A long term EU-Africa research and innovation partnership on food and nutrition security and sustainable agriculture

2026-07-22

The objective of LEAP-AGRI is to fulfil the ambition of the Europe Africa dialogue in Science and Technology (the HLPD) to launch a joint flagship initiative on its chosen priority area: Food and Nutrition Security and Sustainable Agriculture (FNSSA). This partnership will increase investments in research and innovation through coordinated bi-regional (EU/Africa) mechanisms aimed at reducing fragmentation. These mechanisms will be based on two complementary approaches: - The preparation and implementation of a joint call for proposals for collaborative R&I projects between European and African partners which will contribute to the coordination and increase of joint activities between R&I institutions, and their programmes across European Union Member States (and Associated countries) and African countries. It will pool the financial resources from 22 countries for a total of over €28 M, including EC participation; - The identification and test of innovative instruments for alignment and collaboration in research, innovation, capacity strengthening and infrastructure development, especially targeting the implication - together with the national research agencies - of foundations, development agencies, private sector, and civil-society organizations. In consultation with the relevant stakeholder communities, including European and African governments, a joint Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda in the FNSSA domain will be defined. In these objectives, LEAP-AGRI aligns with the scope and expected impacts of the Horizon 2020 Challenge 2/ SFS 41 2016-2017 topic “EU-Africa Research and Innovation partnership on food and nutrition security and sustainable agriculture” in all aspect. Building on earlier experiences such as ERAfrica, PRO-IntensAfrica and ERA-ARD, LEAP-AGRI will be guided by strong partnership principles such as equitability, shared governance and long-term commitment to the partnership by organisations who have relationships of trust for many years.

France, Algeria, Italy, Belgium, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Egypt, Finland, Germany, Ghana, Kenya, Norway, Portugal, Senegal, Spain, South Africa, Netherlands, Türkiye, Uganda

2026-01-15