strengthening higher education stakeholder relations in africa

STRENGTHENING HIGHER EDUCATION 

STAKEHOLDER RELATIONS IN AFRICA 

GUIDELINES 

FOR THE CALL FOR LETTERS OF INTENT 

FOR CASE STUDY PARTNERSHIPS 

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION: Monday, October 25, 2010

Table of contents 

1. Program overview ........................................................................................1 

2. Case Study Partnership purpose..................................................................1 

3. Finding a partner..........................................................................................2 

4. Selection process ........................................................................................2 

5. Eligibility criteria ..........................................................................................2 

5.1 Eligible countries ...................................................................................2 

5.2 Institutional eligibility.............................................................................3 

5.3 Maximum number of Letter of Intent submissions per institution............3 

5.4 Required Canadian and African contributions .......................................3 

5.5 Presentation requirements ....................................................................4 

5.6 Deadline ................................................................................................4 

6. Selection criteria..........................................................................................4 

7. Partnership results and budget ....................................................................5 

7.1 Results...................................................................................................5 

7.2 Budget...................................................................................................5 

8. Timeline .......................................................................................................7 

8.1 Workplan table.......................................................................................7 

8.2 Description of key activities ...................................................................7 

9. Letter of Intent application form ...................................................................9

1. Program overview 

The Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) has signed a $2 million 

agreement with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) for a partnership with 

the Association of African Universities (AAU). This program will strengthen higher education 

stakeholder relations in Africa and will focus on three key components: 

1) Strengthening African University Outreach – African universities in partnership with 

Canadian universities will strengthen their strategic plans for improved outreach to 

external stakeholders; 

2) University-Industry Linkages – African universities in partnership with Canadian 

universities will produce case studies of successful African university-industry linkages; 

and 

3) Strengthening AAU Stakeholder Relations – AAU will work in partnership with AUCC to 

strengthen its ability to support its member universities’ external stakeholder relations 

and to strengthen its own external stakeholder relations. 

These guidelines are for the Letter of Intent call for proposals for Component 2. Ultimately, 12 

Case Study Partnerships will be selected by an African-Canadian peer review committee. Letters 

of Intent must be submitted in either English or French. The 12 case studies chosen may or may 

not be with the same institutions as the institutions engaged in developing the 15 strategic plans 

through Component 1 (Strategic Planning Partnership) that was launched on May 31, 2010. 

If you have any questions regarding this new program, in Canada, please contact Darlene Moll, 

Manager, Partnership Programs at AUCC, at dmoll@aucc.ca or (613) 563-3961 extension 305 

or, in Africa, please contact Ransford Bekoe, Assistant Project Officer, Office of the AAU 

Secretary-General, at ransford@aau.org or (233) 302 761588 or (233) 302 774495. 

2. Case Study Partnership purpose 

The Case Study Partnership component of the program will focus on two key outcomes. The first 

outcome will be the production of 12 case studies developed by African higher education 

institutions in collaboration with Canadian experts on industry linkages. The second outcome 

will be the selection of six model case studies from the 12 that were developed. The proponents 

of the six case studies will share lessons learned from the development of these case studies at a 

workshop where the six model case studies will be featured and subsequently disseminated to the 

broader AAU membership. 

These case studies will analyse the challenges and experiences from university-industry efforts 

and relationships for the purposes of sharing this experience with others in the African higher 

education community. The 12 university-industry case studies selected will be awarded to 

institutions with pre-existing university-industry linkages. 

The six model case studies will be examined for lessons learned/best practices at a two-day 

workshop in Africa, with a particular attempt to surface key recurring university-industry 

relations themes in African higher education and their contributions to development. The 

purpose of the workshop is to collectively arrive at a comprehensive and deeper understanding of 

Strengthening Higher Education Stakeholder Relations in Africa 

Guidelines for Case Study Partnerships 

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challenges and successes in university-industry relations which will inform the finalization of the 

six model case studies. The workshop will take place in Africa and it will provide an opportunity 

for sharing learning and experiences across the partnerships. 

To contribute to Canadian public engagement in international development, case study partners 

are expected to organize at least one public engagement event when the African partners are in 

Canada. More specifically, this higher education event will help to educate Canadians about 

African higher education’s contribution to development issues in their country. 

3. Finding a partner 

Some universities have already worked in an African-Canadian partnership and may be ready to 

approach a potential partner in order to propose a Letter of Intent. For those African and 

Canadian institutions that need assistance in finding a partner, they are asked to submit 

notification of their interest to their association (AAU or AUCC, respectively) no later than 

Monday, August 23, 2010. AAU members should submit such notification to AAU at 

ransford@aau.org. AUCC member institutions should submit their interest in finding an African 

partner to AUCC at rlalonde@aucc.ca. The AAU and AUCC will inform interested parties about 

each other’s interest so that they are free to explore forming partnerships and finding appropriate 

matches. 

4. Selection process 

The AAU and AUCC are responsible for reviewing Letters of Intent submissions to ensure that 

all eligibility criteria are met before forwarding submissions to the Selection Committee. 

Submissions that do not meet all of the eligibility criteria will be ineligible. See the section on 

Eligibility criteria below. 

The Selection Committee will rank Letters of Intent by merit in terms of how well selection 

criteria are addressed. Scores and rankings will not be provided to proponents, but the 

Committee’s written and oral feedback will be provided to applicants, particularly as feedback 

pertains to strengthening implementation. 

Nominations for Selection Committee membership were sought from AAU and AUCC member 

institutions. The Committee members serve as individual experts, not as representatives of their 

institutions. However, they will not score or participate in the discussions on submissions from 

their own institutions or where there is a conflict of interest. 

5. Eligibility criteria 

5.1 Eligible countries 

Institutions from African countries that are both eligible for Canadian assistance and that are 

members of the AAU may apply. Institutions must be from one of the following countries: 


Guidelines for the Call for Letters of Intent for Case Study Partnerships 

2

Algeria 

Angola 

Benin 

Botswana 

Burkina Faso 

Burundi 

Cameroon 

Cape Verde 

Central African 

Republic 

Chad 

Comoros 

Congo, 

Democratic 

Republic of 

*CIDA focus countries 

Côte d'Ivoire 

Djibouti 

Egypt 

Equatorial Guinea 

Eritrea 

Ethiopia* 

Gabon 

Gambia 

Ghana* 

Guinea 

Guinea-Bissau 

Kenya 

Lesotho 

Liberia 



Madagascar 

Malawi 

Mali* 

Mauritania 

Mauritius 

Morocco 

Mozambique* 

Namibia 

Niger 

Nigeria 

Rwanda 

Sao Tome and 

Principe 

Senegal* 

Seychelles 

Sierra Leone 

Somalia 

South Africa 

Sudan* 

Swaziland 

Tanzania* 

Togo 

Tunisia 

Uganda 

Zambia 

Zimbabwe 

At least 50 percent of partnerships selected will be for CIDA focus countries in Africa. See the 

Selection criteria section below. However, within the maximum of 12 Case Study Partnerships 

that will be selected, there is no limit on how many of those partnerships may be in any one of 

the eligible countries, as long as those partnerships are for distinct African institutions. 

5.2 Institutional eligibility 

African and Canadian institutions must be members in good standing of the AAU or AUCC, 

respectively. 

5.3 Maximum number of Letter of Intent submissions per institution 

All Letters of Intent must be joint submissions that reflect a proposed partnership between 

African and Canadian universities. Canadian institutions, in conjunction with their African 

partner, may submit any number of Letters of Intent; however, a maximum of two per institution 

will be funded. 

5.4 Required Canadian and African contributions 

Both African and Canadian partner institutions are required to make a contribution of additional 

personnel time beyond the amounts funded by the CIDA contribution. See the Budget section for 

the required value of in-kind time contribution. The number of days has been calculated based on 

estimated daily rates; however, partners need to ensure that the time contributed meets the 

required Canadian dollar value of the required in-kind contribution considering actual salaries 

paid and henceforth to adjust the number of days accordingly. Letters of Intent require that 

Canadian and African institutional authorities sign and attest to their support for the Letter of 

Intent, including the required in-kind contributions. 

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5.5 Presentation requirements 

Letters of Intent must be submitted in English or French, using the application form provided 

and respecting all formatting/length instructions provided in that form. The completed Letter of 

Intent may not exceed eight pages, excluding the signature pages that must accompany the Letter 

of Intent. 

5.6 Deadline 

Letters of Intent, along with a signature page for each partner institution must be submitted 

electronically and simultaneously to AAU at ransford@aau.org and to AUCC at 

rlalonde@aucc.ca no later than 4 p.m. (UTC) for Africans and 12 p.m. noon (EDT) for 

Canadians on Monday, October 25, 2010. 

6. Selection criteria 

At least 50 percent of partnerships selected must be for institutions from CIDA focus countries in 

Africa, namely: Ethiopia, Ghana, Mali, Mozambique, Senegal, Sudan or Tanzania. Letters of 

Intent will be assessed on the basis of the following selection criteria: 

Relevance 

� Relevance to the African partner institution: The extent to which the proposed case 

study on university-industry relations in African higher education will bring added value 

to the African partner institution and other higher education institutions once the case 

study is produced and distributed. 

