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NFP-NPT Newsletter
The Netherlands Fellowship
Programmes (NFP)
December edition of the Newsletter will be devoting attention to the
The Netherlands Programme for memorandum and the possible consequences of the new country list
for the NFP and NPT programmes. In the coming months, the Minister
the Institutional Strengthening of is expected to nominate seven new NPT countries from the new coun-
Post-secondary Education and try list.
Training Capacity (NPT) With the New Year celebrations already in the offing, December is
traditionally a time to reflect on the events that have shaped the year.
So in two articles we look back at the major achievements of the NPT
December 2003 and NFP programmes. The article on page 7gives an account of the
NFP throughout the year, while the piece on page 2 provides an
overall view of the NPT programme.
New development policy 2
NPT: the seedlings appear 2
The polytechnics: focus for NPT in Ghana 4 In this edition of the Newsletter, we'll be taking a closer look at the
Questions and answers on the NPT 4 .
multi-year agreements for the NFP These agreements, which are
Status of NPT Project outlines and calls for currently being evaluated alongside the traditional NFP bursary
tender, December 2003 5 opportunities, involve arrangements with selected organizations in the
Column 6 NFP countries for a training and education programme that meets the
NFP going well 7 learning needs of the organization as well as the training opportunities
Introducing officers 7 in the Netherlands. The multi-year agreements allow a structured
Tailor-made training proposals, December 2003 8
approach to increasing the capacity of the organizations. The article
NFP multi-year agreements 9
features Tanzania as an example how the multi-year agreements are
Multi-year agreements: the case of Tanzania 9
Publications: NFP Factsheets 9
reached.
Deadlines and important dates for the NFP 10
NFP Course list changes 11 New Calls for Tender were published for NPT projects in Guatemala
Readers’ reactions and actions 12 and Mozambique. The NFP and NPT tables showing the status of out-
The NFP and NPT programmes in brief 13 lines that have been tendered, now includes a column showing who
Countries eligible for NFP 14 the tender was awarded to.
Latest news: Afghanistan added to the List 14
As well as the regular features, we have also reserved some space in
this edition for readers' reactions. They show the involvement of the
New Year’s Eve readers with the programmes and the Newsletter. Readers’ views,
whether positive or critical, are always extremely important for the
In November, the Dutch parliament debated editor as they allow us to give you the reader what you want and
the memorandum of the Minister for expect from the Newsletter.
Development Cooperation outlining her
policy for the years to come. Entitled We are looking forward to a constructive 2004!
“Mutual interests, mutual responsibilities”
(original Dutch title: “Aan elkaar verplicht”),
the key message of the document sets out
continued efforts to improve the quality and
efficacy of policy by further concentration
and increased specialization. This means fewer
countries and themes, and concentrating on
the things that the Netherlands is good at. In Ad Boeren
concrete terms, the number of countries that
receive bilateral aid from the Netherlands Editor
will be reduced from 49 to 36. This
PO Box 29777, 2502 LT The Hague, The Netherlands
New development policy to The new country list and its
consequences for the NPT
focus on concentration and programme
partnership
The former 19+3 country list will be merged with the
environment and good governance, human rights and peace-
The cabinet has approved the memorandum 'Mutual building lists (GMV), resulting in a single list of 36 partner
interests, mutual responsibilities. Development countries. Bilateral development cooperation will be phased
cooperation en route to 2015', which had been out in countries with a comparatively poor record of policy
prepared by the Minister for Development and governance, as well as those where Dutch aid has only
Cooperation Agnes van Ardenne. The memorandum made a minor contribution. Bilateral Dutch cooperation will
sets out the new principles of Dutch development also come to an end in the relatively wealthy developing
policy and outlines how the Netherlands intends to countries such as Peru. As this country had been selected for
deliver its contribution to the internationally agreed the NPT, this means the end of all NPT activities in Peru. NFP
Millennium Development Goals, which seek to halve activities will, however, continue. All efforts made in Peru so
the number of people living in poverty by 2015. The far through the NPT will be factored into the NFP needs
government is now striving towards far-reaching identification process. Nuffic informed the stakeholders about
integration and coherence in its foreign policy, where this immediately.
diplomacy, political dialogue and pressure, security
policy and economic policy on trade and market
access will be combined to produce an effective
poverty reduction effort.
Over the next few years, Dutch development policy NPT: the seedlings appear
will be all about specialization and concentration.
Quality and effectiveness will be enhanced by
concentrating policy more (fewer countries and It will take years before the NPT harvest can be reaped. But
themes) and introducing more specialization (doing the field is looking good. Seeds of cooperation are germinating
what the Netherlands is good at). The number of everywhere and here and there seedlings have broken
sectors in which the Netherlands cooperates with through the soil to create patches of green. Here are the
countries will be reduced to no more than three, and results so far.
the number of policy themes will be limited to five:
education, combating HIV/AIDS, reproductive health
care, the environment and water. Efforts will also be Ethiopia
focused on improving governance, democracy and
the business climate in each partner country. The Three NPT project outlines prepared in collaboration with the
number of countries with which the Netherlands has Ministry of Education in Addis Abbeba were put out to tender
a bilateral aid relationship will be reduced from the some time ago. They elicited a variety of proposals, two of
current 49 to 36. Most of these countries are in Africa. which have now been approved by the Tender Evaluation
Education is the number one priority for aid, with Committee. The purpose of both projects is to provide
15 per cent of the development budget due to be Ethiopia with better instruments in the area of education
spent on education during the government's current policy and quality assurance. The names of the projects say it
term of office. The Netherlands intends to maintain all. One will establish the Quality and Relevance Assurance
and, where possible, extend the education sector Agency (QRAA), and the other the Ethiopian Higher Education
programmes in its partner countries, in consultation Strategy Institute (EHESI). The first project will be conducted
with partner governments and other donors. by a consortium led by the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. The
The government is seeking to establish a closer Dutch partner for the second project is the University of
relationship between peace, security and development Twente in Enschede. In November Nuffic received four new
and to this end has set up a Stability Fund, due for project outlines, all of them aimed at improving the teaching
launch on 1 January 2004. Peace, security, migration methods used at the universities.
