capacity strengthening within and beyond the consortium. This ripple effect is transforming research environments, not just at partner institutions but across Africa.
Over the past 15 years, CARTA, in collaboration with global funders and partners has sought to answer these questions. This newsletter highlights stories of change from our partner institutions, showcasing how empowering individuals, building a critical mass of research-active faculty, and strengthening institutional frameworks are reshaping the research landscape across the continent.
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