The Ghana National Research Fund (GNRF) has taken a significant step toward strengthening its institutional systems and enhancing the impact of research investment through a two-day training workshop on the Good Research Management Practice (GRMP) Standard, held in Accra on 25–26 August 2026. The workshop was organised by the Science for Africa Foundation (SFA Foundation). The workshop was facilitated by Allen Mukhwana, Head of Programmes, and Vincent Nkundimana, Senior Programme Coordinator, both from the SFA Foundation, drawing on the Foundation's extensive experience in strengthening research systems and institutional capacity across Africa.

The training brought together GNRF’s leadership and staff from across the organisation, including Research and Innovation, Finance, Human Resources and Administration, Corporate Affairs, Procurement, and IT. Among those participating were the Acting Administrator Prof. Abigail Opoku Mensah and Acting Deputy Administrator Prof. Shamsu-Deen Ziblim, underscoring the Fund’s commitment to building robust systems that support excellence, accountability and impact of research funding.

As a pan-African organisation dedicated to supporting, strengthening, and promoting science and innovation across the continent, the SFA Foundation works to build the institutions, systems, and leadership needed for Africa's scientific enterprise to thrive. A key part of this mission is strengthening research management capacity and helping organisations establish the governance, policies, and operational systems required to deliver high-quality, impactful research.

Central to the workshop was the GRMP Standard (ARS 1024:2025), the first international standard dedicated to research management. Developed through an extensive collaborative process involving experts from across Africa and beyond, the standard provides a common framework for strengthening research governance, improving institutional effectiveness, promoting accountability and maximising the impact of research investments.

The first day focused on the foundations of good research management, including governance and strategy, organisational systems, compliance, ethics, stakeholder engagement and professional development in research management. Participants explored how strong research management systems contribute to research quality, institutional credibility, and long-term sustainability.

On the second day, participants explored both the Good Financial Grant Practice (GFGP) Standard and the GRMP audit framework. Sessions covered grant administration, financial oversight, risk management, compliance, and information management systems, highlighting the institutional capabilities required to manage research funding effectively. Participants were also introduced to the GRMP audit journey, examining how audits can be used to assess organisational readiness, identify system-wide strengths and gaps, and drive continuous improvement. Rather than viewing audits as compliance checks, discussions emphasised their value as strategic tools that help institutions strengthen governance, enhance accountability, improve decision-making, and demonstrate their capacity to translate research investments into meaningful impact.

The engagement reflects a growing movement across Africa to strengthen research systems through better governance, stronger institutional capabilities, and internationally recognised standards. By investing in research management excellence, GNRF is contributing to a more credible, competitive, and impactful research ecosystem in Ghana and across the continent.

Looking Ahead

The workshop concluded with the development of a roadmap to guide GNRF’s adoption of the GRMP Standard, reinforcing the Fund's commitment to strengthening its own institutional systems and setting a benchmark for excellence in research funding. Over time, the roadmap could inform expectations and capacity-building efforts among institutions supported by GNRF, helping to raise standards across Ghana's research ecosystem. For the SFA Foundation, this represents a key milestone in advancing its broader agenda of strengthening research governance, accountability, and institutional capability across Africa. Alignment with GRMP and GFGP will enhance GNRF's ability to steward public research investments effectively, while reinforcing confidence among researchers, government, development partners, and potential co-funders.

This engagement places GNRF within a broader African movement to build research and grant-management systems that are locally grounded yet globally credible, reinforcing Ghana's role in shaping best practice across the continent's research ecosystem.