AFRICA CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE FOR DEVELOPMENT IMPACT (ACE Impact) Djibouti Workshop – Experts Meeting February 18, 2019

Outline Lessons- ACE I ACE Impact Project Overview Objectives Project Components (features, activities, results, indicators) Implementation arrangements Status Timeline

ACE 1 - Lessons Learned Prior institutional and ministerial buy-in Regional engagement Institutional impact Sector engagement and upfront commitment Sectoral Advisory Board Networking and Partnerships Gender Plan for sustainability

The Africa Centers of Excellence (ACE) Program To support excellence in postgraduate education and research Train MS and PhD students to address the Skills Gap Provide midcareer Short Courses Applied Research Focus on addressing Development Challenges Regional Focus enables Portfolio of distributed excellence Partnering: Sectoral Stakeholders, Sectoral Advisory Board Global Excellence, Academic Institutions Government Ownership Sustainability

Objective of the ACE Impact Project To increase quantity, quality and development relevance of post-graduate education in selected universities through regional specialization Increase the number of enrolled students (ultimately graduates) in post-graduate programs (Master’s, PhDs) Enhance the quality of post-graduate programs such that students acquire the necessary theoretical knowledge and applied skills upon graduating Improve development Impact such that the knowledge and skills acquired by graduates are closely linked to development challenges

Fostering regional partnerships and scholarships Components Component 1 Component 2 Component 3 Establishing new and scaling-up well-performing existing ACEs for development impact Fostering regional partnerships and scholarships Enhancing regional project facilitation, and monitoring and evaluation (M&E) Sub-component 1.1 Support to establish new centers of excellence. Sub-component 1.2 Support to scale-up well performing ACE I centers   Sub-component 2.1 Support to emerging centers (non- ACEs) for networking, regional technical assistance and improving learning environment Sub-component 2.2 Support for PhD scholarships through the PASET Regional Scholarship & Innovation Fund Sub-component 3.1 Support for project facilitation and M&E at the Regional level;  Sub-component 3.2 Support for national level coordination (Burkina Faso, Ghana and Nigeria) Additional support to the best engineering and technology ACE institutions hosting sub-components 1.1 , 1.2 and 2.1 ACEs

New Centers (Component 1.1) Deliver top quality postgraduate education (skills) and applied research to address regional development challenges, attractive to regional students, faculty, industry and international partners. Key Activities to be funded Features Equipment purchase & buildings Faculty training Partnerships & industry outreach Institutional improvement Program redesign and accreditation Increasing enrollment and retention of female students/faculty Scholarships for students On-line learning courses Project management Disbursement of funds to centers are linked to results achieved (DLIs). 26 new centers will be competitively selected ~ Half will be in pre-identified priority sectors ~ US$ 4-8 million per center Potential to become a regional hub in the ACE’s specialized area Renewals should have been successful in providing quality and research important in addressing development challenges Not all money will be given to center upfront. Full amount will be accessed at mid term to decide who gets full term

Pre-Identified Priority Areas for ACE Impact Broad Themes Sectors Applied Sciences, Engineering, Technology Energy (power) Information and Communications Technology (Big Data) Health Nursing and Professional health trainers Education Education – STEM / Excellence in teacher training Environment Environment - Costal Resilience Environmental science and applied Impact assessment Urbanization and Transport Transport – logistics (policies, economics, urban planning, traffic management, ICT etc.) Urban Planning and Design Others Quantitative Economics Strongly linked to demand expressed by stakeholders working in the region Terms of reference have been drafted for the different sectors highlighting the skills and applied research gaps Further consultations will be held with relevant industry/sectoral leaders The best proposal within the priority will be selected Around half of the centers selected could be in targeted areas (max. 10 priority challenges)

New Centers: Proposed Results & Indicators Focus of improvement: International quality post-graduate education Increased enrollment and better retention of women Targeted research in response to development challenges Much stronger Industry engagement Increased strategic/ functional regional and international partnerships Strengthened Institutional-level Impact Improved attention to student affairs Sustainable (revenue generation) Funding linked to results (DLRs): No. of newly enrolled postgraduate students No. of ACE related research publications Amt. in externally generated revenue No. of newly accredited programs New facilities/equipment No. of faculty and students in internships Institutional impact (governance and regionalization) Fiduciary (timeliness and transparency)

