Media Monitoring: Extract of Press News on Higher Education in Africa
- University World News
What challenges will the HE sector in Africa face in 2024? (Africa). The African Union (AU) has named 2024 as the Year of Education – a reminder to member states to keep pursuing the goals of the Continental Education Strategy for Africa (CESA) and Sustainable Development Goal 4, which aims to ensure inclusive, equitable quality education and lifelong learning for all. By providing quality education and skills for 21st-century job opportunities, Africa will be able to tap into its large population of young people as a source of economic growth, the AU says on its website outlining the year’s theme. The importance of focusing on the continent’s education systems and their outputs has been highlighted by a recent study that emphasises the gap between the graduate skills produced by universities and other tertiary education institutions on the continent and the skills required by their regional economies. The Addis Ababa-based United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) report warns that, unless the issues of quality education and skills development are attended to urgently, Africa could potentially squander its demographic dividend, namely, its large population of productive youths. Read more here.
2. Morocco World News
Mohammed VI Polytechnic University Expands to Paris (Morocco). Rabat – Morocco’s Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) inaugurated its first international branch in Paris last Wednesday. The expansion marks a significant stride in the school’s commitment to innovation and research. Fahd Benkirane, the managing director of UM6P France, gave his remarks at the event. According to the local student news outlet, AuFutur, he expressed honor in fostering cooperation between Morocco and France in academics, research, and entrepreneurship. Benkirane envisions UM6P France as a catalyst for “broadening perspectives on both sides of the Mediterranean through enhanced academic and economic partnerships.” UM6P was established in 2017, with its main campus in the city of Benguerir, near Marrakech. The university focuses on research in crucial areas such as food security, AI, health, humanities, economics, and social sciences. In addition to Benguerir, UM6P has campuses north in Rabat and south in Laayoune, boasting a diverse student body of more than 5,000 from over 20 countries. Read more here.
3. My Joy Online
University of Dar Es Salam forges partnership with KNUST E-learning Centre in ICT use for tertiary education delivery. (East Africa). Public universities across Africa are turning to the use of e-learning to cope with the rapidly increasing demand for university education. But limited ICT skills has hampered the adoption of e-learning. A four-member team from the University of Dar Es Salam, Tanzania have therefore paid a working visit to the E-Learning Centre of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. The visit was to expose the team to the use of ICT in the delivery of the University’s core function. The E-Learning Centre is mandated to deploy technology to support quality teaching and learning in the university. It has created a user-friendly platform, where students can access course materials, take exams and interact with lecturers. Read more here.
4. University World News
HE systems are out of sync with Africa’s human capital needs (Africa). The gap between Africa and the rest of the world in the development of job skills is widening and the challenge is that universities and other tertiary education institutions on the continent are not producing enough graduates with the knowledge and skills required by their regional economies, according to the Addis Ababa-based United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). In a study, Human Capital and Productive Employment Creation: Addressing Africa’s skills gap, the ECA noted that the gross enrolment of students at tertiary institutions in Africa continues to be lower than in other regions and invariably differs widely across the countries in the continent. The issue is that, despite progress towards improving access to higher education, most African countries have not caught up to the global average of tertiary education enrolment which currently stands at 35%. So far, only Mauritius, Algeria and Tunisia have attained that goal. The study, published recently in collaboration with Oxford Economics Africa, noted that, whereas most African countries are below the global average, the median tertiary enrolment for Sub-Saharan Africa is only 8.6%. Read more here.