and the environment are cross-border issues that
require regional solutions, and with this in mind the Ghana
government has adopted a regional strategy in two
regions of Africa: the Horn of Africa and the Great To potential partners in Ghana, it is becoming increasingly
Lakes region. In Europe, the focus of the Netherlands clear how the NPT can be used for purposes of national
is trained on the Western Balkans, where its regional development. In July a Ghanaian consultant conducted a
strategy centres on conflict management, security- preliminary study in collaboration with the Dutch embassy
building and peace mediation. which revealed that the NPT offers possibilities in more sectors
than those which are the targets of bilateral cooperation: i.e.,
healthcare and the environment. The study identified a
2
number of other areas: Conflict management, system and ICT master plans for ten institutions of higher
Teacher-training, Good governance in the context of learning'. The same ministry has submitted a second NPT
decentralization, Rural development, Distance educa- project outline under the title 'Strengthening the higher
tion, ICT, and Vocational training at the post-secondary education management unit to manage the NPT in Yemen'. A
level. On the basis of these findings, a stakeholders' Dutch provider has been chosen for the second project: Span
meeting was held in October which proved fruitful. It Consultants. The project will play an important role in the
marked a major step forward in the decision-making identification of new NPT projects in Yemen.
process. Half of the NPT efforts will be directed
towards Ghana's ten polytechnics, and half towards Mozambique
other organizations (see for more details the article on
the Ghana Polytechnics on page 4). The other In Mozambique the NPT programme is still largely at the
organizations in Ghana have been asked to come up tender evaluation stage. Outlines were written for projects in
with ideas for projects that fall within the areas four areas: Good governance and public administration,
named in the study. Nuffic and the Dutch embassy support for teacher-training programmes, support for the
will select the six ideas they find most relevant, and Creation of new polytechnics, and the establishment of a
they will ask the organizations responsible to elabo- structured and coherent higher education sub-sector. Thus far
rate their idea into a project outline. in Mozambique the following bodies have committed
themselves to the NPT: the Ministry of Higher Education,
Guatemala Science and Technology (MHEST); Universidade Eduardo
Mondlane (UEM); the Higher Institute for International
The Dutch partner has been announced for the project Relations (ISRI); the Police Academy (ACIPOL); the Ministry
outline entitled 'Design and Implementation of the of State Administration (MAE-ISAP), and the Pedagogical
Technical Study Programme in Land Registry'. It is a University (UP).
consortium led by the International Institute for One project has gone on to the next stage: the teacher-
Aerospace Survey and Earth Sciences (ITC). The project training project at the Catholic University of Mozambique.
to set up a study programme in criminal and forensic Here the tender procedure is finished and the Dutch partner
research at Universidad Rafael Landivar has also been has been chosen: Universiteit Maastricht (UM/MUNDO).
assigned. The winner is a consortium led by the
Hogeschool Leiden (HL). Meanwhile, a local consultant Uganda
is studying the situation to see how the NPT can best
be put to use in the environmental sector. Stakeholders' meetings have borne fruit in Uganda. No fewer
than 19 ideas for projects emerged from four meetings.
The suggested projects are in four broad areas: Local
government, Education, Justice (law and order), and
Procurement. In several cases the work of writing a project
outline could begin immediately. Everyone involved with the
NPT is pleased with the way things are going. There have
been no bureaucratic delays, no misunderstandings, and all
noses seem to be pointed in the same direction.
Vietnam
If the amount of interest that the advertisements and project
outlines have generated among potential Dutch providers is
any indication, the NPT programme in Vietnam is already a
great success. This of course reflects the mutual sympathy
Guatemala, 26 November 2003: Stakeholders presenting priorities for NPT that exists between the Dutch and Vietnamese higher
support in the environmental sector (photo: Jolie Franke) education communities. Cooperation between them has gone
on without interruption since the 1970s. Both sides hope to
Yemen continue and expand this cooperation. Already, Dutch
partners have been selected for two projects. The winning
Three project outlines have now been written in Dutch partner for the medical skills training project at eight
Yemen. Hadrhramout University College of Medicine universities and medical faculties in Vietnam is the Maastricht
(HUCOM) is looking for a Dutch partner for a project University. A consortium led by the Saxion Universities
entitled 'Reform and development of the problem- of Professional Education will co-implement the project on
based learning approach at Medical college'. The hydrology and environment teaching at two Hydro-
Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, meteorological colleges. Dutch partners are being selected for
in cooperation with ten local educational institutions, strengthening the Women's Institute of the Vietnam Women's
hopes to get a project off the ground under the title Union, and for assisting small and medium-sized enterprises
'Developing an ICT policy for the Yemen higher education and farming households.
3
The polytechnics: focus for • review of curriculum;
• design of programmes at MSc level;
NPT in Ghana • practical industrial training for lecturers;
• development of educational methods;
• provision of equipment;
The Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS) for the • training to enhance teaching skills;
period 2003-2005 has identified the development of • strengthening of management capacity.
technical and vocational education & training as a
national priority.
