Scholarship Database

The programme aims at fostering strong, internationally oriented higher education systems in Sub-Saharan Africa with the capacity to contribute to sustainable development. To this end, scholarships are granted for development-related Master or doctoral studies for individuals who plan to pursue a career in teaching and / or research at a higher education institution in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The programme aims at university staff in the first line, without neglecting the public sector demand of academically trained personnel (more general background information about the programme can be found here).

Graduates and postgraduates from Sub-Saharan Africa with a first academic degree if applying for a Master’s programme, or with a Master’s degree if applying for a doctoral programme who want to pursue Master’s or PhD courses in their home country or in the country for which they have a residence permit (so called In-Country scholarships) or in another Sub-Saharan African country, outside their home country/in the country for which they do not have a residence permit (so called In-Region scholarships).
Female applicants and candidates from less privileged regions or groups are especially encouraged to participate in the programme.

Please note that In-Country scholarships for students from South Africa are administrated by a cooperation between DAAD and NRF in a separate call for applications and a separate deadline.

Master and PhD studies in selected, development-related degree programmes

Funding is provided for the usual duration of a course – generally, up to two years for Master's and up to three years for the PhD degree programmes.

Generally:

• Monthly scholarship
• Study and research allowance
• Thesis publishing costs
• Tuition fees

Only applicable for In-Region scholarship holders:

• Travel allowance
• Health insurance

For further information, in particular the respective amounts, please see the call for applications of the degree programme you wish to apply for.

The selection process differs between the individual degree programmes. Please see the call for applications for further information.

Please note that the application procedure may differ between the regions and host institutions. The specific application instructions regarding each host institution are listed in the respective calls for applications (linked below).

Application deadline
Application deadline is November 27, 2025.

Below you will find a list of the degree programmes funded under this scholarship programme with links to the corresponding calls for applications, for which the application period is currently open.

West and Central Africa

Cameroon

• University of Dschang
  Subject fields:
  PhD: Parasitology
  PhD: Pharmacology

Ghana

• West African Center for Crop Improvement (WACCI), University of Ghana
  Subject field:
  Master: Seed Science and Technology
• West African Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens (WACCBIP), University of Ghana
  Subject field:
  Master: Molecular Cell Biology of Infectious Diseases

Nigeria

• Rev. Fr. Moses Orshio Adasu University Makurdi (formerly Benue State University Makurdi)
  Subject fields:
  Master: Food Chemistry
  PhD: Food Chemistry

Eastern Africa

Kenya

• Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT)
  Subject fields:
  Master: Energy Technology
  Master: Soil and Water Engineering
  PhD: Soil and Water Engineering
• Moi University
  Subject field:
  PhD: Biostatistics
• East and South African-German Centre of Excellence for Educational Research Methodologies and Management (CERM-ESA) - Moi University
  Subject field:
  Master: Education in Research
• Dedan Kimathi University of Technology (DeKUT)
  Subject field:
  Master: Food Science and Technology
• Partnership for African Social and Governance Research (PASGR)*
  Subject field:
  Master: Research and Public Policy (MRPP)
  *at the following universities: Egerton University, University of Lagos, Maseno University, Mzumbe University, University of Ibadan
• Pwani University
  Subject field:
  Master: Bioinformatics

Tanzania

• Ardhi University
  Subject field:
  Master: Geomatics
• Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology (NM-AIST)
  Subject field:
  Master: Embedded and Mobile Systems

Uganda

• Busitema University
  Subject field:
  Master: Public Health
• Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST)
  Subject fields:
  Master: Biology (Natural Resources Ecology, Management and Conservation)
  Master: Biology (Microbiology and Parasitology) (MAP)

Southern Africa

Botswana

• Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST)
  Subject field:
  Master: Physics (by research)

Malawi

• Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences (MUBAS)
  Subject field:
  Master: Environmental Health

Further calls for applications that are currently not open:
Below you will find a list of the study programmes funded under this scholarship programme with the links to the respective calls that have already expired and will be republished at the beginning of 2026.

Southern Africa

Malawi

• Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR)
  Subject field:
  Master: Aquaculture and Fisheries Science

Namibia

• Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST)
  Subject field:
  PhD: Computer Science

South Africa
(In-Region scholarships only; In-Country scholarships for South Africa are addressed in a separate call for applications -> daad.de/go/en/stipa10000279)

• Stellenbosch University (SUN)
  Subject field:
  Master: Molecular Biology and Human Genetics (MBHG)
• University of Cape Town (UCT)
  Subject field:
  Master: Urban Studies - Southern Urbanism
• University of the Western Cape (UWC)
  Subject fields:
  Master: Development Studies at ISD
  PhD: Development Studies at ISD