African Peacebuilding and Developmental Dynamics (APDD): Individual Research Fellowships (IRF) Grant

The African Peacebuilding and Developmental Dynamics (APDD) program by the Social Science Research Council offers Individual Research Fellowships to enhance independent African research on peacebuilding. In 2026, up to nine fellowships worth $12,000 each will be awarded to African scholars, policy analysts, and practitioners. The program promotes impactful research, workshops for skill development, and networking opportunities, aiming to foster community and advance peacebuilding knowledge across the continent.

African Peacebuilding and Developmental Dynamics (APDD): Individual Research Fellowships (IRF)
Since its inception in 2012, the Individual Research Fellowship (IRF) has served as a vehicle for enhancing the quality and visibility of independent African peacebuilding research both regionally and globally, while making peacebuilding knowledge accessible to key policymakers, practitioners and research centers of excellence in Africa and around the world. In 2026, up to nine (9) individual fellowships will be awarded at a maximum of $12,000 each.
The APDD program of the Social Science Research Council (SSRC) invites applications from African researchers, policy analysts, and practitioners working on conflict and peacebuilding issues at universities and research institutions or regional, governmental, and nongovernmental agencies based in Africa.
Program Components
Through the Individual Research Fellowship, recipients can expect the following:

• Thought Leadership

Fellows commit to six (6) months of field-based research, and three (3) months of analysis, and writing for a total of nine (9) months, from July 2026 to March 2027. Fellows produce research-based knowledge that is relevant to, and has a significant impact on, peacebuilding scholarship, policy, and practice on the continent while inserting evidence-based knowledge into regional and global debates and policies focusing on peacebuilding.
Workshops
Fellows will participate in two mandatory APDD workshops occurring in July and January across different regions of Africa. These workshops will provide opportunities to refine recipients’ research designs, focus and methods; present findings; explore ways to make their work more accessible through publications and other means to multiple peacebuilding constituencies; network, and develop constructive working relationships with other fellows, senior academics, practitioners, and facilitators.
African Scholarship and Knowledge Production
Fellows will contribute to the APDD’s Working Paper series and African Peacebuilding Policy Review and Analysis, as well as to the program’s digital forums and social media platforms (Kujenga Amani, Facebook, and X).
Fellows may contribute to international peer-reviewed journals, books, articles/essays, blogs, features and op-ed articles, and/or podcasts.
Fellows will gain new knowledge and skills to advance their careers as academics or practitioners in their chosen fields.
Fostering Community, Professional Development and Networking
Fellows are part of a network of highly visible and active African scholars and practitioners capable of voicing African perspectives on global discourses, as well as knowledge and practices of peacebuilding.
Fellows will receive mentorship from highly experienced senior scholars in the field, with opportunities for peer-to-peer learning and collaboration.

Eligibility

All applicants must be African citizens currently residing in an African country. This competition is open to African academics, as well as policy analysts and practitioners.
Applicants who are academics must hold a full-time faculty or research position at an African university or research organization, and have a PhD obtained no earlier than January 2016.
Applicants who are policy analysts or practitioners must be based in Africa at a regional or sub-regional institution; a government agency; or a nongovernmental, media, or civil society organization, and have at least a master’s degree obtained before January 2021 with at least five years of proven research and work experience in peacebuilding-related activities on the continent.