Africa Plan – UCSC
The main European University operating in Africa and with Africa
With the Africa Plan, Università Cattolica aims to become the main European university operating in Africa and with Africa, working in partnership with local universities and institutions, aiming at mutual enrichment, for the integral development of people, the promotion of brotherhood and peaceful social coexistence.
The African continent is thus placed at the heart of our educational, research and third mission projects. In a spirit of reciprocity, the University intends to expand the training programmes for young Africans on site or in Italy, intensify joint research projects, contribute to the sustainable development of Africa by enhancing its knowledge and skills in the many areas in which the University is engaged.
Project mapping
The first phase of the Africa Plan – UCSC focused on mapping current or recently completed projects at the University. In March 2025, the mapping led to the identification of 125 cards illustrating the initiatives promoted by Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore.
Some elements have been considered:
- Title
- Objectives and brief description of the projects
- Type of initiative: Teaching, Research, Third Mission
- Thematic area
- Structures of Università Cattolica
- Academic contact person
- Country(ies) of intervention
- Funder
- Nature of the funder
- Economic dimension
- Progress status
The educational, research and third mission projects promoted by Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Africa are a sign of the wealth of experience that our University has gained, developing interventions that in many cases combine the three areas.
Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, with its 12 Faculties, covers a wide range of disciplines.
The main thematic areas to which the projects carried out with Africa can be traced back are:
- Diaspora in Italy
- Education
- Local social and political problems
- Health
- Agri-food system and environmental sustainability
- Economic development
- Enhancement of local culture
The University's initiatives are fairly evenly distributed across the various thematic areas.
A large number of projects concern the area of Local Social and Political Problems, a cross-cutting theme with respect to the faculties of the lecturers in charge.
Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore has activated or has just concluded numerous international cooperation projects that focus on a single African country and others that involve several nations on the continent.
Projects focused on a single country are often developed to address specific local needs, such as improving economic conditions, access to education, health or agricultural development.
On the contrary, regional or multinational projects address problems common to several countries, such as the risk assessment of illicit financial flows, entrepreneurship training, food safety on a large scale.
- Università Cattolica operates in 40 of African 54 countries.
- There are also 19 initiatives carried out in Italy involving beneficiaries from the African continent.
- The countries with which it collaborates are both English-speaking and French-speaking (to which Mozambique, a Portuguese-speaking country, is added).
Numerous initiatives with significant budgets are financed by funds from the Italian Government (Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Ministry of University and Research, Ministry of the Interior, Government Presidency of the Council of Ministers...).
The projects funded by the European Commission draw upon funds from the FAMI calls of the Ministry of the Interior, Erasmus+, European Research Council or Horizon 2020.
22 projects are funded by international organizations (foreign universities, international foundations or UN agencies).
Some projects of small or medium-sized financial capacity are supported with University funds.
About us
CHAIRMAN
- Prof. Elena Beccalli, Rector of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
DIRECTOR
- Prof. Mario Molteni, Full Professor of Business Administration, Faculty of Economics
MEMBERS OF THE AFRICA PLAN
- Prof. Marco Allena, Full Professor of Tax Law, Faculty of Economics and Law
- Prof. Francesca Benatti, Full Professor of Comparative Private Law, Faculty of Law
- Prof. Benedetto Lorenzo Cannatelli, Associate Professor of Business Administration, Faculty of Economics
- Prof. Raul Caruso, Full Professor of Economic Policy, Faculty of Linguistic Sciences and Foreign Literatures
- Prof. Marco Caselli, Full Professor of Sociology of Cooperation, Faculty of Political and Social Sciences
- Prof. Stefano Colombo, Full Professor of Political Economy, Faculty of Law
- Prof. Gabriele Ferrini, Associate Professor of Experimental Physics of Matter and Applications, Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences
- Prof. Michele Filippo Fontefrancesco, Associate Professor of Demo-ethno-anthropological Disciplines, Faculty of Education
- Prof. Chiara Giaccardi, Full Professor of Sociology of Cultural and Communicative Processes, Faculty of Arts and Philosophy
- Prof. Caterina Gozzoli, Full Professor of Psychology of Work and Organisations, Faculty of Psychology
- Prof. Beatrice Nicolini, Full Professor of History and Institutions of Africa, Faculty of Political and Social Sciences
- Prof. Andrea Paolo Perrone, Full Professor of Commercial Law, School of Banking, Finance and Insurance Sciences
- Prof. Vincenzo Tabaglio, Associate Professor of Agronomy and Field Crops, Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences
- Prof. Carlo Torti, Full Professor of Infectious Diseases, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery ''A. Gemelli''
- H. E. Mgrs. Claudio Giuliodori, General Ecclesiastical Assistant
- Paolo Nusiner, General Manager
- Prof. Mario Molteni, Director
- Ms Antonella Cassano
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