MINISTERE DE L'ENSEIGNEMENT SUPERIEUR DE LA RECHERCHE ET DE L'INNOVATION

Their core work

Senegal's Ministry of Higher Education, Research, and Innovation is the national government body responsible for science and research policy in Senegal. Within H2020, it acts as a key African institutional partner in EU-Africa research cooperation on food security, sustainable agriculture, and climate adaptation. The ministry channels funding and coordinates national research priorities, connecting Senegalese researchers and institutions with European consortia focused on agrifood systems and nutrition security across the Global South.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Their earliest H2020 involvement (2016) split between digital innovation (IST-Africa) and food security research partnerships (LEAP-AGRI). From 2018 onward, the ministry focused exclusively on food and nutrition security, with an increasing emphasis on climate change impacts and intercontinental cooperation (EU-AU partnership). The trajectory shows a clear narrowing from broad science cooperation toward a specialized role in climate-food nexus governance across Africa, the Americas, and Europe.

Moving toward deeper intercontinental food-climate research governance, positioning Senegal as a hub for EU-Africa scientific cooperation on food systems under climate stress.

How they like to work

MESRI participates exclusively as a partner — never as coordinator — which reflects its role as a national policy body enabling research rather than leading technical work. It operates in large consortia (82 unique partners across 42 countries), indicating it serves as an institutional gateway for accessing Senegalese and West African research networks. Working with MESRI means gaining governmental endorsement and national-level coordination for projects involving Senegal.

Despite only 4 projects, MESRI has touched 82 unique partners across 42 countries — a remarkably wide network driven by the large-scale EU-Africa cooperation initiatives it joined. This gives it connections spanning Sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, and the Americas.

What sets them apart

As a national ministry rather than a university or research institute, MESRI brings governmental authority and policy alignment that most consortium partners cannot offer. It is one of the few West African government bodies actively embedded in H2020 food security research, making it a critical partner for any project requiring institutional buy-in from Senegal. For consortium builders targeting Africa, MESRI provides both legitimacy and access to the broader Senegalese research ecosystem.

Highlights from their portfolio

• LEAP-AGRI
  Their largest funded project (EUR 133,693) and a flagship ERA-NET building the long-term EU-Africa research partnership on food and nutrition security.
• FOSC
  Most recent and longest-running project (2019-2025), directly linking food systems with climate change across three continents — Africa, America, and Europe.