5th Call for Exploratory Grants is now closed

You can apply for an Exploratory Research Grant under the PEDL initiative. The deadline for the call is 30 September.

Over the next five years, Private Enterprise Development in Low-Income Countries (PEDL) will pursue a research agenda that aims to better understand what determines the strength of market forces driving efficiency in Low-Income Countries (LICs). Existing research suggests that the private sector in LICs faces a number of constraints that act upon each other. What is needed is research that allows us to understand how these constraints interact.

PEDL will support approaches that promise to produce credible research results that will be useful for policy-making. It will promote research related to private enterprises of all sizes and will initially focus on four research themes:

  • Modelling market frictions in LICs using newly available data
  • Understanding how constraints interact using micro-founded macro models
  • The dynamics of SMEs: Informality and entrepreneurship
  • The role of export-oriented industries in driving growth

Proposals that address the following cross-cutting issues will be encouraged.

  • Fragile and conflict affected states
  • Gender
  • Climate, environment and social compliance

Proposals for Exploratory Grants can be submitted at any time and will be awarded primarily to allow researchers to:

  • explore new approaches to the study of firms in low-income countries
  • develop new (or build on existing) sources of data on firms in low-income countries.

Grants will range in value from between £10,000 to £35,000 (value for money will be a guiding evaluation criterion). The grants are designed to provide financial support for the individuals undertaking the research and to cover reasonable associated costs that are directly related to the proposed research project. These grants will generally run for a duration of 12 months.

Who is eligible?

Grants will be awarded on an individual basis primarily to researchers from academia, the non-profit sector, think-tanks and research centres, etc. Advanced stage PhD students may also apply – in which cases CEPR will request a letter from the student’s primary advisor that comments on the proposed research project and the student’s ability to carry out the project.

How do I apply?

Applications must be submitted online at the PEDL website. The description of the proposed research must not exceed three single-spaced pages and adhere to the proposal template. In addition, an up-to-date CV for the principal investigator (and any co-investigators) must be submitted, as well as a detailed project budget.

Applicants will be informed whether the proposal has been approved within two months of submission. CEPR may ask applicants to provide additional information in support of their application during this period. The Evaluation Committee may also request applicants to submit revised proposals should they consider that the proposal has sufficient potential.

Deadlines

The fourth deadline for Exploratory Grants is on 30th September 2012, 5PM BST (Applications received by this date will be reviewed by November 2012).

More information on PEDL

Apply for an Exploratory Grant