Questions and answers on the
There are ten polytechnics in Ghana, one in each
region. All students who have completed senior NPT
secondary school are eligible to apply, but admission
is on a competitive basis. The polytechnics provide
tertiary education leading to the Higher National Does the NPT provide funding for infrastructure and
Diploma (HND). Currently about one per cent of the equipment?
relevant age group is enrolled in an HND programme Yes, although the emphasis of NPT projects lies on the
at a polytechnic. intangible aspects of institutional strengthening, such as
staff development, curriculum improvements, teaching
Nuffic and the Dutch embassy held a two-day resources and management improvement. That is why, as
stakeholder meeting to discuss how NPT can help to a basic rule, in NPT projects no more than 20% of the
strengthen Ghana's polytechnics. The meeting took available budget may be spent on infrastructure and
place on 7 and 8 October 2003. Representatives of equipment.
business and industry, government ministries and
professional associations met with leaders of the ten Who decides the membership of the Tender Evaluation
polytechnics. Mr Paul Effah, Executive Secretary of Committee?
the National Council for Tertiary Education, acted The Tender Evaluation Committee, or TEC, has three
as a moderator, guiding the process by which the members. The Nuffic programme officer responsible for
35 participants identified seven problems: the project is a TEC member and acts as committee
• Polytechnics have a shortage of qualified secretary. A second member of the committee is
academic staff. nominated by the applicant organization, and the third
• They lack laboratories, workshops and equipment. member is an independent expert appointed by Nuffic.
• Too much attention is currently focussed on HND This person acts as the committee's chairman. Nuffic then
programmes in business and accounting. asks the applicant organization whether the proposed
• There are neither funds nor opportunities for independent expert is acceptable and whether it agrees
students to receive practical training through with the membership of the committee. For more
internships, or work placements. complex projects, additional independent experts and
• Library facilities are inadequate. representatives of the applicant organization will also be
• There are too few opportunities for staff asked to sit on the committee.
development.
• Links with business and industry are weak. Does NPT pay for local salaries?
Local salaries are not paid for by NPT projects. It is
A central feature of the meeting was a critical expected that applicant organizations will assign their
assessment of the study programmes now offered at own staff to the projects. This makes it clear that the aim
the polytechnics. Do they address the current needs of of NPT is to support development that is already taking
the national economy? Following an openhearted place locally, and not to finance separate new projects.
discussion, the participants agreed that polytechnics
need to place more emphasis on the application of Does NPT offer opportunities for long-term South-North
technology. Strengthening existing programmes in partnerships?
certain disciplines will help the polytechnics to The aim of the NPT programme is to alleviate specific
achieve outputs that respond to the labour market's capacity problems in the South through a cooperative
needs. In two discussion rounds, participants in the approach. The duration of projects varies, depending on
meeting narrowed the list of priorities for improving the time required to solve the specific problem. The
Ghana's polytechnics down to five disciplines. maximum duration of any project is four years and no
time extensions or second phases are possible. While it is
Within the NPT framework, immediate action can be not a specific aim of the programme to build long-term
taken in the following areas in order to increase the partnerships, long-term relationships may develop from
capacity of the polytechnics in the chosen disciplines: NPT projects. However, NPT funding stops once specific
NPT projects are complete.
4
Status of NPT Project Outlines and Calls for Tender, December 2003
Country Title of the project Present situation Dutch winner organization
Ethiopia Quality and Relevance Assurance Agency Winner selected Vrije Universiteit
(QRAA) Amsterdam / CIS
Ethiopia Towards the establishment of the Ethiopian Winner selected University of Twente /
Higher Education Strategy Institute (EHESI) CHEPS
Guatemala Design and implementation of the technical Winner selected International Institute for
study programme in land registry Aerospace Survey and
Earth Sciences (ITC) -
consortium
Guatemala Design and implementation of the technical Winner selected Hogeschool Leiden -
study program in forensic and criminal consortium
investigation
Guatemala Strengthening the Police Academy Call published
Guatemala Strengthening the División de Ciencias Jurídicas Call published
y Sociales USAC/CUNOC
Mozambique Support to teacher training programmes (3 Proposals are being assessed
outlines)
Mozambique Capacity building in good governance and Proposals are being assessed
public administration (4 outlines)
Mozambique Support to the creation of new polytechnics Proposals are being assessed
Mozambique Support to HIV/Aids research programmes Project outline being processed
Mozambique Set-up of a structured and coherent HE (sub) Winner selected University of Twente /
sector CHEPS
Mozambique Information - and communication technology Project outlines being processed
(ICT) (5 project outlines)
Vietnam Institutional strengthening of training capacity of Winner selected Saxion Universities of
the Department of Hydrology and the Professional Education -
Department of Environment at Ha Noi and Ho consortium
Chi Minh City Hydro-meteorological Colleges
Vietnam Strengthening medical skills training at eight Winner selected Maastricht University /
medical faculties/universities in Vietnam MUNDO
Vietnam Institutional capability strengthening in the Project withdrawn
sector of planning and investment
Vietnam Strengthening the Women's Institute of the Proposals are being assessed
Vietnam Women's Union
Vietnam Enhancing capabilities to teach and research, Proposals are being assessed
assisting small - and medium-sized enterprises
and farming households
Yemen Strengthening the Higher Education Project Winner selected SPAN Consultants
Management Unit to manage the NPT in Yemen
Yemen Reform and development of problem-based Winner selected Maastricht University /
learning approach at the medical college of MUNDO
Hadramouth University
Yemen Training to draft ICT Master Plans Proposals are being assessed
5
Column
Choices
A recent trend among international students is for them to decline bursaries that would allow them to study abroad. It turns
out that some students prefer to hedge their bets initially and then pick the most attractive option. Attractiveness cannot
always be measured in money, and location is often just as important. If you've got the choice between America and the
Netherlands, the choice is simple: you go to America.
We were complaining a bit about this recently with a few Nuffic colleagues. Not only do you do your best to assess the
applications with the utmost care and dedication, but you've even let somebody else down who actually had a fairly decent
application. And all you get is 'thanks, but no thanks'. And that's if they even bother to respond, because sometimes you
never hear from them again.
