Science - January 22, 2004
IAC acquires only one Nuffic project
Apart from one project, for which the IAC tendered successfully, Wageningen UR submitted fewer proposals for the Nuffic programme on capacity building in developing countries this year. The focus has shifted away from agriculture.
Ad Boeren at Nuffic explains that it is the first time that universities and colleges have had to tender. While Wageningen UR had seven out of forty projects in the previous programme, this time round it has acquired only one out of seventeen projects. Boeren adds that Wageningen probably submitted fewer proposals because the content focus has also changed.
Bert Boerrigter, who coordinates the programme initiatives for Wageningen UR confirms this. “It’s not that we have scored badly in this round, it’s just that we tendered less because the content is not so interesting for us,” he says. “In the past there were far more agricultural issues in the programme. Now the projects include improving law faculties and strengthening the police force, things for which Wageningen UR has little expertise.”
Joris Tielens