PPP scholarships help African students study tropical forestry in Denmark - 19.09.2008

Four African students have come to Denmark to study tropical forestry at the Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen, through scholarships sponsored by Danish companies, a private foundation and Danida, the Danish international development assistance agency. The aim is to provide the students with knowledge that can be used to advance sustainable forestry in their native countries.

Isaac Kodwo Abban-Mensah from Ghana, Tesfaye Getachew Habtie and Desta-Alem Gebremeskel from Ethiopia and Norah Patricia Namubeti Gebremariam from Uganda come from countries where forest and natural resources are of great importance, especially for the poorest part of the population. With an education in tropical forestry and nature management they will be able to help solve environmental and social problems in their respective countries in the future.

 

The Aage V. Jensen Charity Foundation and Dalhoff Larsen & Horneman A/S (DLH) have donated a total of four scholarships under Danida/the Danish Foreign Ministry’s Public Private Partnership (PPP) programme that enable students from Africa to take MSc programmes in tropical forestry and sustainable forest and nature management. The donations make up half of the size of the scholarships, the other half being secured through the Faculty of Life Sciences’ PPP agreement with Danida.

 

The PPP programme sponsors educational costs and living costs for researchers and students from developing countries. The aim is to strengthen the educational sector and competences as well as to enhance the development process in the developing countries from which the students come.

 

Dean at the Faculty of Life Sciences, Per Holten-Andersen is pleased that once again “Danish businesses and private foundations are cooperating with the Faculty of Life Sciences under the PPP programme, this time through Dalhoff Larsen & Horneman A/S (DLH) and the Aage V. Jensen Charity Foundation for the benefit of students from Africa for their studies in tropical forestry and sustainable nature management.”

 

Director of Forest and Landscape at the Faculty of Life Sciences, Niels Elers Koch, is also enthusiastic about the two PPP agreements that have been made with two important players within the forestry sector and nature management in Denmark. According to Niels Elers Koch the scholarships are an example of the excellent partnership that exists between Centre for Forest and Landscape and the entire industry:

 

- Globalisation makes the world steadily smaller. Developments in recent years within the food and energy markets and for instance the effects of Russia’s export duty on raw wood have taught us that management of the productive forces of nature are closely linked all over the world, says Niels Elers Koch.

 

- This is just one of several reasons why we have internationalised the forestry and landscape programmes at the Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen. We receive a large number of applications from all over the world. The four students that have been admitted under this programme are among the 40 absolutely best students out of almost 1,000 well-qualified applicants. The support from private foundations and businesses shows that the initiative has prospects, he continues.

 

 

About the PPP programme

 

In 2005, Danida introduced the new PPP scheme in five focus areas. One of them was capacity building in the agricultural sector, and to do this, Danida made an agreement with the Faculty of Life Sciences. This agreement means that Danida supports activities within education, training and supplementary education, co-financed by private companies. In principle, Danida doubles all private sponsorship.

 

The sponsorship is given to citizens from developing countries and covers not only education cost but also travel and living expenses. The Danida Fellowship Centre is responsible for all practical aspects of the foreign students’ stay at the University – from housing, to insurance, flight tickets and other practicalities.

 

The scheme gives Danish companies doing business in developing countries favourable conditions for upgrading their own employees’ skills and strengthening educational and research sectors in partnership countries.

The PPP programme also opens up the opportunity for a general sum sponsorship with no specific purpose. In this case, the Faculty of Life Sciences selects a suitable candidate for a place on a course.

 

The business community is very interested in the PPP scheme and new agreements are continuously being made with private companies joining the scheme. The Danish Agricultural Council, Arla Foods, DLH - Dalhoff Larsen & Horneman, Toms Confectionary Group and Aage V. Jensen Charity Foundation are examples of organisations that have made a sponsorship agreement through the PPP scheme.

 

For more information please contact Mikael Jørgensen at or Katherina Ludvigsen at or tel. 35332173