Not hearing from them is a nuisance for us, but they themselves have a problem. Not having the decency to decline the
offer disqualifies you for an international career, because it shows arrogance and a lack of empathy, the two characteristics
that will ruin your prospect of a successful study abroad. They will not go far.
But what about the others? The ones who come back to say thanks for the offer, but that they've found greener pastures
elsewhere? Do they represent a problem? Wouldn't they provide a good theme for conferences on donor coordination, etc.?
Not likely. You can't blame them at all, especially when their prospective course of study is part of development policy in
their home country.
In the 20th century, we learnt a hard lesson that even the greatest development plans will fail if they see the people on the
ground as pawns rather than as people. People will not allow themselves to be treated like that. The lesson we can draw
from this is that development is equal to the effort put in by all the citizens. What matters is that we encourage these efforts.
Take stock of real needs. Don't set other people's priorities. Select talent, and facilitate that talent to the full.
This means that countries, governments, ministries, businesses, NGOs and people can shop around. They scrutinize what's
on offer, see what best fits their needs and then decide what offers them the best value for money.
In many cases, it makes sound business sense to keep your options open. If you want to avoid ending up in an all-or-
nothing situation, it makes perfect sense to apply for bursaries from various organizations. And anyone who excels or who
finds they can make a difference because of the course of study they have followed will be able to pick and choose. And if
we all trust our selection mechanisms, the only conclusion is that the individual is the best person to make a choice.
I have no problem with this. In fact, I wish you all the best. You're going to be a success. And you'll be a benefit to your
country.
Han van der Horst
Senior communication officer, Nuffic
6
NFP going well Master's fellowships granted by region
Latin America Europe
15% 2%
Experiences with the NFP in recent months have
been overwhelmingly positive, although programme
administrators have had to pull out all the stops to
make sure that things run smoothly. In the South, the
programme is a very popular instrument for Asia Africa
supporting development and its success has led to a 31% 52%
large number of applications.
There is particular interest in fellowships for master's
programmes in the Netherlands. Given the
remarkable number of applications from the
sub-Saharan countries of Africa, many of the fellow-
ships were awarded to applicants in these countries. Introducing officers:
It was noticeable that relatively few applications came
from women, and this is a potential cause for concern Lenneke Haket and John Pracht
because one of the cornerstones of Dutch
development policy is equality for women.
There were 73 applications for PhD fellowships for
research programmes starting in 2004. PhD fellow-
ships provide funding for four years, a reasonable
period in which to complete doctoral studies. The 12
best research proposals were selected for funding
based on criteria such as the employer's capacity and
the relevance of the proposal to the region in which
the applicant is based.
As regards tailor-made training programmes, many
proposals were received that did not meet the
programme criteria. Nuffic will try to avoid this
situation in the future by improving the information John and Lenneke have both been working at Nuffic since
campaign for eligible organizations in the NFP partner before the start of the present fellowship programmes.
countries. It has become apparent that getting the
right information to the right target groups is Lenneke: “I helped to provide Nuffic's library and
extremely important for the success of the documentation services until I joined the Training and
programme and to avoid disappointment amongst Fellowships Desk in 1999. My first job at the Training and
applicants. Fellowships Desk was as coordinator of the Netherlands
Periodicals Project (NPP). Two years later I became a
fellowships officer in the University Fellowships Programme
Percentages of qualified master’s applications by sex of the old Netherlands Fellowships Programme. ”
Fellow ships application by sex Fellow ships granted by sex
Women
Women
John: “I have been working for the Training and Fellowships
24%
40% Desk since 1996. I started as a member of the team of
fellowship officers especially assigned to the Tailor-Made
Training Programme of the old Netherlands Fellowships
Programme. ”
What kind of work do they now do under the new
Netherlands Fellowship Programmes (NFP)?
Men
76%
Men
Lenneke: “John and I and nine other colleagues work closely
60% together as NFP programme officers. The new NFP has been
underway for almost a year. During this year we have all
played a part in developing and implementing the new NFP ,
profiting from each other’s experiences and knowledge. We
7
are working in close cooperation with the fellowship Brazil, Cuba, Egypt, Eritrea, Suriname and the Philippines.
officers at the various Dutch embassies, and with I myself am available to answer queries from fellowship
(prospective) participating organizations in the 56 NFP officers in Bhutan, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador,
countries. Honduras, Jordan, Kenya, Nicaragua and Sri Lanka.
,
“Under the new NFP Nuffic's fellowship officers are “Another interesting aspect of our work is our involvement in
no longer assigned specifically to one or two parts of attempts to reach multi-year agreements in NFP countries
the programme. We now all strive to be involved with assigned to us. For this, Lenneke has been assigned Ethiopia
all five NFP programmes, arranging fellowships for and Peru, and I work with Guatemala, Uganda and Yemen. ”
tailor-made training, PhD studies, short courses,
master's degree programmes, and refresher courses. Lenneke: “2003 has been instructive in many respects. We
This makes our work very interesting, lively and would like to thank all the fellowship officers at the
varied. ” embassies for their efforts and cooperation so far, and we are
looking forward to continuing this cooperation into next year.
