The RMCA scholarships on “true” fruit flies presented in Maputo (MZ) in an academic fair organised by the EU
On May 15th, the Diplomatic Office of Belgium in Maputo and the Delegation of the Government of Flanders in Mozambique promoted the participation of Mozambican students in European scholarship programs through the academic fair “Juventude sem Fronteiras – Estudar na Europa, Feira 2024”. This event was organised at the UP Campus in Maputo by the European Union in partnership with its Member States. The Diplomatic Office of Belgium in Maputo and the Delegation of the Government of Flanders in Mozambique are active in development cooperation and promote synergies and networking between governmental and non-governmental organisations in Mozambique. Over 400 students from different universities in Maputo (e.g. Eduardo Mondlane University, Pedagogical University, ...) participated in the academic fair.
The info day allowed the presentation of the scholarship programs funded by the Belgian Development Cooperation through the multiannual framework agreement with the Royal Museum for Central Africa (RMCA). These scholarships, beyond financial aid, offer a platform for North-South and South-South knowledge transfer, enhancing the role of Mozambican Institutions as centres of excellence for agronomical research in Africa.
The research group of Prof. Domingos Cugala and Laura Canhanga (Faculdade de Agronomia e Engenharia Florestal, EMU) presented an overview of the research implemented in collaboration with RMCA. In this context, Luis Bota (National Fruit Fly Laboratory, Mozambique) shared his experience in AGROVEG (2019-2023), a recently terminated project investigating the environmental and economic sustainability of agroecological farming in Mozambique.
The collaborative activities between EMU and RMCA will continue through DISPEST Phase 2 (2024-2028), which follows DISPEST Phase 1 (2019-2023). This project includes an articulated scholarship program and South-South training on the “true” fruit flies (Diptera, Tephritidae), notorious agricultural pests that impact African crop production.
