Academics on the Move : Mobility and Institutional Change in the Swedish Development Support to Research Capacity Building in Mozambique

Abstract

In the competitive global knowledge economy, highly qualified individuals are increasingly recognised as being the key to development. In particular, doctorate holders are not only the most qualified in terms of educational attainment, but also those specifically trained to be at the forefront of innovation and in a position to drive advances in science, technology and knowledge of society. In developing countries with relatively weak research structures, not least with regard to PhD graduates, the training of PhDs has been intimately linked to the reproduction of human capacity in national research systems. This study examines the mobility of PhD graduates funded under the Swedish development aid program to build institutional research capacity in Mozambique from 1990 to 2013. Principal areas of investigation are extent and direction of geographic, sectoral and vertical mobility, perception and individual rationales for mobility and career choices and experience of the so-called "sandwich model".

A case study for the NAI research project: Academic Mobility in Africa – Modes and Narratives of Mobility and Institutional Change in International Donor-Supported Programs Targeting Research Capacity-Building