University of Ouagadougou

The sub-Saharan African population is projected to double in the next forty years, with booming urban centers where health systems and other social services have been unable to keep pace. In Burkina Faso, the University of Ouagadougou has built the only population research and training program on the continent capable of studying this dominant demographic trend in real time. The university’s Institut Supérieur des Sciences de la Population (ISSP) operates an urban population observatory, where 80,000 residents participate in an ongoing population and reproductive health research study with the Institute. The observatory produces a stream of demographic and socioeconomic data on African urban poverty, which will be used for the first time for both training and research in Africa. The recommended grant would support an expansion of ISSP graduate programs, which train population scientists from throughout the Francophone region. Hewlett funds would also support ISSP’s plans to become a regional hub for demographic data by building a sharable repository of modern data for the region’s research and training institutes.

The recommended grant to Institut Supérieur des Sciences de la Population (ISSP) at the University of Ouagadougou would continue the Foundation’s support of ISSP’s graduate programs, which train population scientists from Francophone West Africa. ISSP also operates an urban population observatory, which collects demographic and health data from 80,000 residents on a regular basis and contributes to research that can inform policy decisions on a range of social services. In addition, the grant funds would enable ISSP to enhance its Internet connectivity and address longstanding electricity challenges by installing a solar power system.

This grant to Institut Supérieur des Sciences de la Population (ISSP) at the University of Ouagadougou will support ISSP’s graduate programs, which train population scientists from Francophone West Africa. ISSP is currently running four training programs in the field of population and development, has three research units, and is also running a Demographic Surveillance System. A Ph.D. program in Population & Development is expected to start in 2017. In addition, the grant funds will enable ISSP to support the development of a communication plan and staff evaluation system for the program.