The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS), founded in 1983, is an international organization dedicated to promoting scientific capacity and excellence for sustainable development in the developing world. As a programme unit of UNESCO, TWAS supports research, provides fellowships, and encourages collaboration among scientists in the global South. With its headquarters at the International Center for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) in Trieste, Italy, TWAS plays a crucial role in advancing science and technology in developing countries.
In partnership with the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), TWAS has been working to build a critical mass of scientists, researchers, and refugee scientists in the field of Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) relevant to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This partnership focuses on LDCs and includes several key initiatives such as postdoctoral fellowships, research and technology transfer grants, science diplomacy workshops, and support for refugee scientists.
The TWAS-IsDB partnership aligns with SDG targets related to scientific capacities, particularly SDG Target 9.5, which aims to enhance scientific research, upgrade technological capabilities, and encourage innovation in developing countries. Moreover, the programme supports sustainability science by selecting proposals based on scientific excellence and their contribution to the SDGs. On this note, research grants focused on epidemiology (SDG 3), while the most salient topics in fellowships were sustainable agriculture and energy, climate change adaptation, and green chemistry (SDG 3, SDG 13, SDG 15). The partners have also committed to support women scientits in developing countries by means of these programmes (SDG 5).
The evaluation of the TWAS-IsDB partnership was commissioned to ECOPER and led by ECOPER chief consultant, Dr. Aitor Pérez, who teamed up with Professor Lisa Butler, epidemiologist, and Dr. Eduardo Sanchez, envorinmental engineer. The team conducted a comprehensive review of project documents and administrative databases, as well as a bibliometric analysis of research outputs. By means of interviews, focus groups and a survey, the team collected feedback from scientists throughout the IsDB member countries including Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Indonesia, Jordan, Mauritania, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Senegal, Uganda, and Yemen.