SEADE Delivers: Building the Future of Africa-Europe Innovation Collaboration

Innovation ecosystems do not grow in isolation. They thrive when researchers, entrepreneurs, investors, universities, incubators, and policymakers can collaborate across borders.

That was the ambition behind the SEADE project (Strengthening the Europe-Africa Digital Ecosystem Through Increased Research and Innovation Cooperation), funded by the European Union under Horizon Europe and implemented by a consortium of partners across Africa and Europe.

In 2025, the ENRICH in Africa Center (EiAC) and Methys played a central role in delivering this vision.

According to the European Commission’s final project evaluation, all six project objectives were successfully achieved, with the project demonstrating strong internal coherence, effective delivery, and no material deviations impacting scope, quality, timelines, or outcomes. The evaluation further highlighted SEADE’s contribution to strengthening long-term Africa-Europe research and innovation cooperation and establishing sustainable structures that can continue beyond the lifetime of the project.

The results speak for themselves.

Creating the Infrastructure for Collaboration

At the heart of SEADE’s work was the continued development of the ENRICH in Africa Platform, a digital environment designed to connect innovation stakeholders across both continents.

During the project, eleven digital tools were integrated into the platform ecosystem, creating a more comprehensive environment for collaboration, knowledge sharing, funding discovery, and ecosystem engagement. New services included research and innovation funding opportunities, digital innovation hub directories, resource libraries, and dedicated support for Science, Technology and Research Actors (STRAs).

By the end of the implementation period, the platform was fully operational and supporting a growing community of researchers, entrepreneurs, innovation organisations, and ecosystem builders.

Turning Connections into Partnerships

One of the most tangible outcomes of SEADE was the Twinning Programme.

Following a highly competitive process that attracted 188 applications, eight strategic partnerships were established between African and European institutions. These collaborations span cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, sustainability, technology transfer, entrepreneurship, research capacity building, and women-led innovation.

More importantly, these partnerships moved beyond introductions to create structured collaboration programmes designed to generate lasting institutional relationships between organisations on both continents.

Building the Foundations for Long-Term Cooperation

Beyond platforms and partnerships, SEADE delivered extensive ecosystem mapping, policy analysis, stakeholder engagement, capacity-building programmes, and route-to-market services.

The project analysed more than 100 research and innovation policies and digital strategies, helping identify opportunities to strengthen Africa-Europe collaboration. It also delivered workshops, innovation dialogues, soft-landing initiatives, and knowledge-sharing programmes that connected stakeholders across multiple innovation ecosystems.

A key achievement highlighted by the evaluators was the establishment of sustainability mechanisms and governance frameworks designed to ensure that the benefits of the project continue beyond the funding cycle.

Looking Forward

SEADE has demonstrated that effective innovation cooperation requires more than funding alone. It requires trusted platforms, strong partnerships, shared knowledge, and institutions willing to build bridges across regions.

As the project concludes, the foundations for stronger Africa-Europe innovation collaboration are firmly in place. Through the ENRICH in Africa Center and the work of its partners, researchers, startups, innovation organisations, and policymakers now have greater access to the networks, resources, and opportunities needed to collaborate across continents.

For Methys, this represents more than a successful project. It reflects our commitment to creating the digital infrastructure and ecosystem connections that help innovation thrive across Africa and beyond.