Benin Country Report 2023 - English

Abstract

Benin is among the world’s fastest growing economies. Highly skilled human capital will boost this growth rate and drive implementation of Benin’s National Development Plan. Benin is one of the nine African countries that is contributing to the Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (Rsif) of the Partnership for skills in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology (PASET) since 2021. Its contribution is USD 2 million to train Beninese PhD students in selected African host universities and collaborating with international partner institutions. Through PASET-Rsif Benin will build strong institutions and future science leaders to drive a science and technology-led growth and development. There are 19 Beninese Rsif PhD scholars (42% women). University of Abomey-Calavi, one of the 15 Rsif African Host Universities, is hosting 7 Rsif funded PhD students (29% women, 3 nationalities). So far there are 14 research publications. Four Rsif research and innovation projects are under implementation in Benin. icipe in partnership with UAC leads the “Accelerating Inclusive Green Growth through Agri-based Digital Innovation in West Africa (AGriDI)” initiative. The report turns the spotlight on Beninese Rsif scholars and highlights how Rsif projects are strengthening resilience to climate change and Developing and scaling up digital innovations in agriculture.