John: “It can make our day-to-day work hectic and 2004 might bring some more changes, because things are
complicated, however, for example because each of never static. There will always be need for improvement. ”
the five programmes has its own deadlines, which
sometimes coincide. Each of us has been appointed John: ”Both Lenneke and I enjoy our contacts with our
contact person for the embassies in certain of the partners in the NFP countries very much. We always
countries on the list of eligible countries. Lenneke is appreciate a visit any time the fellowship officers or the
the NFP contact person for Bangladesh, Bolivia, representatives of the organizations are in The Hague. ”
Tailor-made training proposals, December 2003
Country Title or subject Present situation Dutch winner
organization
Albania Transport policy and planning Winner selected NEA, Rijswijk
Cuba Training of extension workers and in-service trainers Outline withdrawn
China GIS and Remote sensing for biodiversity Outline being
assessed
Ecuador Qualitative research approaches and methods: Feminist Winner selected Groningen
perspectives University
Ethiopia Corruption prevention, investigation, prosecution and Winner selected ISS, The Hague
public education
Indonesia Water and environmental management Outline being
assessed
Iran Training course in road safety Winner selected NEA, Rijswijk
Mozambique Mathematics education, an introduction to Realistic Being implemented Utrecht University
Mathematics Education (RME) Freudenthal
Nepal Geo-informatics for Watershed Management in the Hindu Winner selected ITC, Enschede
Kush Himalayas (HKH)
South-Africa Maritime transport Outline being
assessed
Tanzania Research design, measurements and scaling methods Winner selected Groningen
University
Vietnam Qualitative research in Health sector Winner selected KIT, Amsterdam
Vietnam Urban governance Outline being
assessed
8
NFP multi-year agreements The signing of the agreements was preceded by an extensive
analysis of actual needs by Tanzanian consultants. In the case
of TAWLA, the picture that emerged from the analysis was
Apart from inviting ordinary applications for very complete and ultimately resulted in the identification of
fellowships, the NFP also welcomes applications from a number of training and education activities that the NFP
selected organizations for longer-term partnerships could support. These include 46 fellowships to follow law and
for training and education. Currently, ten countries human rights-related master's programmes, nine PhD
have been selected to work on new ways of fellowships, 13 short course fellowships and 12 proposals for
identifying areas where longer-term cooperation tailor-made training programmes. Further discussions with
would prove beneficial. The number of qualifying TAWLA will have to deal with the timetable of events and
countries may increase in the future. prioritize the training needs, as it is unlikely that the NFP
could support all the training plans. Fellowships will only be
made available to candidates who meet the criteria for
Although the form of cooperation differs in each acceptance into the proposed programmes, a decision that
country, the role of the Dutch embassy and Nuffic is will be taken by the institutions offering the programmes.
always constant. The stakeholders, usually including
the local government, are approached by Nuffic and
the embassy and discussions take place to identify In the case of the College of Business Education (CBE), it was
between two and four local organizations who are more complicated to analyse the actual needs. The
then consulted to make an assessment of the training organizations involved were asked to prioritize their list of
and education requirements. If the assessment shows training requirements, and only then did a clear picture
that the NFP has a role to play, the parties will set out emerge of the distinct requirements for tailor-made training
their long-term arrangements for training and programmes, short courses and master's programmes.
.
education in a “multi-year agreement” Considerable
progress has already been made on these multi-year
agreements in Tanzania, Guatemala, Ethiopia and
South Africa and, in some cases, the agreements have
already been signed.
Publications
Although in theory the process is fairly straightforward,
the practice can prove slightly trickier. Particular Two new NFP factsheets
sticking points include assessing the needs and
translating these into concrete actions or training In January 2004 Nuffic will publish two new factsheets on the
plans. If necessary, the embassy, Nuffic or the local Netherlands Fellowship Programmes (NFP). Both can be used
organizations call in local consultants to handle the by embassies, local consultants and Nuffic as an easy way to
selection, analysis and project formulation processes. promote the NFP and to inform potential partners about the
An important part of the process is appraising the possibilities for training which the NFP offers.
viability of the training and education needs, the
capacity of the organization and confirming whether
the staff will qualify for the proposed education or One factsheet will list the main features of the NFP and of
training. For example, an organization with only four each of its five programmes. The overall purpose of the NFP
staff members may get into difficulties if one of them will be highlighted, which is to strengthen organizations by
is unavailable for a time due to training. A further providing fellowships for training their employees. The
consideration is the added value that training in the fellowship procedures associated with each of the five
Netherlands or by a Dutch organization can create. programmes will be briefly explained. Fellowships are
available for master's degree programmes, short courses,
PhD study, courses of tailor-made training, and refresher
NFP multi-year agreements in courses.
Tanzania
,
Right from the launch of the new NFP the Dutch The other factsheet places the spotlight on the NFP
embassy in Dar es Salaam has worked hard on the programme for tailor-made training. Using examples of tailor-
selection process, and currently four organizations made training that has been successful in the past, the
have been selected. Nuffic has already signed multi- factsheet will explain to organizations in the target countries
year agreements with two of these organizations, the the value of this NFP programme and the opportunities it
Tanzania Women Lawyers Associations (TAWLA) and offers. Nuffic hopes that the factsheet will increase the
the College of Business Education (CBE).
9
number of proposals for tailor-made training that are Applications are submitted to Nuffic by the fellowship
written by the organizations themselves. officers at the Dutch embassies, who must have received
the forms and documents from the applicants well in
Both factsheets will be sent to the Netherlands advance of this date.
.
embassies in the countries eligible for the NFP From
January 2004 onwards, they can also be ordered from May
The 2005 NFP brochures are sent to the Royal
Nuffic or downloaded as a PDF file from the Nuffic
Netherlands Embassies.
website.
1 July
The first Nuffic deadline for submitting applications for
PhD programmes that start in 2005. Applications are
Deadlines and important submitted to Nuffic by the fellowship officers at the
Dutch embassies, who must have received the forms
dates for the NFP and documents from the applicants well in advance of
this date.
