to bring together several universities across the African continent and the United States to tackle topics like health, education and agriculture. Some of the winners of the grant included professors at Calvin College, Georgia State University, and others. HED partnerships were proven to be sustainable and effective in their specific partnership project goals. Through these partnerships, for example, a Southeast Asia Impact Assessment Report illustrated the qualitative and quantitative results of closed partnerships. Many continue to remain active in their activities although HED funding has ended because of leveraged funds and project design. Training, Internships, Exchanges, and Scholarships Initiative (TIES) The TIES partnerships made up a huge portion of the HED partnership portfolio. The USAID-Mexico partnership was fully engaged in the creation of the RFAs to ensure that the award competitions closely matched the needs of the Mexican people and the higher education community between the United States and Mexico. Other RFAs focused on Rule of Law, Agriculture, Health Care, Tourism and Business Development, Natural Resource Management, Biodiversity conservation, and Energy. Bi-annual TIES conferences were held in Mexico to allow past and current Mexican partnership directors to engage with one another and discuss general issues and problem areas in the higher education community among academia and development specialists. HED produced publications in English and Spanish for these events to encourage cross-collaboration and information sharing. Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) partnerships spanned select countries within the Middle East and North Africa region. MEPI countries include: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Omar, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. The partnerships in this region focused on workforce and career development. Funding Higher Education for Development grants were funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and its Missions abroad. References LIPHEA Homepage BUET-PRME partnership homepage FLAWI (Florida West Africa Linkage Institute) U.S. Congressional Record External links Higher Education for Development Educational organizations based in the United States