The Swiss Forum for International Agricultural Research (SFIAR) 2020

Application Deadline:13 July 2020

The Swiss Forum for International Agricultural Research (SFIAR) offers an annual Award for graduates and scientists of a Swiss institution who work in agricultural research for development.

Take advantage of this opportunity!

• The best PhD project wins CHF 5’000 and the best Master thesis project CHF 1’000.
• Submission is not complicated.
• The SFIAR Award may help winners enter into development work, or receive project funding.

The Swiss Forum for International Agricultural Research (SFIAR) is an informal multi-stakeholder group
of Swiss institutions and private individuals interested in agricultural research for development (ARD).
Members come from research institutions, NGOs, the private sector, farmers’ organisations and public
agencies, as well as individuals. The goals and objectives of SFIAR are:
a) Sharing information between ARD stakeholders in Switzerland
b) Promoting the visibility of Swiss ARD
c) Playing an advocacy role at policy level
d) Serving as a national partner in international initiatives
e) Promoting collaboration between actors in Swiss ARD

Eligibility
Eligible for the SFIAR Award is research that
 has been carried out at or in close collaboration with a Swiss institution
 has involved partners (institutions and/or individuals) located in developing countries
 has been completed preferably no longer than three years ago
(for Master’s Thesis Award: master’s thesis submitted preferably not longer than 18 months ago)

Application
Applicants have to fill in the attached application form and provide the research summary (maximum 2
pages including illustrations) and the other documents mentioned on the form in English, French or
German. Applications that do not meet the formal requirements will not be considered. The deadline for
applications is 13 July 2020.

Selection
A selection committee of at least three SFIAR experts will review the submissions (based on the 2
pages research summary only) and select the best proposal. If four or less submissions are received,
the committee may decide not to make an award that year. The SFIAR members endorse the
recommendation by the selection committee, if they do not have a valid challenge.
The main selection criteria are:
a) research quality
b) demonstration of potential for development impact
c) compliance with criteria defined under “Scope”
d) presentation

Award
The Award is offered annually. Based on a recommendation by the Selection Committee the SFIAR
may decide that the award for a particular year will be restricted to one category only, i.e. a Master’s
thesis or PhD or Post Doc/team, and that further restrictions may also be applied.

The SFIAR Award 2020 is restricted to the following: one prize (CHF 5’000) for the best PhD
project; one prize (CHF 1’000) for the best Master’s thesis.

For More Information:

Visit the Official Webpage of the SFIAR Award 2020