5. US Embassy in Ethiopia
Ethiopian University Leaders Share Best Practices from U.S. Exchange Experiences (Ethiopia). Addis Ababa, January 22, 2024 – Over the last two years, 50 university presidents and vice presidents from 37 Ethiopian public universities have traveled to the United States to examine the leadership, management, and governance practices of leading U.S. public universities including Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, and Ohio State Universities. The goal of the two-week study experiences in 2022 and 2023 was to provide the participating university leaders with opportunities to reflect on their management practices and policies and gain inspiration for how to improve the administration of their institutions. This Leadership, Management, and Governance (LMG) program was funded by the U.S. Department of State and implemented through a grant to the partner universities, led by Texas Tech. The program was developed and implemented in close collaboration between the U.S. Embassy and the Ministry of Education. On January 17 and 18, the university leaders who participated in the LMG program convened at the U.S. Embassy and the Skylight Hotel to share their best practices and lessons learned as they have attempted to implement the ideas generated through the exchange experiences at their institutions. Read more here.
6. Ghana Web
University of Ghana to set up laptop assembly plant to support students (Ghana). The University of Ghana, Legon, has awarded contracts for the setting up of a laptop assembly plant on campus to further support students’ access to laptops at highly competitive prices. Since August 2022, the University has distributed 309 laptops to its students under the One Student, One Laptop initiative. The University, with support from individuals and corporate bodies, had donated 500 laptops to students who could not afford them. Professor Nana Aba Appiah Amfo, the Vice-Chancellor of the University, announced this on Tuesday in Accra during a congregational ceremony for the School of Graduate Studies. In all, 15,549 students are graduating from the PhD to the non-degree level. The Professor said the university’s efforts in inclusivity provided basic ICT training for seven visually impaired students in collaboration with the International Telecommunications Union and the Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communications. Read more here.
7. Malay Mail
DPM Zahid: Govt to create single body to standardise TVET for programme uniformity (Global). PUTRAJAYA, Jan 23 — The government will create a single body for rating Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programmes to standardise the quality of courses offered, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.Ahmad Zahid who is also National TVET Council Committee chairman said the decision was made at the TVET Council Meeting No. 1/2024 which he chaired here today. He said the measures were also to avoid a “mismatch” or non-alignment of the courses offered with the needs of the industry. “Coordination is done for the recognition and rating of TVET (graduates) where the unification to a single rating body is done in collaboration with the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) and the Department of Labour (JTK). Read more here.
8. Monitor
Makerere equips refugees with entrepreneurship skills (Uganda). Makerere University through the research and innovation fund with the funding from the Government of Uganda has equipped entrepreneurial skills in refugees from 10 countries. This follows a training conducted for six months from June to December 2023 in their various centre points in Wakiso, Kampala and Mukono districts. From this exercise, 435 trainees were awarded certificates. The trained refugees come from Burundi, Comoros, DR Congo, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, and Tanzania. They were trained from different communities including Kisenyi, Najjanakumbi, Kawempe, and Kireka. Dr Anthony Tibaingana, a lecturer at the College of Business and Management Sciences (Cobams) who doubles as the principal investigator of the project, said he conceived the idea in 2019 after doing research about refugees and found out they were one of the vulnerable groups that needed a hand to improve their living standards. “The refugees were trained to generate business ideas and how to develop the ideas and also market test those ideas, and transform them into real businesses,” Dr Tibangana said. Read more here.
9. Cameroon Concord
National Polytechnic University Institute Bamenda Celebrates Seamless Semester Examinations (Cameroon). The first semester examinations for one-year top-up bachelor’s degree students at the National Polytechnic University Institute Bamenda concluded successfully today, January 26th, 2024. The entire examination process unfolded seamlessly, marking a significant milestone for the academic institution. The exercise, from its commencement to the conclusion, was conducted without any hitches, showcasing the efficiency and dedication of all involved parties. The National Polytechnic University Institute Bamenda extends appreciation and applause to the Directorate of Academic Affairs, Deans, Exams Office, invigilators, fee control team, and Secretariat staff for their outstanding contributions to the success of the examinations. This achievement is a testament to the collaborative efforts and commitment to academic excellence demonstrated by the university’s administrative and academic teams. The National Polytechnic University Institute Bamenda acknowledges the pivotal roles played by each department involved in ensuring the smooth conduct of the examinations. Read more here.
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