Press Release of 14 February 2012

Since 1965 the German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE) has trained young German professionals in the Institute’s Postgraduate Training Programme to pursue career opportunities with development organisations in Germany and abroad. Alumni of the Programme include Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme, Ingrid Hoven, Executive Director for Germany at The World Bank, Bruno Wenn, Managing Director of DEG - Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH as well as Hans-Joachim Preuß and Adolf Kloke-Lesch, Members of the Board of GIZ - Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbei GmbHt.

The participants of the 47th Course now started their 11-week research trips to Egypt, Ghana, Indonesia and Tanzania. The four country working groups will focus on: (1) ‘Which factors determine the upgrading of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMUs)? The case of Egypt’, (2) ‘Youth poverty in Accra: livelihood challenges and perspectives in the context of urbanisation’, (3) ‘Sustainability standards in the Indonesian palm oil sector: Challenges and benefits of the smallholders’ and (4) ‘Private foundations and development cooperation: Insight from Tanzania’.

The field research carried out by small interdisciplinary groups in a developing country is the cornerstone of the Postgraduate Training Programme. The country working groups will be conducted in close relationship with the local partners, taking their ownership into account as well as the empirical knowledge gain. The projects will look for concrete needs for advice and at the same time creating future-oriented ideas and solutions.

Each country working group is headed by an academic DIE staff member. On-site they closely work with local partner organisations. Afterwards the groups will collect their research results in a report, which will be accessible to general public.

Since the first course in 1965, around 900 young professionals have completed the Postgraduate Training Programme of the German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE). Every year, DIE chooses 20 German and European university graduates from over 300 applicants to prepare them for their future tasks and responsibilities in the German and international development cooperation systems. During the training phase at DIE, the participants deal with the practical challenges of sustainable development in a globalised world. Working within small and interdisciplinary groups in developing countries gives them the opportunity to apply the acquired knowledge and gain practical experience in the framework of research projects designed to provide policy advice.