World Cocoa Foundation Aceh Cocoa Fellowship Program

The World Cocoa Foundation is pleased to announce the Aceh Cocoa Fellowship Program. This program is made possible through funding from Swisscontact under Proyek untuk Peningkatan Ekonomi Kakao Aceh (PEKA), a Sub-Project Implementing Entity under the Economic Development Financing Facility Project (EDFF).

The Aceh Cocoa Fellowship Program will support scientists, researchers or policymakers from Aceh to complete a fellowship for a two to three month period. The fellowships will take place at research institutes or universities located in a designated host country as appropriate. During the fellowship, the fellow will be paired with a mentor who will later have the opportunity to visit the fellow at his or her home institution.

Timeframe

Date of Announcement: June 15, 2010
Application Deadline: July 15, 2010
Notification to Finalists: Week of July 15, 2010
Interviews with Finalists: Week of July 26, 2010
Selection of Fellows: By August 15, 2010

Note: Only finalists will be contacted.


Objectives of Aceh Cocoa Fellowship Program

* To build the capacity of research institutes and universities in Aceh to conduct cocoa research
* To further the professional development of Aceh-based scientists and researchers engaged in cocoa research
* To foster linkages between research institutes/universities in Aceh and those abroad


Eligibility Requirements

* Citizen of Indonesia
* Resident of Aceh
* Working knowledge of English (speaking, reading, writing, comprehension)
* Employed at a research institute or university located in Aceh
* Intention to continue working on cocoa research at a research institute or university in Aceh for at least two years following the completion of the fellowship
* Minimum of Masters degree plus three years experience


Selection Criteria

* Professional and academic background and qualifications
* Quality, appropriateness and feasibility of proposal for fellowship
* Relevance of proposal to priority research areas for the Acehnese cocoa sector
* Demonstrated employer support for continuing research following the fellowship


Priority Areas for Research

* Planting Material: germplasm conservation, genetics, breeding, plant propagation methods
* Production Practices: agronomy, soil fertility, agroforestry
* Integrated Pest and Disease Management: cocoa pod borer, vascular streak dieback, black pod
* Post-harvest: quality testing and improvement, storage practices, food safety issues
* Policy: environmental stewardship, regulation, sector development policy


Submission Requirements:

Eligible applicants are invited to submit their completed application form via electronic submission or paper submission as per the following instructions. All submissions must include the following completed application form with required attachments and arrive no later than 15 July 2010:

Download "Aceh Cocoa Fellowship Program Application Form" here or contact the Swisscontact Indonesia Office in Banda Aceh (see address below).

Note: All application materials must be submitted in English (with the exception of transcripts if an English version is not available).

Applications:

Electronic Submission (preferred):

Please submit all application materials as a single PDF file. Submit applications to wcf@worldcocoa.org including the phrase “Aceh Cocoa Fellowship Application” in the subject line.

Paper Submission

Hardcopies of the application may be obtained and completed applications may be submitted to Swisscontact Indonesia:

Mr. Manfred Borer
Project Manager
Swisscontact Indonesia
Jl. Teuku Umar
Lr. Glee Geurah No. 1
Seutui, Banda Aceh – NAD 23243

Provisions:
Issuance of this request for applications does not constitute a fellowship award commitment on the part of the World Cocoa Foundation. The World Cocoa Foundation will not pay for any expenses incurred in the preparation and submission of the application. Final award of any resultant fellowship will not be made until funds have been fully appropriated, allocated and committed. The World Cocoa Foundation offers no commitment to respondents other than the promise to keep all responses confidential in their entirety.


Contact for General Questions regarding the Application Form or Fellowship Program:

Swisscontact Indonesia:
Mr. Manfred Borer
Program Manager
manfred@swisscontact.or.id

World Cocoa Foundation:
Ms. Virginia Sopyla
Program Coordinator
virginia.sopyla@worldcocoa.org