Academic Collaboration through Higher International Education for a Viable and Equitable Africa with ITaly – ACHIEVE-IT

Funder: Project funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), Mission 4 Component 1 Investment 3.4 – "Didattica universitaria e competenze avanzate” – Sub-investment T4 “Iniziative Transnazionali in materia di istruzione”

Award Number: D91I23001030006;

Start date: 01/10/2024

End date: 31/03/2026

Total NRRP funding for the whole project: 1.703.668,02 €

Total NRRP funding for Unipr: 336.529,98 €

Objectives

The ACHIEVE-IT project aims to promote academic collaboration between Italian and African universities, focusing on enhancing internationalization, cooperation, and the promotion of academic programs. Key activities include:

• Emphasizing the currently available and accessible English-language programs.
• Implementing specific intensive Advanced Skills Programs (ASPs) in either Italy or Africa. These programs prioritize content based on previous collaborations to address mutual needs effectively.
• Focusing on the exchange of young researchers and lecturers, identifying specific areas for joint PhD programs, offering valuable opportunities to strengthen research and teaching relationships, thereby enhancing institutional ties.

Activities

The project is divided in 6 WP (Work Package):

• WP 1 – Project Management and Coordination
• WP 2 – Opening Pathways: Exploitation of Italian Excellence
• WP 3 – Establishing Permanent Advanced Skills Programs in Italy and Africa
• WP 4 – Bridging Future: Towards the Systematisation of Joint Doctoral Programmes
• WP 5 – Dissemination and Collaborative Networking
• WP 6 – Quality plan and assessment

The University of Parma is the lead institution for the project and actively participates in all work packages (WPs).

• Department of Engineering and Architecture
• Department of Humanities, Social Sciences and Cultural Industries
• Department of Law, Politics and International Studies
• Department of Medicine and Surgery
• Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences and Environmental Sustainability
• Department of Food and Drug
• Department of Economics and Management

• Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
• Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia
• Università di Bologna
• Università degli Studi di Ferrara
• Università del Salento
• Università degli Studi Mediterranea di Reggio Calabria

The Achieve-IT project counts 37 African university partners.

The projected results for the work packages (WPs) that include the University of Parma are:

• Developing an innovative approach to international exchange: This will be assessed through the Africa-Italy (and vice-versa) mobility of 67 incoming and 34 outgoing master’s and PhD students.
• Establishing a structured framework for student and teacher exchanges between Italy and Africa, supported by a robust Italian network and government institutions, involving 93 incoming learners, 39 outgoing, and 31 incoming teachers in Advanced Skills Programs (ASPs).
• Enhancing the quality and internationalization of doctoral programs improving the qualification levels of teachers and students, with 13 incoming and 10 outgoing PhDs, and 17 incoming and 18 outgoing researchers.
• Boosting the internationalization of both Italian and African universities

https://www.cuci.unipr.it/