VertebrALCUE News
ALFA is a programme of co-operation between Higher Education Institutions (HEI's) of the European Union and Latin America.
Participant countries are the 27 Member States of the European Union and the following 18 countries of Latin America: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela.
The ALFA Programme, legally based on the EC Regulation No 1905/2006 of 18th December 2006, is defined by the following specific objectives:
* To improve the quality, relevance and accessibility of Higher Education in Latin America;
* To contribute to the process of regional integration in Latin America, fostering progress towards the creation of a joint Higher Education area in the region and exploiting its synergies with the European Union.
The ALFA Programme began in 1994 and sought to reinforce co-operation in the field of Higher Education. The programme co-finances projects aimed at improving the capacity of individuals and institutions (universities and other relevant organisations) in the two regions.
The first phase, ALFA I (1994-1999), with an EC contribution of € 31m, ran until 1999 and involved 1064 institutions operating 846 micro-projects.
The second phase, ALFA II (2000-2006), with a total of 10 selection rounds represented an EC contribution of €54.6m distributed to 225 approved projects held by 770 institutions organised in networks with an average of 9 institutions from LA and EU.
The third phase, ALFA III (2007-2013), has an EU budget of €85m. ALFA III supposes a significant budget increase in the contribution, but also a new and upgraded structure of the programme, constituted by 3 specific lots: Lot 1 Joint Projects; Lot 2 Structural Projects; Lot 3 Accompanying measures.
The ALFA III's 1st Call for Proposals was launched in 2008 and had a high level of participation of Latin American institutions. This Call resulted in the selection of 14 projects, covering the 3 Lots.
Source: Europaid
For more information: Europaid - Alfa - Regional cooperation programme