Please note that the deadlines stated here are Nuffic 1 August
deadlines. In most NFP countries, the deadlines for The Nuffic deadline for submitting applications for
submitting your applications at the Royal Netherlands certain NFP short courses that start in the third and
Embassies will be at least two weeks before the dates fourth quarters of 2004. (Check the 2004 NFP Course List for the
given here. These deadlines may vary considerably deadlines, as they vary from course to course.) Applications are
among the NFP countries. As soon as you consider submitted to Nuffic by the fellowship officers at the
applying for admission to a programme in the Dutch embassies, who must have received the forms
Netherlands with an NFP fellowship, we would strong- and documents from the applicants well in advance of
ly advise you to contact the embassy in your country this date.
to check the various dates and ask about any
additional local procedures. 1 August
The Nuffic deadline for submitting applications for
certain NFP short courses that start in the first quarter of
2004 2005. (Check the forthcoming 2005 NFP Course List for the dead-
lines, as they vary from course to course.) Applications are
1 January submitted to Nuffic by the fellowship officers at the
The Nuffic deadline for submitting applications for Dutch embassies, who must have received the forms
certain NFP short courses that start in the first, and documents from the applicants well in advance of
second or third quarter of 2004. (Check the 2004 NFP this date.
Course List for the deadlines.) Applications are
submitted to Nuffic by the fellowship officers at 1 November
the Dutch embassies, who must have received the The Nuffic deadline for submitting applications for
forms and documents from the applicants well in certain NFP short courses that start in the first or second
advance of this date. quarter of 2005. (Check the forthcoming 2005 NFP Course List for
the deadlines, as they vary from course to course.) Applications
1 April are submitted to Nuffic by the fellowship officers at the
The Nuffic deadline for submitting applications for Dutch embassies, who must have received the forms
NFP master's degree courses that start in the and documents from the applicants well in advance of
second half of 2004. Applications are submitted to this date.
Nuffic by the fellowship officers at the Dutch
embassies, who must have received the forms 1 November
and documents from the applicants well in The Nuffic deadline for submitting applications for the
advance of this date. limited number of NFP master's degree programmes that
start in the first quarter of 2005. (Check the 2005 forthcoming
In April 2004 the 2005 lists of NFP courses are finalized NFP Course List for the deadlines). Applications are submitted
and made available on the NFP website. to Nuffic by the fellowship officers at the Dutch
embassies, who must have received the forms and
1 April documents from the applicants well in advance of this
The Nuffic deadline for submitting applications for date.
certain NFP short courses that start in the second
or third quarter of 2004. (Check the 2004 NFP Course 1 November
List for the deadlines, as they vary from course to course.) The Nuffic deadline for submitting proposals for NFP
10
refresher courses which start in 2005. Proposals applicants will have a master's degree
must be submitted directly to Nuffic. They can be in economics, philosophy or both.
submitted by NFP alumni or their employers, or
by the Dutch provider of an initial programme of Hogeschool van Utrecht
study or training. Department: Faculty of Science and Technology
Applications to: .
Dr Ir. P Scholten
1 November Address: PO Box 182
The Nuffic deadline for submitting applications 3500 AD Utrecht
for certain NFP short courses that start in the first Phone: +31 (0)30 238 84 26
or second quarter of 2005. (Check the forthcoming Fax: +31 (0)30 230 81 99
2005 NFP Course List for the deadlines, as they vary from E-mail: p.scholten@fnt.hvu.nl
course to course.) Applications are submitted to Website: www.fnt.hvu.nl/
Nuffic by the fellowship officers at the Dutch
embassies, who must have received the forms Engineering Product Design
and documents from the applicants well in Leading to: Master of Science degree
advance of this date. Duration: 18 months
Dates: 10 September 2004 to February 2006
1 November Academic application deadline: 1 February 2004
The second Nuffic deadline for submitting Candidate requirements: Bachelor degree in engineering (see
applications for PhD studies that start in 2005. The brochure).
fellowship officers at the Dutch embassies must
have received the forms and documents from the Maintenance Management
applicants well in advance of this date. Leading to: Master of Science degree
Duration: 18 months
Dates: 10 September 2004 to February 2006
NFP Course List Changes Academic application deadline: 1 February 2004
Candidate requirements: Bachelor degree in engineering (see
A number of changes have been made to the list of brochure).
master's programmes and short courses due to start
in 2004. The changes include corrections of e-mail Institute for Social Studies (with Vrije Universiteit,
addresses, programme names, corrections or Wageningen University and Research Centre)
additions to the candidate requirements and, perhaps Department: Development Economics
most importantly, to the academic application Applications to: Dr K. Burger / Ms C. Vorselman
deadline. The bulk of the changes, however, relate to Address: PO Box 29776
programmes that have been added to the master's 2502 LT The Hague
degree programme list. These new additions are Phone: +31 (0)70 426 04 60
shown below. The Nuffic website carries a full listing Fax: +31 (0)70 426 07 99
of all programmes including changes and additions. E-mail: mscdevecon@iss.nl
Please contact Nuffic officer Ms Inge Zuidema (tel. Website: www.mscdevecon.nl
+31 (0)70 4260318) if you would like to receive a copy www.iss.nl/
of the list.
MSc in Development Economics
Erasmus Institute for Philosophy and Economics Leading to: Master of Science degree
Department: Faculty of Philosophy Duration: 12 months
Applications to: .A.
Mr F Hindriks Dates: 20 September 2004 to 14 September
Address: PO Box 1738 2005
3000 DR Rotterdam Academic application deadline: 1 Febuary 2004
Phone: +31 (0)10 408 89 67 Candidate requirements: Bachelor degree (upper second class) in
Fax: +31 (0)10 212 04 48 economics or equivalent.
