HEC Grand Challenge Fund Call for Proposals Guidance Deadline for Project Outline Submission: 7thFebruary, 2020. Deadline for Full Proposal Submission: TBDI.
General Information A:
Program Description:The Grand Challenge Fund (GCF) is a key element of the Higher Education Development in Pakistan Project supported by the World Bank and implemented by the Higher Education Commission (HEC). The GCF is anticipated to promote research excellence in strategic sectors of the economy, and will provide funds to selected institutions based upon a competitive, peer-reviewed evaluation of proposals. GCF will support large, multisectoral/multidimensional research projects. Successful GCF projects are anticipatedto be collaborative in scope, with research teams working cooperatively to accelerate research progress for societal impact. Projects are expected to use a systems-type approach in developing the research agenda, where separate projects come together to achieve a broad-based thematic research advance. Projects should include: relevant and cutting-edge research activities and postgraduate student training.The Grand Challenge Fund is focused on supporting research and innovation in priority thematic areas of national interest, including
General Information B:
The Grand Challenge Fund is focused on supporting research and innovation in priority thematic areas of national interest, including;
Food Security,
Sustainable Energy,
Sociology and Philosophy,
Development Economics,
Urban Planning,
Climate Change and Environment,
Information Technology and Telecom,
Innovative Governance and Reforms.
Eligibility Criteria C:
Lead Principal Investigators (PIs) must:
- Be university faculty members from research intensive institution
Project Team may include:
- A consortia of faculty members from multiple university departments and/or multiple universities
- Private sector participants, particularly when they bring prior IP or capability to the consortium and/or significant deployment, implementation, or scale up capability
- International partners
International collaborations are encouraged:
- When the international partner brings a unique added value to the project tea
