Mapping and Assessment of Innovative Initiatives in Higher Education in Africa

Crispus Kiamba

Consultation on Higher Education in Africa Hosted jointly by AAU & the MasterCard Foundation Dakar, Senegal 21st – 22nd November 2016 Task objectives

• To identify major initiatives at both country, sub- regional and regional levels that aim at or have created notable impact on quality and relevance of higher education.

• To do an in-depth assessment of the initiatives as regards to design, financing arrangements, ownership, governance, and implementation arrangements and potential for scaling up.

• To report key gaps the initiatives were designed to address and challenges in the implementation. • To identify levers for success and/or failure, emerging trends in higher education that these initiatives represent and lessons of experience.

• To assess opportunities (potential and value add) for the MasterCard Foundation’s engagement in the initiative and/or more broadly in the innovations in higher education space. Approach/Limitations

• Source of information: largely literature review • The language question – Many initiatives (e.g., Francophone, Lusophone and Arab-phone) that the author could not access • Limited time – New initiatives not in the circulated document • The assessment question – Project ongoing; This presentation begins the assessment question/discussion. Principal indications of higher education in Africa • Access and equity

• Quality, quality assurance and enhancement

• