O
Striving
to Make a Change
O
OSSREA is currently involved in capacity building through the provision of research grants by designing and implementing research projects in collaboration with donor agencies, national and international institutions in the North and South. It disseminates its research by organizing national, regional, and international workshops as well as through publications, both in print and digital forms.
OSSREA is aware that many African researchers and scholars have limited access to research funds. Through the creation of special funds that address specific themes of relevance to the African continent, OSSREA is thus creating an opportunity for researchers and scholars to access funds. It has responded to the huge demand for its services by increasing the number of grantees in all of its ongoing annual competitions that include: Social Science Research Competition, Gender Issues Research Competition, Research Methodology Training Programme, African Conflicts: Management, Resolution and Post-Conflict Recovery and Development, and the Senior Scholars Research Competition.
We intend to establish an environment at OSSREA that encourages the fostering of a serious and prominent scholarly research and capacity-building institution that acts as the first “port of call” for our academics, researchers, policy-makers and the public at large. To achieve that goal, we are cultivating closer links with policy-makers, research institutions, universities, non-governmental organisations, the private sector, and regional and international organisations. We are also involving more policy-makers in our workshops, and are adopting innovative multi-disciplinary research themes that address the developmental challenges facing our continent.
OSSREA has grown into a major organisation in the region and is striving to make a change at the grassroots levels. More than ever, OSSREA has expanded its reach to cover the entire sub-region. It has established National Chapters and Liaison Offices in 18 countries. In terms of projects and activities, OSSREA is currently embarking on seven new initiatives that are of immense benefit to the developmental endeavours of the region and the continent. The projects are: The HIV/AIDS Challenge in Africa focusing on Botswana, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia in addition to the earlier related initiative on Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa and Zimbabwe that commenced last year; Assessment of Poverty Reduction Strategies in Sub-Saharan Africa; Capacity Building for Social and Gender Analysis in Natural Resources Management; Integrating Gender Issues in Multidisciplinary Research in Africa; Policy Dialogue Series; Sabbatical and Post-Doctoral Fellowship Grant Programmes. A new collaborative initiative on the development of strategies for smallholder market integration in Africa with the International Development Enterprises (IDE) has also been launched. We are grateful to our donors for their support.
To sum, I would thus like to take this opportunity to invite you all to participate in OSSREA’s activities and take part in relevant research that has a direct positive impact on people’s lives.
Alfred G. Nhema, Executive Secretary