Most institutions in developing countries are relatively weaker than their northern counterparts in terms of research capacity particularly for developing and preparing large grants. The resources required to build such capacity by conducting training at central venues where researchers from various countries can share experiences are limited.
Consequently, a fragmented approach where each institution conducts training commensurate with resources at their disposal has prevailed, thus missing out on benefits of networking across institutions and countries. It is against this background that the project, “BUILDING RESEARCH CAPACITY IN AFRICA” seeks to build capacity by training staff from higher education institutions (HEIs), in research methodology. The specific project objectives include:
- to develop a training manual on research methodology,
- to develop a research methodology course at two HEIs,
- to train 100 lecturers/researchers in research methodology and iv) to carry out an assessment of research activities in participating HEIs.
Developing of a training manual and the course
The development of a training manual and the subsequent development of the research methodology course is being done by a diverse (in terms of academic disciplines) team of scientists drawn from the participating HEIs. Diversity of the team is critical because the proposed course is targetted to a diverse group of lecturers/researchers. Institutions that have successfully run similar courses are being consulted during the process of developing the manual and the course. The time frame for this activity is 4 months.
Establishing Research Methodology Courses at HOORC and UMST
A curriculum based on the project but aligning with institutional regulations will be developed for HOORC and the University of Medical Science and Technology (UMST), Sudan. The courses will be expected to run annually on a self sustaining basis. Both HOORC and UMST are suitably geographically located to provide services in two distinct regions of Africa.
Training 100 lecturers/researchers Training of the target 100 lecturers/researchers will be done over a period of 3 years. In the first year the training will be conducted at HOORC targetting 20 senior lecturers/researchers. The participants will be drawn from the participating HEIs. The first group of participants will undergo a training of trainers course that will have content on the subject matter (research methodology) and on facilitation skills. The course, with a duration of 14 days, will be facilitated by project principal investigators from each participating HEI.
In year two, training will be conducted at HOORC and at UMST, each of them training 20 lecturers/researchers. The course will be run at different times of the year for planning and logistical reasons. Facilitators for the course, again with a duration of 14 days, will be selected from the pool of trainers trained in the first year, and new facilitators will join the experienced ones.
In year three another group of 40 participants will be trained at HOORC and UMST, each of the partners training 20 lecturers/researchers. Faciltation will be done as described for year two except that a new set of trainee facilitators will be used to spread the experience across those trained as trainers. The course duration will also be 14 days.
Assessment of research activities at participating HEIs
A study to assess the research needs in the participating HEIs will be conducted at each participating HEI over a period of 6 months. The purpose of such a study is to identify the constraints faced by researchers and explore opportunities for promotion of research within the participating HEIs and in the region. The assessment will also serve as a baseline survey that will be used to assess the impact of the project after its life span. The study will be conducted in the second year of the project in order to allow trained lecturers/ researchers testing their aquired skills. Milestones and strategies for achievement.
