The Future of Collaboration and Capacity-Building: Transitions in the Time of COVID-19
Recapping the history of the Working Group in African Political Economy (WGAPE), how it has adapted to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and the silver lining of virtual events.
This post was written by CEGA Senior Research Associate Michelle Layvant.
The Working Group in African Political Economy (WGAPE) has evolved far beyond its original purpose of hosting an annual convening to provide feedback on in-progress research papers related to the African political economy. In 2019, WGAPE hosted its first-ever conference on the African continent, bringing together researchers from across the continent and the world to discuss research about Africa, in Africa. The meeting was a success, and inspired WGAPE to shift to an annual Africa-based meeting — until of course, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, rendering all international travel difficult. So the question became — how do researchers continue to engage with one another across continents? And how does WGAPE encourage collaborations and build capacity without in-person contact?
Founded in 2002 by CEGA Affiliate Dan Posner and CEGA Faculty Director Edward Miguel, WGAPE began with a simple idea: instead of limiting research discussions to a 25-minute seminar presentation with 5 minutes for feedback and questions, what if all attendees read papers in advance of the conference to offer in-depth insights? And what if economists and political scientists are actually brought together to discuss research on topics related to the African political economy? The result was an in-person conference that fostered an environment of growth and collaboration.
Each WGAPE conference invites 25–40 graduate students and faculty to read the competitively selected 7–10 in-progress (“working”) papers (or research designs) cover-to-cover prior to the start of the conference. Attendees then share feedback, critiques, and questions in a moderated a roundtable discussion. This unique format took off, with “WGAPE-style” conferences now held all over the world, including Boston, the Midwest, Abu-Dhabi, and Berlin.
Starting in 2016, funding from the Hewlett Foundation allowed WGAPE to invest in Africa-based researchers and promote collaborations between them and US-based researchers. As part of this, WGAPE has brought Africa-based researchers to the US to participate in the conference in-person, integrating their critical perspective and knowledge, while providing them access to training, and facilitating small research discussions and coffee chats on the side.
But the idea struck in 2019 — instead of flying African researchers to the US to discuss this research, why not have everyone meet in Africa? In order to truly engage with research related to Africa, a conference like WGAPE should be hosted at an African institution with the participation of local students and faculty. And — at a most basic level — an Africa-based meeting would allow for Africa-based researchers to convene more easily. With these points in mind, the first WGAPE Annual Meeting on the continent took place at the University of Cape Town in July 2019, and allowed us to invite more Africa-based researchers than ever before.
This year, we planned to carry on this new tradition by hosting the 2020 Annual Meeting at Addis Ababa University. As the story goes with most conferences scheduled for the summer of 2020, we had to scratch the in-person component. But that didn’t mean WGAPE needed to be canceled — we simply had to adapt. The 2020 Annual Meeting was held virtually from July 22–24 from 8:00 am — 11 am PDT (allowing attendees from various time zones to participate). In addition to the typical discussions on working papers and research designs, the conference included curated one-on-one “coffee chats” where conference participants met and discussed research interests. Finally, select junior researchers presented on a current research project to small groups. While it could never truly substitute for an in-person meeting, WGAPE experimented with the online conference format to keep individuals engaged and connected to others in the “room.” This was true to WGAPE’s original intention of convening researchers to generate new ideas together.
Switching to a virtual format was not only engaging but resulted in significant cost savings. With nearly $27,000 in funds remaining WGAPE was able to fulfill what once felt like a pipe dream — provide grants to support junior African researchers. After reviewing a whopping 250 applications from all over Africa, seven grantees (including two from incoming EASST fellows) were awarded funds to conduct research on a variety of topics ranging from internet crimes in Nigeria to political participation during COVID-19 in Benin. All grantees were paired with a mentor (US-based WGAPE faculty members including Kim Dionne, Karen Ferree, Willa Friedman, Andy Harris, Nahomi Ichino, Kimuli Kasara, and Eric Kramon) to advise on their research project. In addition, grantees will have the opportunity to have their paper discussed at a future WGAPE meeting — continuing the tradition of improving early-stage research through deep, constructive feedback.
What is in store for WGAPE in the age of COVID-19 and beyond? It will continue to be critically important to engage researchers and foster collaborations between US and Africa-based scholars through cross-continental online meetings (and eventually in-person meetings). However, virtual technology opens up new possibilities — rather than one annual meeting, WGAPE now has the potential to meet several times a year and engage a diversity of participants. Moreover, we hope to continue funding research directly through small grants. Demand for research funding is high, and talent is becoming stronger every year. Stay tuned for findings from our grantees, and updates on future directions of WGAPE.
