INTRA-AFRICA PERI-ACE Scholarships 2026: Master’s and Doctoral Opportunities for African Students

INTRA-AFRICA PERI-ACE Scholarships 2026

PERI-ACE Scholarships 2026: Funded Master's, PhD and Internships Across Africa 🌍

📅 Application deadline: 17 September 2026

Applications are open for the PERI-ACE Academic Programs 2026, and for African students working in climate, water, and energy, this is one of the rare funded routes that keeps you on the continent instead of sending you abroad. Master's places, doctoral positions, and practical internships are all on the table across six universities in six different countries. But before you start assembling documents, there is one thing worth understanding about how this program is built, because most applicants get it wrong.

🌍 PERI-ACE Academic Programs 2026

6 African universities • Funded • English & French

📑 Table of Contents

• This is a mobility program, not a single scholarship
• Which track are you actually applying for?
• Where can you actually study?
• Do you have to speak English?
• 💰 What does the funding actually cover?
• What about the internships?
• 🎯 Application deadline: September 17, 2026
• At a glance
• Frequently Asked Questions

This Is a Mobility Program, Not a Single Scholarship

PERI-ACE stands for Partnership for Education and Research in Integrated Climate and Energy. It is not one scholarship with one application form and one host university. It is a framework that funds movement between African institutions, and that changes how you should approach it.

Concretely, it funds three different things: full degree programs, research mobility periods where you stay enrolled at your home university but conduct research elsewhere, and internship placements with regional organisations. Which of these applies to you depends entirely on where you are in your academic path right now.

Which Track Are You Actually Applying For?

Three distinct tracks are on offer, and they serve very different profiles:

• Master's degree (24 months) — A complete degree program, notably in engineering and water resources management. This is for students starting fresh.
• Master's research mobility (10 months) — You remain enrolled at your home university and travel to conduct targeted research. If you are already mid-degree, this is likely your route.
• Doctorate (36 months) — Research programs aligned with regional priorities: climate-resilient agriculture, urban adaptation, and renewable energy.

💡 Most applicants overlook the 10-month mobility option. If you are already enrolled somewhere and assumed you had to abandon your program to apply, you did not read closely enough.

If you are still mapping out your options, our overview of fully funded scholarships for African students covers a wider range of programs worth comparing against this one.

Where Can You Actually Study?

Six host universities participate, and each has its own program list. Read this section carefully, because your discipline determines your shortlist far more than your nationality does.

🇧🇫 2iE — International Institute for Water and Environmental Engineering (Burkina Faso) 🇫🇷 French

• Master's in Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence
• Master's in Energy and Electrical Engineering
• Master's in Civil Engineering and Sustainable Infrastructure
• Master's in Water Management and Sanitation
• Doctorate in Science and Technology — Water, Energy and Environment

🇪🇹 Addis Ababa University (Ethiopia) 🇬🇧 English

• MSc in Water Resources Engineering and Management
• MSc in Water Supply and Environmental Engineering
• PhD in Water Resources Engineering and Management
• PhD in Water Supply and Environmental Engineering

🇸🇳 Cheikh Anta Diop University (Senegal) 🇫🇷 French

• Doctorates in Continental Hydrology, Hydraulics, Hydrogeology, Water Chemistry, Integrated Water Resources Management, Water Policy, Coastal Governance, and Health and Environment

🇹🇿 Ardhi University (Tanzania) 🇬🇧 English

• Master's in Disaster Risk Management
• MSc in Environmental Technology and Management
• PhD in Disaster Management, Climate Change Studies, and Environmental Technology and Management

🇲🇿 Eduardo Mondlane University (Mozambique) 🇬🇧 English

• Master's in Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change
• Master's in Energy and Hydrology
• Master's in Hygiene, Health and Environment
• PhD in Energy and Technologies

🇿🇦 Stellenbosch University (South Africa) 🇬🇧 English

• Master of Philosophy in Disaster Risk Studies and Development
• Doctorates in Botany and Zoology (environmental and animal sciences)
• Postgraduate Diploma in Disaster Risk Studies and Development

Do You Have to Speak English?

