The African Union Commission (AUC) has announced the selection of three major research consortia to receive funding under the Africa Think Tank Platform (ATTP), a US $50 million initiative backed by the World Bank to strengthen evidence-based policy research and cross-border collaboration across the continent.
The initiative, launched through a call for proposals in July 2025, is part of a broader effort to build a sustainable continental policy research ecosystem that supports implementation of the AU’s Agenda 2063 and enhances the capacity of African think tanks to influence public policy on pressing development challenges.
The consortia selected to receive support reflect a strategic mix of institutions from across Africa and fields of expertise:
- RAISED Africa, led by the Economic Research Forum (ERF) of Egypt, brings together researchers with a focus on economic and policy issues across Africa, including challenges facing Middle East and North Africa economies.
- BRIDGE-Africa, coordinated by the African Centre for Economic Transformation (ACET) in Ghana, emphasises economic transformation policy analysis and will connect researchers with policymakers to address structural economic issues.
- A third consortium led by the African Population and Health Research Centre (APHRC) in Kenya will leverage its strong research base in public health, governance, and urban development to contribute to evidence-informed policymaking across multiple regions.
Together, these groups span West, East, North, Central and Southern Africa, and are expected to address continental priorities such as food security, digital transformation, human capital, and economic governance.
Each consortium is expected to receive roughly US $10 million over a period of two and a half years, contingent on institutional capacity assessments and the signing of performance-based partnership agreements with the African Union.
The ATTP is structured to support collaborative research that informs regional integration policies, enhances policymaker engagement, and strengthens the research institutions themselves through capacity building and strategic networking. It also aims to address systemic barriers faced by African think tanks, such as limited access to sustainable funding, challenges in data accessibility, and weaknesses in governance frameworks.
The Africa Think Tank Platform responds to longstanding concerns that many African research organisations operate with constrained budgets, often below US $500 000 annually—and struggle to influence high-level policy debates due to fragmented support structures and reliance on external donors. By providing significant multi-year funding and promoting cross-regional collaboration, the initiative seeks to elevate the role of African research institutions in shaping policy outcomes.
A key objective of the ATTP is to create policy research outputs that directly inform decision-making at both national and continental levels. This approach aligns with the AU’s vision for a more integrated and self-reliant Africa, capable of addressing complex socio-economic challenges through evidence-based solutions.
Photo courtesy / AU
Article by Jed Mwangi
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