{"id":178164,"date":"2025-04-22T12:05:13","date_gmt":"2025-04-22T10:05:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=178164"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:27:47","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:27:47","slug":"iss-and-ihs-are-considering-a-merger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2025\/04\/22\/iss-and-ihs-are-considering-a-merger\/","title":{"rendered":"ISS and IHS are considering a merger"},"content":{"rendered":"

ISS and IHS are exploring a possible merger. This has been confirmed by ISS rector Ruard Ganzevoort and IHS director David Dodman.<\/p>\n

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On the left is the ISS building, on the right the Mandeville building where IHS is located.<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOseveno \/ Ronald van den Heerik<\/span>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

The International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) and the Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS) are currently exploring a closer collaboration, with full integration being one of the options. \u201cWe want to position ourselves as strategically as possible, especially now that the role of universities in the Global South is under pressure\u201d, says Ganzevoort. \u201cIt is becoming more difficult for us to connect the North and the South as a \u2018knowledge broker\u2019.\u201d According to him, there is decreasing willingness in Europe and the Netherlands to contribute to development and capacity building in Africa, Latin America and Asia: the Netherlands has significantly cut its development cooperation budget, restricted subsidies to matters of direct national benefit, and terminated the scholarship programme for students from the Global South.<\/p>\n

Nothing to do with budget cuts<\/h2>

Both institutes have seen a significant drop in student numbers since last year, when scholarships from the Orange Knowledge Programme came to an end, halving student intake. However, Ganzevoort and Dodman stress that the initiative is not driven by budget cuts or the end of that programme. \u201cThis is not a financially motivated discussion\u201d, says Dodman. \u201cOf course, the conversation is taking place in a challenging financial context, but that is not the reason.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Dodman, the considerations are primarily strategic and substantive. \u201cWe realise that our institutes are a good match and complement each other. We already work closely together on student recruitment, research, alumni networks and consultancy projects. This step is a logical continuation of that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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