Not necessarily, and this is where the pan-African design of the program works in your favour. Teaching runs in English or French depending on the institution. 2iE and Cheikh Anta Diop operate in French. Addis Ababa, Ardhi, Eduardo Mondlane, and Stellenbosch operate in English.

🇫🇷 Francophone students who have been ruling themselves out of continental programs on language grounds should look again at the 2iE and UCAD listings before assuming the door is closed.

What Does the Funding Actually Cover?

The program advertises full scholarships covering academic fees and mobility. Beyond that, the source announcement does not publish specific monthly stipend amounts or a detailed breakdown of covered expenses.

⚠️ That is not a reason to skip the application, but it is a reason to verify the exact package on the official PERI-ACE site for your chosen host university before you commit. Coverage in multi-institution programs like this one often varies from campus to campus, and the figure that applies to a student in Stellenbosch may not be the figure that applies to a student in Ouagadougou.

Beyond the money, participants get access to a pan-African network of researchers and practitioners, and bilingual academic exposure that is genuinely difficult to acquire any other way on the continent.

What About the Internships?

PERI-ACE funds five-month placements with regional partners, including AMCOW (African Ministers' Council on Water) and ICPAC (IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre). These placements come with hands-on experience, direct exchange with working professionals, transferable skills workshops, and structured networking.

💼 Do not treat this as a footnote to the degree tracks. For students who already hold a qualification and need a regional employer on their CV rather than another diploma, the internship route is arguably the highest-value part of the package.

If health sciences are closer to your field, the Antenna Scholarships for the Master's in Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Buea offer a comparable funded route within Cameroon.

Application Deadline: September 17, 2026

Applications close on September 17, 2026, and are submitted through the official PERI-ACE portal hosted by Stellenbosch University.

🎯 The mistake to avoid here is applying to a program because you recognise the university's name. PERI-ACE is organised around regional research priorities — climate-resilient agriculture, urban adaptation, renewable energy, water governance — and applications that clearly connect the candidate's existing background to one of those priorities are the ones that get read twice. Pick the program where your prior coursework and any field experience give a supervisor a concrete reason to select you.

🎯 Apply on the official PERI-ACE portal

At a Glance

Criterion	Details
Program	PERI-ACE (Partnership for Education and Research in Integrated Climate and Energy)
Region	Africa — 6 host universities across 6 countries
Levels	Master's, Doctorate, Postgraduate Diploma, Internships
Master's duration	24 months (full degree) or 10 months (research mobility)
Doctorate duration	36 months
Internship duration	5 months
Languages	English and French, depending on the institution
Funding	Academic fees and mobility covered; exact amounts not published in the call
Deadline	September 17, 2026

---

Apply here: blogs.sun.ac.za/peri-ace/apply | Full program list: blogs.sun.ac.za/peri-ace/academic-programmes

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the deadline for PERI-ACE 2026?

Applications close on September 17, 2026, and are submitted through the official PERI-ACE portal hosted by Stellenbosch University.

Can I apply if I am already enrolled in a Master's program?

Yes. The 10-month research mobility track lets you stay enrolled at your home university while travelling to conduct targeted research elsewhere. You do not have to abandon your current program.

Are French-speaking students eligible?

Yes. Teaching runs in English or French depending on the institution. 2iE (Burkina Faso) and Cheikh Anta Diop (Senegal) operate in French; Addis Ababa, Ardhi, Eduardo Mondlane and Stellenbosch operate in English.

How much is the monthly stipend?

The program advertises full scholarships covering academic fees and mobility, but the source announcement does not publish specific monthly stipend amounts. Verify the exact package on the official PERI-ACE site for your chosen host university before committing.

Which universities host the program?

Six universities across six countries: 2iE (Burkina Faso), Addis Ababa University (Ethiopia), Cheikh Anta Diop University (Senegal), Ardhi University (Tanzania), Eduardo Mondlane University (Mozambique) and Stellenbosch University (South Africa).

What do the internships involve?

Five-month placements with regional partners including AMCOW (African Ministers' Council on Water) and ICPAC (IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre), with hands-on experience, exchange with working professionals, transferable skills workshops and structured networking.

Don't miss any scholarship 🌍

Join our WhatsApp channel Accès Bourses Afrique to receive funded opportunities across Africa and worldwide in real time.

Join the WhatsApp Channel