� Relevance to Africa: The extent to which the case study is an appropriate example of 

university-industry linkage in the African context and that the case study results could be 

transferable to other higher education institutions in Africa 

Partnership and expertise 

� African institution capacity to implement: Capacity of the African partner institution 

to implement the partnership, including the commitment and engagement of a director or 

manager of university-industry linkages. 

� Canadian institution capacity to implement: Capacity of the Canadian partner 

institution to implement the partnership, including the commitment and engagement of a 

director or manager of university-industry linkages. 

� Canadian expertise offered: Extent to which the Canadian institution offers access to 

their external stakeholder experience within and beyond its institution, including industry 

liaison. If the Canadian partner is proposing to support more than one Case Study 

Partnership, it must also make the case that it has the capacity to implement two 

partnerships. 

Methodology 

� Canadian public engagement: Strength of Canadian public engagement plan, namely, 

the strategies to raise awareness of and engage Canadian society in international 

development through presentation(s) – or other approach(es) by African university 

representatives while they are in Canada. 

� Gender equality: Extent to which the proposed partnership will address gender equality. 



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� Environmental sustainability: Extent to which the proposed partnership will address 

environmental sustainability. 

� Budget: Extent of African and Canadian in-kind contributions. 

� Approach: Why the case study was selected as an example of successful universityindustry 

linkages. 

� Timeline and duration: Extent to which the proposed case study was operational and 

was of a duration that was long enough to generate sufficient data to be analyzed. 

� Workshop participation: Willingness of Canadian and African partners to participate in 

the case study workshop to be held on April 25 and 26, 2012. 

7. Partnership results and budget 

7.1 Results 

The expected results of the Case Study Partnerships include: 

� a new case study with a clear focus on strengthening university-industry stakeholder relations 

that demonstrate challenges and successes; 

� the AAU member institution’s leaders and managers will have a heightened understanding of 

university-industry stakeholder relations by producing case studies; and 

� the Canadian university will have leaders and external relations managers with an increased 

understanding of university-industry stakeholder relations in the African context. 

These results, as well as required reporting, must be completed by July 15, 2012. 

7.2 Budget 

See the budget below for the Case Study Partnerships. It presents the maximum allowable 

contribution from CIDA and the minimum required in-kind contributions from Canadian and 

African universities. 



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DESCRIPTION 

OF COSTS 

African 

institution fee 

Canadian 

institution fee 

Travel and per 

diem for 

African to 

Canadian 

institution 

*Travel and 

per diem of 

Canadian to 

African 

institution 

*Travel and 

per diem of 

Canadian to 

workshop in 

Africa 

*Travel and 

per diem of 

African to 

workshop in 

Africa 

MAXIMUM 

CIDA 

COMMENTS ON CIDA 

CONTRIBUTION CONTRIBUTION 

$4,500 10 days @ $400 per day plus 

$500 for materials and 

ancillary expenses 

$5,000 Canadian institution hosts 1 

person from African institution 

for 2 weeks @ $2,500 per 

week: averaged at $500 a day 

for 10 working days of 

administrators and faculty to 

contribute toward the time 

supporting the visiting African 

$5,000 Travel and per diem for 1 

person from African institution 

to come to Canada @ $5,000 

per person 


Canadian institutional 

representative to travel to 

African institution and to 

workshop 

$3500 Travel and per diem for 1 

Canadian institutional 

representative to travel to the 

workshop 


African institution 

representatives @ $3,500 per 

person 



CASE STUDY PARTNERSHIP BUDGET 

CANADIAN 

UNIVERSITY 

IN-KIND 

CONTRIBUTION 

COMMENTS ON CANADIAN 

UNIVERSITY 

IN-KIND CONTRIBUTION 

$12,000 Additional Canadian personnel 

time to support African 

participants in Canada: 15 

days @ $800 per day 

$8,000 Canadian personnel time to go 

to African institution: 

10 days @ $800 per day 

$4,000 Canadian personnel time to go 

to African institution and 

workshop: 5 days @ $800 per 

day 

AFRICAN 

UNIVERSITY 

IN-KIND 

CONTRIBUTION 

TOTAL $26,500 $24,000 $5,590 

COMMENTS ON 

AFRICAN UNIVERSITY 

IN-KIND 

CONTRIBUTION 

$4300 10 days of African senior 

personnel time @ $430 per 

day 

$1,290 3 days of African senior 

personnel time @ $430 per 

day for travel to and 

participation in workshop 

All figures are expressed in Canadian dollars. Time costs are estimated averages. Proponents must adjust time for actual costs to meet in-kind requirements 

* Items are only allowable expenses if chosen as a model case study. 

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8. Timeline 

The workplan table below provides an overview of the timeline for Case Study Partnerships. It is 

critical that the selected six model Case Study Partnership teams attend the workshop in Africa 

on April 25 and 26, 2012 and that all deliverables and reporting are completed and submitted by 

no later than July 15, 2012. 

8.1 Workplan table 



Case Study Partnership Workplan 

Stakeholder relations 

Case study activities Oct-Dec 

2010-2011 2011-2012 

12 African university case study missions to 12 Canadian 

institutions for 2 weeks sometime between March 1 and 

September 30, 2011 x x x 

One or more public engagement presentations in Canada by African 

university Case Study Partnership representatives timed to coincide 

with African missions to Canada between March 1 and September 

30, 2011 x x x 

Draft case studies submitted by January 10, 2012. Six case studies 

chosen as model case studies by February 10, 2012 to be the 

focus of the April 2012 workshop x 

Six one-person Canadian university case study development and 

refining missions to 6 African universities timed to coincide with the 

April 25 and 26, 2012 workshop 

Workshop in Africa focused on the six model case studies April 25 

and 26, 2012 x 

Final case studies submitted to AAU and AUCC no later than July 

15, 2012 

8.2 Description of key activities 

Two-week working session in Canada 

One person from the African partner institution who is responsible for university-industry 

relations will travel to Canada for two weeks sometime between March 1 and September 30, 

2011. The aim is for the African partner to better understand the extent and nature of universityindustry 

relations in Canadian higher education institutions where there has been extensive 

development of university-industry relationships over the past decades. While in Canada, the 

African university representatives will seek to understand the challenges and issues that arise out 

of university-industry relations in the Canadian context and to explore these issues in light of the 

African context. 

Jan-Mar 

Apr-June 

Jul-Sep 

Oct-Dec 

Jan-Mar 

7 

2012- 

2013 

Apr-June 

x 

x 

Jul-Sep 

x

To contribute to Canadian public engagement in international development, case study partners 

are expected to organize at least one public engagement event when the African partners are in 

Canada during which time they will aim to educate Canadians about African higher education’s 

contribution to development issues in their country. 

Draft case study 

Each African representative, once back at their home institution, will develop a draft case study 

which will explore a particular success or challenge in their university-industry efforts that could 

serve as a model case study to be shared with the broader African university community. The 

Canadian partner will continue to work remotely with the African partner on the development of 

the draft case study. The draft case studies will be submitted to AUCC and AAU no later than 

January 10, 2012. Six model case studies will be chosen by the Selection Committee and will 

be the focus of the April 2012 workshop in Africa. The same peer-review Selection Committee 

that selected the Case Study Partnerships will also select the six model case studies. 

Two-week working session in Africa 

Following the selection of the six model case studies, one of the Canadian team members who is 

a university-industry linkage expert will travel to Africa for a two-week mission around the 

April 25 and 26, 2012 workshop dates. The purpose of the mission will be to engage with the 

African partners to refine the case study. The Canadian university-industry linkage expert will 

assist their African partner to further develop and strengthened the model case study that will be 

analysed at the workshop in Africa. 

Workshop in Africa 

The six model case studies will be examined for lessons learned/best practices at a two-day 

workshop in Africa on April 25 and 26, 2012. The workshop will attempt to surface key 

recurring university-industry relations themes in African higher education and their contributions 

to development. The purpose of the workshop is to collectively arrive at a comprehensive and 

deeper understanding of the challenges and successes in university-industry relations which will 

further inform the six model case studies and contribute to their strengthening. 

Workshop participants will include the African and Canadian partners from the six selected case 

studies, two Canadian or African university-industry experts (from academe, industry and 

possibly even government), as well as an African or Canadian curriculum development expert. 

The workshop will provide an opportunity for South-South capacity building. 

The workshop findings and lessons learned will be compiled by the AAU and AUCC into a userfriendly 

report and practical guide. Also, the AAU and AUCC will use the workshop findings 

and lessons learned to develop a module for the AAU Management Development (MADEV) 

workshop series. 



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Production of case studies 

The workshop and dialogue on university-industry linkages will help inform and further the 

development of the case studies. Following the workshop, the Africans and Canadians will return 

to their home institutions and work remotely to more fully develop and finalize their case study 

based on the workshop discussions. The deadline date for submission of final case studies is July 

15, 2012. 

9. Letter of Intent application form 

The Letter of Intent form, along with the required signature pages from the African and Canadian 

institutions, must be completed and submitted by email simultaneously to AAU at 

ransford@aau.org and to AUCC at rlalonde@aucc.ca no later than 4 p.m. (UTC) for Africans 

and 12 p.m. noon (EDT) for Canadians on Monday, October 25, 2010. 



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