PROGRAMME DESCRIPTION

1. Background & context
   How was this extended concept note developed? How did you take into account the comments of the selection
   commission (selection stage 1 – concept Note South)?
   Faced with the multiple challenges surrounding the region’s exploitation of natural resources, having negative
   repercussions on the population’s socio-ecological conditions and ecosystem services, UNILU is anxious to
   improve the above-mentioned conditions with UHasselt as main partner. To ensure that the different axes of the
   problem are taken into account, professors from UGent and UAntwerp (with expertise complementary to that of
   the UHasselt partners) joined the team during the formulation of this extended concept note. The first discussions
   took place during a workshop organized on 12.03.2020 at UNILU, at the end of which a small team (whose
   members were contacted on the basis of their specialisations; only those who were available ultimately worked on
   the proposal) headed by Prof Nkuku was set up and entrusted to write the extended concept note. As the IUC
   programme cuts across several sectors of UNILU activities, teacher-researchers from different UNILU faculties
   were involved from the start and during the whole development of the concept note. Initially, 4 academic projects
   covering (i) biodiversity, climate change, environment and health; (ii) governance and security; (iii)
   entrepreneurship; (iv) climate smart agriculture for sustainable food systems, as well as one transversal project
   (institutional capacity building) were identified. Subsequently, drafting teams for each project were set up and local
   team leaders were designated. Travel to Lubumbashi from already involved North Partners (from UHasselt and
   UGent) to further elaborate on the extended concept note, definition of the different aspects and establishment of
   a working strategy was planned and organized in April 2020. However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the North
   coordination team (Virginie Bito, Jean-Michel Rigo, and Liesbeth Oeyen from UHasselt; Pascal Boeckx and Geert
   Baert from UGent) were not allowed to travel and to stay in Lubumbashi. The pandemic also affected the work of
   the local teams, who were unable to physically meet between mid-March and mid-May as a result of the closing
   of Congolese universities. The discussions on the extended concept note continued, however, including several
   email and video conference exchanges with the North partners. In brief, the South partners drafted several projects
   and sent them to the North partners for feedback. Through extensive shared documents and exchanges, the South
   coordination exchanged with the North coordination on its proposal to have 6 projects within the IUC programme. Read more …