Renewals of existing ACEs (Component 1.2) Support well performing ACEs to scale up delivery of top quality postgraduate education (skills) and applied research to address regional development challenges, attractive to regional students, faculty, industry and international partners. Activities to be funded Features Equipment purchase & buildings (less compared to 1.1) Partnerships & Industry outreach Institutional improvement Program redesign and accreditation Scholarships for students Increasing enrollment and retention of female students/faculty On-line learning courses Project management Disbursement of funds to centers are linked to results achieved (DLIs). 18 of the top performing centers will be competitively selected US$ 2-6 million per center (based on discipline) Be ready to be a regional hub in the ACE’s specialized area Renewals should have been successful in providing quality and research important in addressing development challenges Not all money will be given to center upfront. Full amount will be accessed at mid term to decide who gets full term

Renewals: Proposed Results & Indicators Focus of improvement: Similar to current ACE I but more emphasis on: Scale up postgraduate education Much stronger industry partners Strengthened Institutional-level Impact Professionalize regionalization Accreditation Increased enrollment and better retention of women Sustainability Funding linked to results (DLRs): Similar to the DLRs for the new centers (component 1.1), covering: Enrollment Research publication Accreditation of programs Civil works and equipment (purchased, installed, in-use) Internships, externally generated revenue Institutional impact Greater funding weight on institutional impact, regional networking and industry/sectoral engagement

Emerging Centers/Programs (Component 2.1) Provide targeted support to higher education institutions to build national undergraduate and postgraduate education and research capacity in thematic areas of regional need. Features Activities to be funded Some disbursement of funds to programs are linked to results achieved (DLIs). 5 of well written proposals will be accepted Eligible countries: Small or fragile, no existing ACEs and has low capacity in the proposed thematic area (Djibouti, Niger, Guinea, Gambia) US$ 5-7 million per center (based on discipline) Programs that are not yet mature enough to be competitive under Component 1 Equipment purchase & buildings Regional partnership activities with Component 1 ACE Impact, ACE I and ACE II centers Institutional improvement Industry outreach Faculty training Program redesign and development (education/research) and accreditation Scholarships for students Renewals should have been successful in providing quality and research important in addressing development challenges Not all money will be given to center upfront. Full amount will be accessed at mid term to decide who gets full term Will purchase technical assistance (TA) from stronger ACEs in the region (~30% of total funding)

Emerging Centers/Programs : Proposed Results & Indicators Funding linked to results (DLRs): No. of newly enrolled students No. of newly developed or revamped programs No. of newly accredited programs New facilities/equipment completed No. of faculty and students in internships Institutional impact (governance and regionalization) Fiduciary management (timeliness and transparency) Focus of improvement: Strengthened undergraduate and postgraduate education & research capacity (facilities and faculty) Stronger alignment with industry needs Strengthened Institutional-level Impact Targeted regional networks Accreditation Increased enrollment and better retention of women Sustainability

College of Engineering/Technology Additional Funding Eligibility: Those institutions that have been selected for at least one engineering/technology ACE Impact Center 3-7 awards anticipated Institution-wide strengthening of the engineering and technology programs within a College of Engineering Scale-up of enrollment Achieving international quality standards Introducing new academic programs Promoting project-based learning and innovative pedagogy Establishing new laboratories Enabling Technology Transfer and business/entrepreneurship Building linkages to business programs Enhancing teaching and research capacity Promoting institutional transformation in terms of policies and operations

PASET - RSIF (Component 2.2 - Optional) Contributes to regional public goods in the domain of creation of applied scientific and technical knowledge relevant to transformative technologies that can help to address critical and common development challenges as well as boost private sector productivity. Contributors Countries can opt to use IDA credit to contribute to the fund ($ 2 million) and leverage an equivalent amount in regional credit) RSIF will operate through a General Fund and an Endowment (permanent) Fund Has 3 windows: Scholarships for PhD students Research grants for scholars who have completed PhDs and for faculty engaged in doctoral training Innovation grants for faculty, scholars and researchers African governments; 5 countries have committed, of which two have transferred funds. Another 5 countries have made commitments in principle. Countries with firm commitments by heads of state: Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire. Kenya and Rwanda have transferred funds Donors. Korea has made a commitment of $ 10 million to the RSIF for PhD grants and research grants. Private sector. Discussions are ongoing with Phillips, Intel, Samsung, Alibaba and others Renewals should have been successful in providing quality and research important in addressing development challenges Not all money will be given to center upfront. Full amount will be accessed at mid term to decide who gets full term