E-mail: internationaloffice@fwb.eur.nl
Website: www.eur.nl/fw/philecon/ Vrije Universiteit
Department: Faculty of Law
Philosophy and Economics Applications to: Ms T. van Essen
Leading to: Master of Philosophy degree Address: De Boelelaan 1105, room 5A - 18
Duration: 10 months 1081 HV Amsterdam
Dates: September 2004 to June 2005 Phone: +31 (0)20 444 62 05
Academic application deadline: 1 February 2004 Fax: +31 (0)20 444 62 09
Candidate requirements: BA or BSc in economics or BA in E-mail: internationalaffairs@rechten.vu.nl
philosophy. Preferably, Website: www.rechten.vu.nl/english
11
LL.M in International Business Law "The NFP-NPT Newsletter has been sent to the University
Leading to: Master in Laws (LL.M) Sarajevo and made available to the visitors of the
Duration: 11 months Embassy. The Newsletter is useful since BiH is one of the
Dates: 1 September 2004 to 15 July countries that have low number of Internet users."
2005
Academic application deadline: Please consult the Dutch From Bogotá
provider On 10 October 2003, the editors were pleased to receive the
Candidate requirements: Bachelor's or equivalent degree following reaction from Mr Amos Houben, fellowship officer
in law. Students who do not at the Dutch Embassy in Bogotá, Colombia.
meet this requirement, but have
a sound academic background "My compliments! The pages with FAQs and deadlines
and a proven experience or inter- are especially useful. I'm looking forward already to the
est in the field fo law and who December issue!
are interested in studying in a "The embassy in Bogotá has an information and
stimulating international documentation centre, so I always place several copies of
environment, are also the Newsletter there for visitors to take a look at. I also
encouraged to apply. send several copies to my contacts at ICETEX, which is a
Colombian government agency that facilitates the
Universiteit van Amsterdam scholarship programmes offered by various foreign
Department: Faculty of Science governments and disseminates information about them.
Applications to: Dr B. Jérôme The Dutch embassy and ICETEX have been working
Address: Nieuwe Achtergracht 166 together for more than 20 years. ICETEX's collection
1081 HV Amsterdam includes brochures, leaflets and other informative
Phone: +31 (0)20 525 69 92 materials from nearly all of the Dutch universities as well
Fax: +31 (0)20 525 56 04 as other Dutch organizations and institutions. These
E-mail: jerome@science.uva.nl materials help the agency to answer the queries they
Website: http://145.18.11.213/object.cfm receive. ICETEX can tell people about Nuffic and the NFP
application procedures, and when necessary, they will
Condensed Matter Science refer someone to the fellowship officer at the embassy."
Leading to: Master of Science Degree
Duration: 11 months Readers' actions
Dates: 1 September 2004 to 31 August
2005 "Keep Nepal on the list !!"
Academic application deadline: Please consult the Dutch The Dutch government informed Nepal at an early stage that
provider this country will be taken from the list of partner countries.
Candidate requirements: BSc degree in Physics or This means that Nepal will not qualify for NPT.
Chemistry (or combination). For The Netherlands will continue to assist Nepal through multi-
Chemistry students a good level lateral channels, NGOs and fellowships such as under the
in Physics and Mathematics is NFP .
required.
Naresh Pradham, the chairman of the Netherlands Alumni
Association Nepal (NAAN), informed us that the NAAN has
called on its Dutch network for a campaign to keep Nepal on
Readers' reactions the list of partner countries. In his view, the breaking of
bilateral ties in development cooperation would have
Reactions to the Newsletter immense consequences on Nepal. The Alumni Association
Nepal set up a website “Keep Nepal on the List”
www.keepnepalonthelist.org. It has received more than 4,000
From Serajevo
messages of support. On Thursday, 13 November 2003,
The NFP-NPT Newsletter is sent to the fellowship Nepalese and Dutch activists marched on the Parliament in
officers at Dutch embassies all over the world. They The Hague to voice their protest against the removal of Nepal
use it to inform visitors and local organizations about from the list. They handed over a petition to Mr Jaap de Hoop
the programmes. The May issue evoked a reaction Scheffer, Minister of Foreign Affairs.
from Leila Fetahagic and Fatima Krivosija who work at
the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Serajevo, Bosnia-
Hercegovina. They are fellowship officers and project
policy officers in charge of the development
cooperation projects. The e-mail message reads as
follows:
12
The NFP and NPT programmes in brief
The Netherlands Programme for The Netherlands Fellowship
the Institutional Strengthening Programmes (NFP)
of Post-secondary Education and Objectives and target group
Training Capacity (NPT) The Netherlands Fellowship Programmes (NFP) were
launched in 2003. The NFP are focused on meeting the need
The NPT is an international cooperation programme for further training and capacity-building in a wide range of
financed by the Netherlands government. Nuffic, the governmental, private and non-governmental organizations.
Netherlands Organization for International Cooperation These include educational institutions, planning agencies,
in Higher Education, manages and administers the NPT ministries, community-based organizations, and private
on behalf of the Netherlands government. enterprises.
The NFP target group: mid-career professionals who are
Objectives nationals of one of the list of countries (page 14). Candidates
The purpose of the programme is to help developing for an NFP fellowship must be nominated by their employers.
countries strengthen their institutional capacity for This nomination should contain a structured motivation.
post-secondary education and training in a The NFP aims to increase the fellowships' impact by linking
sustainable way. The aim is to equip the developing them to the institutional development of organizations in
countries with what they need in order to meet their developing countries. Fellowships are awarded to individuals
own needs for training and manpower. but their training must occur within the development of the
local organization for which they work.
Characteristics of the programme
The NPT is a programme of South-North cooperation NFP Academic Programme (AP)
in which expertise from Dutch organizations is The NFP-AP offers professionals from developing countries a
mobilized to strengthen institutional capacity in the chance to enrol in international postgraduate degree
South. This capacity must be relevant to the sectors programmes of one or more years. Programme providers are
and themes targeted for the Dutch bilateral support Dutch organizations. The NFP-AP modalities are:
given to the countries in question. More general • Master's degree programmes
support for the higher education sector is also a pos- • PhD studies
sibility, as is support for projects which cut across the • Refresher courses
chosen sectors and themes.
