UniPID, represented by the University of Jyväskylä, is a partner in CAAST-Net, a Network for the Coordination and Advancement of sub-Saharan Africa-EU Science & Technology Cooperation.  CAAST-Net is funded under the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP7), the main research funding instrument of the EU.

CAAST-Net is a five-year joint Africa-Europe platform dedicated to advancing bi-regional cooperation in science and technology.  The project's goal is an increase in the quality and quantity of bi-regional cooperation in science and technology between Europe and Africa, targeting areas of mutual interest and benefit through greater use of instruments under the FP7, as well as through other instruments of international cooperation, and through lobbying for greater synergy between R&D and development instruments.

In Dakar, Senegal April 24-25th 144 participants attended the second stakeholders forum themed "Steps to Innovation" where the content for the CAAST-Net Policy Paper on  "Innovation to support the bi-regional STI dialogue between Africa and Europe" was considered. 

CAAST-Net ended in 2012, and is followed by a new FP7 project called CAAST-Net Plus. Read the conclusions from the Accra CAAST-Net/PAERIP conference in December 2012.

To achieve these goals, CAAST-Net has several activity clusters aiming: 

• To support and inform existing Europe-Africa S&T policy dialogue and cooperation processes.
• To identify and prioritize common research areas of mutual interest and benefit, especially for inclusion in the thematic priorities of the FP7 Cooperation Programme, harnessing cooperation to address specific problems faced locally and regionally within Africa, as well as common problems of a global nature.
• To promote synergy between Europe-Africa S&T partnerships and development cooperation instruments in order to enhance the creation and application of new knowledge in support of achieving the MDGs, poverty alleviation and economic growth.
• To undertake specific activities dedicated to strengthening of the participation of African countries in the Framework Programme through a series of events aimed at raising awareness, providing information, brokering partnerships and optimizing synergies.
• To monitor the performance and impact of Europe-Africa S&T cooperation under the Framework Programme to inform future cooperation policy.

• Co-Leader of Work Package 8: Strategic Support to the Implementation of the FP7 Coordinated Call for Africa.  Including: writing an analytical report on the projects funded, including a networking plan for cooperation between the projects; organizing two workshops to explore cooperation between the projects; organizing a networking event to link the projects to other relevant projects and S&T leadership.
• Provide inputs into CAAST-Net activities, reports, documents, and decisions.
• Participate in CAAST-Net events, including: annual meetings, Stakeholder Conferences, etc.
• Suggest experts for CAAST-Net events. 

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