The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has awarded FAMU a $50,000 grant to develop an academic partnership with the University of Development Studies in Ghana.The FAMU-Ghana partnership is one of 13 new collaborative projects comprised of one U.S. and one African higher education institution. Each partnership receives a $50,000 grant from USAID to develop plans to address regional and national economic development priorities including such as engineering, health, agriculture, environment and natural resources, science and technology, education and teacher training/preparation, and business, management, and economics.
“We are extremely pleased to fund these additional 13 partnerships," said Alonzo Fulgham, Acting Administrator of USAID. "With the addition of these 13, we now have a total of six historically black colleges and universities in the initiative and a number of well-respected, top-ranked academic institutions in the United States and throughout Africa. The expertise and experience delivered by these institutions will have a critical impact as this effort moves forward.”
FAMU will be joined in Ghana by Brown University, which has a partnership with the University of Ghana. The University of Florida also received a grant for its partnership with Rhodes University in South Africa.
"Africa has an urgent need to strengthen institutions that cultivate human and research capacity." said Peter McPherson, president of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. "Working together in partnership, African and U.S. higher education institutions have the ability to increase the quality and access to education, and help solve local problems. The partnerships that will be created through this initiative have the potential to make a difference in the future of the African continent."