The NPT is demand-driven and flexible, and it NFP Training Programme (TP)
addresses local priorities. 'Ownership' on the part of The NFP-TP enables professionals from developing countries
stakeholders in the South is an important feature of to enrol in a diploma course or a course of tailor-made training
the programme. of one year or less. The course must be provided entirely or
The involvement of local and/or regional expertise in ,
partly by a Dutch organization. Under NFP-TP there are:
the implementation of the NPT is encouraged. Local • Short courses
staff will be trained preferably in the region. • Tailor-made training
To achieve a good quality-price ratio, the contracts by • Refresher courses
which Dutch organizations provide the necessary The demand for tailor-made training is matched with what is
services are awarded on a competitive basis. This is on offer by means of an open tender procedure in the
done through a public tender procedure in the Netherlands.
Netherlands.
NFP characteristics
Target group • Priority is given to study and training that takes place
Support can be given to organizations in the South (partly) in the region;
that play an important role in the development of • At least half of the budget is to be spent on candidates or
post-secondary education and training capacity. These organizations in sub Saharan Africa;
include institutions for post-secondary education, • Another budget aim is to spend over half on female
government ministries, national commissions, and candidates.
NGOs.
New approach
Countries participating in the NPT programme In 10 out of the 56 countries eligible for cooperation under
The Netherlands government selects the countries for ,
NFP a new approach for meeting training demand of local
the NPT. There are now nine countries on the list but organizations is introduced. In these ten countries Nuffic
gradually more will be added. The present NPT enters into multi-year agreements with selected
countries are Ethiopia, Ghana, Guatemala, organizations. Each agreement lists a number of NFP funded
Mozambique, Peru1 , Uganda, Rwanda, Vietnam, and training activities. Staff of the organizations selected will be
Yemen. given preference during the allocation of fellowships and the
1
Peru will probably be removed from the NPT list of countries allocation of funds for training courses.
once the new bilateral country list has been officially approved.
13
NFP-NPT Newsletter
Countries eligible for NFP The Netherlands Fellowship Programmes (NFP) and the
Albania Eritrea Nepal
Netherlands Programme for Institutional Strengthening of Post-
secondary Education and Capacity (NPT) are financed by the
Armenia Ethiopia Nicaragua
Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The programmes are
Autonomous PalestinianTerritories Georgia Nigeria
administrated by Nuffic in cooperation with Netherlands
Bangladesh Ghana Pakistan
Embassies and Consulates.
Benin Guatemala Peru
Bhutan Guinea-Bissau Philippines
E d i to ri a l te a m
Bolivia Honduras Rwanda
Mr Ad Boeren, Editor
Bosnia-Hercegovina India Senegal
Contributors to this issue: Marjo Gallé, Willem-Jan de Gast,
Brazil Indonesia South Africa
Han van der Horst, Anna van Marrewijk, Beer Schröder, Birgitte
Burkina Faso Iran Sri Lanka Vos
Cambodia Ivory Coast Suriname
Cape Verde Jordan Tanzania E - m a i l a d d re s s e s
China1 Kenya Thailand • For NPT matters: npt@nuffic.nl
Colombia Macedonia Uganda • For questions about the NFP Academic Programmes:
Costa Rica Mali Vietnam nfp-ap@nuffic.nl
Cuba Moldavia Yemen • Questions about fellowships for Short courses and
Ecuador Mongolia Zambia Tailor-made Training: nfp-tp@nuffic.nl
Egypt Mozambique Zimbabwe
El Salvador Namibia We b s i te s
1
www.nuffic.nl/nfp-npt
Citizens from Hong Kong and Macao are exempted
The present NPT countries are: Ethiopia, Ghana, Design
Guatemala, Mozambique, Peru, Rwanda, Uganda, Vietnam Grafisense BV, Rotterdam
and Yemen. Peru may be removed from the NPT list of coun-
tries. In 2004, it is envisaged that 7 more countries will be L ayo u t
added. These will be selected from the new list of Partner
Elma Leidekker, Nuffic
countries.
P ri n t i n g
Nuffic
Next issue
February 2004
I d e a s a n d s u g ge s t i o n s
The editors of this NFP-NPT Newsletter welcome readers’
reactions. Please send your comments, ideas and information
to: Anna van Marrewijk, avmarrewijk@Nuffic.nl.
Latest news: Afghanistan PDF
This NFP-NPT Newsletter can also be found at the website
added to the list www.nuffic.nl/nfp-npt/pdf in portable document format (PDF)
Early December 2003 the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
informed Nuffic that Afghanistan has been added to the
list of countries eligible for participation in the
Netherlands Fellowship Programmes (NFP). This means
that from now on Afghani organizations can apply for Ad d re s s d e t a i l s fo r f u rt h e r i n fo rm a t i o n
fellowships for NFP master's degree courses, PhD Nuffic Department for Human Resource and Institutional
studies and for NFP short courses. They can also put Development
forward outlines for tailor-made training. PO Box 29777 2502 LT The Hague
The Netherlands
Nuffic programme officer Birgitte Vos will be the contact Tel.: +31 (0)70 4260166
person for Aghani organizations as well as for the Fax: +31 (070) 4260189
Netherlands Embassy in Kabul. She can be contacted by Head of Training and Fellowship Desk: Drs R.E.V.M. Schröder
phone +31 (070) 4260183 or by e-mail: bvos@nuffic.nl Head of Section Cooperation Programmes: Ir. J.F Houterman .
14
