The Capacity Building for Higher Education (CBHE) is the initiative of the Erasmus+ programme, focusing on countries outside of the EU (“third countries”). It aims to equip third country higher education institutions with the capacity to implement quality education, in line with the EU’s principles, such as the Green Deal and Digital Transformation. Such connections with institutions of external countries can lead to furthering research cooperation, therefore this initiative is relevant to “science diplomacy” which is a priority of the current EU research-policy agenda.
A budget of €115.3 million was allocated for the capacity building project, the results of which the Commission announced on 3 August. Overall, 159 projects were selected. The commission’s press release lists numerous examples in Central Africa, Latin America, the Southern Mediterranean and more, where different educational topics related to sustainability, research, commercialisation and human rights will be supported. Supporting Higher Education in Ukraine, which suffers the consequences of its invasion by Russia, was highlighted. The initiative involves the large-scale collaboration of 2500 higher education stakeholders,
The grant agreements are expected to be signed in November this year, in order to allow the funded initiatives to begin before 2024.
