NETWORKING, COMMUNICATION, AND SCIENCE ENGAGEMENT IN NUMBERS 2023

New networks and an increase in network-led knowledge sharing activities

In 2023, Danida Fellowship Centre took steps to reactivate the national Danida alumni networks, as their membership engagement had been severely challenged by the Covid-19 pandemic. One of the aspects we focused on was creating an enabling environment by supporting network coordinators in building their skills and confidence in network leadership.

During the course of 2023, six new national Danida alumni networks were officially launched in Argentina, Brazil, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria and South Africa, bringing the total number of networks that were active during the year to 15.

The number of events organised by the national Danida alumni networks increased significantly: from two self-organised events in 2022 to 11 in 2023. An additional seven in-country alumni network events were organised in 2023, supported by DFC’s Networkers’ Grant or other DFC contributions.

These activities covered a wide range of topics, including antimicrobial resistance in Nigeria, good animal husbandry practices in Mexico, water resources management in South Africa and climate change dialogues in Kenya. The average number of participants across the in-country activities was 40.

A large media outreach

In 2023, like in 2022, we had a large number of both traditional media and SoMe stories about Danida-supported research projects and learning programmes.

In 2023, we had 183 news and feature stories/videos. Of these, 113 were outputs produced by journalists who participated in DFC learning programmes; 19 were stories identified, supported or developed jointly by DFC and our partners and published in Denmark or partner countries; and 51 were by DFC alone.

Media stories about climate change

The number of climate change stories in 2023 closely mirrored the number produced in 2022. In both cases, they were primarily the outcomes of the learning programme “Reporting from the African frontline of the global climate crisis”. The programme itself resulted in the creation of 113 media articles. In addition, at least 2/5 of the stories produced by DFC itself focused on climate change or climate-related topics.

There was also a notable emphasis on climate change in relation to water, leading to the production of two livestreams. On LinkedIn, our most successful social media platform, these livestreams garnered a viewership ranging from 155 to 270 participants.

Science engagement: Enhanced knowledge sharing, uptake, and impact

The effective communication of research results is essential for translating knowledge into practical action, and many Danida-supported researchers chose to take part in our communication and engagement training activities in 2023. The online “Engagement, Influencing and Impact” training was attended by 16 Danida supported researchers, and 13 researchers joined 25 journalists from across Africa in the in person seminar “Bridging the Gap: Science for the public. We focus on Climate” in Arusha, Tanzania.

We piloted a “Story of Change seminar” under Building Stronger Universities III, so-called “Writeshops”, where 31 participants, including academic and administrative staff took part. Watch and read the stories of change. In addition, The first steps in establishing a communication and engagement component within Building Stronger Universities IV were taken at an online “Communication Outreach” followed up by an in-person “Outreach day” during the inception workshop for the Building Stronger Universities IV.

Our very first science engagement days under the theme “Equitable north south research partnerships” attracted 41 participants. Read their recommendations here.