The Good Grant Practice (GGP) standard is amongst the world’s first international standard in grant management, developed by the African Academy of Sciences’ Global Grant Community. The GFGP standard promotes transparency in the use of funding by local organizations and strengthens the governance of grant funding and management worldwide. In Kenya, the GGP certification is facilitated by the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) and is hosted by the Academy of Sciences. The certification process involves an assessment that covers financial, management, human resources, and procurement areas. Mount Kenya University is in the process of finalizing her GFGP-Gold certification, having underwent a successful assessment process by KPMG between July and August 2025, led by the College of Graduate Studies and Research and Chaired by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Academic and Research Affairs.
As part of the assessment process, eight members of staff involved in the grant management ecosystem have been going through a mandatory self-paced capacity building exercise, the GGP-VA. This process culminated to the APHRC Virtual Learning Academy (VLA) workshop at Entebbe, Uganda from 22nd to 25th September, 2025 that was attended by senior representatives from 40 Universities and other allied institutions from Africa. MKU was represented by Prof. Peter G. Kirira, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Administration, Planning & Institutional Advancement, Dr. Henry Yatich, the Principal College of Graduate Studies & Research and Mr. Kennedy Njoroge, Director, Internal Audit, Assurance & Risk Management. The VLA is a platform that delivers interactive training modules, peer-to-peer learning, and expert-led mentorship to support institutions in adopting best financial management practices. MKU is poised to be part of the Growing Community of Practise (CoP) that fosters peer learning and collaboration in good grant finance practices.
Prof. Peter G. Kirira (center, seated), Dr. Henry Yatich (left, seated) & Mr. Kennedy Njoroge (right, seated) take a photo with the Virtual Learning Academy facilitators headed by Dr. Joseph Gichuru Wang’ombe, Deputy Executive Director, APHRC (center, standing).
In addition to the GFGP workshop, the team attended the 7th East African Research & Innovation Management Association Conference (EARIMA). EARIMA focuses on setting up and strengthening regional Research and Innovation (R&I) management networks, where R&I managers can access information, share experiences and good practices, and benchmark their progress. The focus of the conference included the following sub-themes.
- Future-ready research management: adapting to a rapidly evolving world
- From knowledge to action: amplifying research impact for a better society
- Research and innovation funders in socio-economic transformation
- Culture in research and innovation for socio-economic transformation
- Next generation of researchers and innovators for socio-economic transformation
