Enabling local participation and bolstering knowledge. These are some of the goals pursued by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC). It does so by supporting multidisciplinary, problem-oriented approaches to research, defined and carried out by institutions and researchers in the South. A public corporation created in 1970 and funded by the Parliament of Canada, IDRC works in partnership with other donors to increase the resources available for research and international development in the South. Support is directed toward developing an indigenous research capacity to sustain the policies and technologies developing countries need to build healthier, more equitable, more prosperous societies.

 

 IDRC has worked in close collaboration with Africans since 1971 in Sub Saharan Africa . The Centre’s operations are guided through two regional offices: in Nairobi, Kenya, to serve Eastern and Southern Africa; and in Dakar, Senegal to serve Western and Central Africa. These offices function as nodes for the Centre’s operations in 44 countries. In the past 30 years, IDRC has supported over 2,500 research projects directed and managed by African researchers and institutions, for a value of more than C$439 million. 33% of IDRC’S resources were derived from financial partnerships with other bilateral and multilateral donors. Approximately 41% of IDRC’s 2001-2002 program budget went toward supporting research in Sub Saharan Africa: at the beginning of 2002, 317 projects were underway.

 

IDRC’s research program centres on three broad areas of enquiry: social and economic equity; environmental and natural resource management; and information and communication technologies for development. In focussing on these areas, IDRC pays close attention to governance, the translation of research results into policy decisions, and to gender issues in development.

 

Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eriteria, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

 

Staff teams comprising different specialists are organized into program initiatives, which are the driving force of the Centre’s programming. In addition to being a source of funds for projects, the initiatives act as networks that link researchers research agenda to address specific problems. The following program initiatives support research in the ESARO region:

 

Acacia is helping sub-Saharan African communities develop the ability to use information and communication technologies (ICTs) for their social and economic development. The Centre is among the pioneers in promoting the adaptation and use of ICTs in Africa. Projects include: VSAT Regulation Registry and Socio-economic Analysis for Africa; From the African Drum to the Internet; Strengthening National ICT Policies in Africa Governance; Handheld Computing in Uganda; National ICT Policy in Kenya

(www.idrc.ca/acacia)

 

People, Land, and Water (PLaW) aims to enhance the quality of life of women and men living in stressed eco-regions through activities that improve access to, and encourage the proper use of land and water resources. Examples of projects include: The African Highlands Ecoregional Program in Kenya and Uganda; The Water Demand Management Forum and the ECA Program in the region on Agricultural Policy Analysis (www.idrc.ca/plaw/)

 

Sustainable Use of Biodiversity(SUB) promotes the conservation and sustainable use of appropriate technologies, and local institutions and policy frameworks that incorporate gender considerations and local indigenous knowledge. Examples of projects include: Network on Medicinal Plants and Traditional Medicine

(Eastern Africa) ; Indigenous Vegetables for Food Security in Zimbabwe and Community-based Conservation of Medicinal Plants in Kenya (www.idrc.ca/biodiversity)

 

Peace building and Reconstruction (PBR) promotes peace building research, policy development, and capacity-building to help countries emerging from conflict avoid a relapse into violence. Examples of projects include: International Mediation in African Civil Wars in South Africa; Research and Development of a Culture of Peace Using ICTs in Maputo, Mozambique and Peace Building & Community Based Reconstruction in Angola (www.idrc.ca/peace)

 

Trade, Employment and Competitiveness (TEC) : Developing countries have witnessed dramatic changes in their trade relations with the rest of the world over the last 20 years. Trade flows have expanded at a steady pace and the composition of trade has continued to shift in favour of manufactured exports and trade in services. The general objective of TEC is to enable developing countries to participate more effectively in the global economy. Examples of projects include: Value Chain Analysis of the Cotton Textile Industry in Kenya; The Southern Africa Trade Research Network in South Africa ; and The International Trade and Gender in East Africa (www.idrc.ca/tec)

 

Micro Impact of Macroeconomic Adjustment Policies (MIMAP) was launched by the IDRC in 1990 to assist developing countries to reduce poverty through better macro-level policies and micro-level interventions. A network connecting developing country researchers, policy makers, practitioners, NGOs and international experts. MIMAP examines the human costs of macroeconomic policies and designs improved poverty alleviation programs. In ESARO, MIMAP supported Africa Economic Research Consortium (AERC) and will establish a poverty analysis research and policy network in East Africa.

(www.idrc.ca/mimap)

 

Governance, Equity, and Health (GEH) supports equity in health through evidence-based choices in service delivery, health sector reform and improving equity of health outcomes through citizen participation. Its vision is for a just provision of public services, particularly to marginalised and excluded groups in developing countries. Examples of projects include: Access to Tuberculosis Services in Southern Africa; Equity and Health Policy Reforms, Southern Africa (Equinet). (www.health@idrc.ca)

Tanzania Essential Health Intervention Project (TEHIP) an IDRC corporate project for seven years in Tanzania, is being devolved to the Tanzanian Government. TEHIP’s evidence based approach to burden of disease changed modalities of health delivery in two districts to markedly decrease the death rate. (www.idrc.ca/ehip)

The ESARO Activity Fund (RAF) provides short-term, small scale assistance to exploratory initiatives regionwide. Flexibility allows support for projects falling outside the boundaries of normal PI activities which promote IDRC goals in the region or seed funding to explore future possibilities for PIs. Partnerships with other donors and African partners, innovation and creativity are stressed. Exemplary projects include support to NEPAD and the AU, establishment of waste networks, corruption studies in Kenya and initial sponsorship of the inter-Congolese dialogue.