In 1997, the Angola Educational Assistance Fund secured and managed a grant from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), the Canadian development assistance agency, to establish a computer and Internet access network at the Catholic University with more than 200 personal computers. With the subsequent adoption of new applications and continual technology upgrades, UCAN’s Information and Communication Technology infrastructure has greatly enhanced its educational capabilities. AEAF has collaborated extensively with the Harvard University Center for International Development, MIT Media Lab, and the University of Trento in Italy to assist UCAN in making the best use of this infrastructure.

In 1998, the Angola Educational Assistance Fund worked with the Sabre Foundation, Chevron, and Salem State College to coordinate the shipments of over 75,000 volumes and textbooks for the Michael LeM. Kennedy Catholic University Library. These shipments helped the library expand to more than 500,000 books and become one of the best equipped libraries in the country. As the library continues to grow in offerings and use, UCAN has extended library access to the community and to anyone that wishes to consult or borrow books. Many professionals and teachers from other schools are also using this community library.

Given its prominent role in assisting Angola on issues related to education and socio-economic development, the Angola Educational Assistance Fund was contracted by the World Bank for 6 months in 2002 to research and document a study of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in the petroleum sector in Angola. AEAF co-authored the widely-circulated report: “CSR in the Oil Sector in Angola: World Bank Technical Assistance Study,” which was presented at the WB International Conference on CSR in Washington, DC, and can be downloaded from the World Bank web site.

In 2003, the Angola Educational Assistance Fund directed efforts to secure and manage a 4-year $1.7 million grant from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to establish the Research Center at the Catholic University of Angola called the Centro de Estudos e Investigação Cientifica (CEIC). In the process, AEAF obtained USAID grant-worthiness, an important certification that requires a high standard of management and accounting procedures. The Research Center today has a staff of 10 that oversees and conducts a variety of research programs and publications relating to the state of the Angolan economy. More information can be downloaded at: http://www.ucan.edu/ucan/Ficheiros_aspx/ceic.aspx.

In 2005, the Angola Educational Assistance Fund utilized a grant from Citizens Energy to create a medical communications center with satellite Internet access at the hospital Divina Provvidenza in the municipality of Kiamba-Kilaxi in Luanda. The hospital provides basic health care services to the over 1 million internally displaced people living in Kiamba-Kilaxi, and it is the leading medical institution in HIV-AIDS, TB, and malaria treatment and prevention in Luanda. An agreement between the hospital and the Catholic University established a teaching clinic as part of the new Medical School. AEAF looks forward to expanding its relationships with the hospital and is currently discussing a cooperation agreement with The Tufts University Medical School in Boston.

In 2007, the Angola Educational Assistance Fund established the Giant Sable Fund (GSF) as a non-profit organization to support efforts to protect the rare giant sable antelope, the national symbol of Angola. This GSF will provide direct financial support to one of the most ambitious scientific projects of the Catholic University’s Research Center to allow for the study and conservation efforts of the Giant Sable. Current efforts are taking place in Cangandala National Park, in the central highlands of Angola, where the few remaining herds of this majestic animal are located. Future expansion of these efforts is also being planned. National Geographic Society is presently in negotiations with the GSF to conduct a feature documentary on the Giant Sable, which will be filmed over the next 2 years. More information is available at http://www.giantsable.org/.