PASET – RSIF: Advantages High level of technical assistance from the Bank and RSIF’s Consultative and Advisory Committee. Country can also benefit from funds mobilized from other donors/private sector. Countries will be represented on the PASET Board and Executive Committee and hence will help to shape this important regional initiative. 80 percent of the country’s contributions will go to fund national students who can enter high-quality programs in PASET RSIF host universities, provided they meet the admission/selection criteria. The remaining 20% is for other SSA students. Merit-based selection of students and economies of scale Professional management of scholarships PASET RSIF host universities are competitively selected and they are partnered with international universities. A long term initiative and countries will continue to benefit according to their contributions and in proportion to the returns from the endowment fund. Spillover benefits for the countries’ universities and higher education system, as they learn about an international level program, and as faculty and students are trained. Benefits from other initiative of PASET, such as knowledge-sharing with Korea, China, India, etc., and technical assistance. Renewals should have been successful in providing quality and research important in addressing development challenges Not all money will be given to center upfront. Full amount will be accessed at mid term to decide who gets full term

ACE Impact Implementation Arrangements Overall guidance and oversight for the project ACE Steering Committee (Ministerial & Representative levels) Semi-annual review Implementation support National Government M&E, verification, capacity building and logistics Coordinate work with partners Regional facilitation services (AAU) Implements own proposal ACEs/ Universities Ministerial meeting, once a year at the rep level. Unless told otherwise, the PSC member from the ACE 1 will continue Clear separation of discussions/decisions.

Status of ACE Impact Phase I – PROGRESS! Entities/Countries: Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Ghana, Guinea, Senegal and AAU 16 (6 renewals) ACEs; 2 Emerging Centers and 3 Colleges of Engineering 2 National Facilitation Agencies (NCTE (Ghana) and MERSRI-PIU (Burkina Faso)) 1 Regional Facilitation Unit (AAU) All Safeguards and Fiduciary requirements completed All Negotiations meetings completed Burkina Faso, Ghana and Senegal are contributing $2 Million each to RSIF Process initiated for the hiring of the new ACE Impact Project Manager

Status of ACE Impact Phase II …following Phase I approval Countries: Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Niger, Nigeria, The Gambia, Togo 28 (12 renewals) ACEs; 3 Emerging Centers and 3-6 Colleges of Engineering 1 National Facilitation Agency (NUC- Nigeria) Experts have been assigned to the Centers Fiduciary assessments of Centers need to be completed Draft ESMFs (safeguards document) yet to be consulted on in-country, finalized and disclosed Technical discussions and Negotiations to be completed.

Next Steps Verification Entity Allocated Amount Action Date 1. Governments share draft Performance and Funding Agreement with World Bank for legal review Mar. 1, 2019 2. Submission of ACE Impact I to World Bank Board for approval Mar. 4, 2019 3. National Workshops Period: National Government feedback on draft Procurement Manuals (PM), Financial Management (FM) Manuals and Implementation Plans (IP) Mar. 4-31, 2019 4. Legal review of Performance and Funding Agreement completed and shared with governments Mar. 15, 2019 5. Revised version of IP, fiduciary manuals submitted to AAU for review/approval Mar. 22, 2019 6. AAU notifies each Center on IP, manuals (PM, FM) and Safeguards approval, or request for additional work Apr. 12, 2019 7. Anticipated signing of Financing Agreements for Phase 1 countries by World Bank and Governments. Governments of Burkina, Ghana and Senegal and Icipe sign RSIF Subsidiary Agreements Apr. 14, 2019 8. Performance and Funding Agreement signing between governments and the Centers By Apr. 30, 2019 Verification Entity Add board approval; endorsement of operational manual Allocated Amount

Next Steps Verification Entity Allocated Amount Action Date 9. Submission by Centers of all ACE Impact documents not yet approved (manuals and Implementation Plan Apr. 30, 2019 10. All Centers submit results for DLI 1 (Basic and Full readiness) to AAU for verification May 1, 2019 11. All Centers’ IP, manuals (PM, FM) have been approved and returned to the Centers by AAU May 15, 2019 12. Flow of funds are operational (Opening of accounts for Centers and national facilitation agencies), access to WB client connection (WB on-line disbursement portal), Authorized signatures etc.) Jul. 1, 2019 13. Project Effectiveness (all conditions in the Financing Agreement met and in some cases, cabinet or parliament approval needed) – 90 days after signing Jul. 15, 2019 14. Next Regional Workshop Sep. 2019 15. The World Bank Management will communicate on timelines for ACE Impact II in April 2019 Verification Entity Allocated Amount

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