About SIRCA II
The Strengthening Information Society Research Capacity Alliance (SIRCA II) program is an ICTD and information society research capacity building project aimed at young and emerging researchers in the Global South (i.e. Africa, Asia, and Latin America).
The reason for engaging in such a program is because of the immense need and relevance in these regions for such a scheme, with sustained, mentorship-based capacity building efforts aimed at select groups of scholars. The program intends to address the lack of scholars in this field and achieve a balance in the primarily Western-centric research emerging from the region.
The project awards 15 research grants through a competitive selection process and provides the selected grantees with sustained training and mentorship throughout their research experience. The 15 Principal Investigators (PIs) will be advised one-on-one by senior research experts (“Collaborators“) around the globe.
The program will be managed by the Singapore Internet Research Centre, based at the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa, and the Instituto de Estudios Peruanos (Institute of Peruvian Studies – IEP), Peru. The SIRCA II Program is supported by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada.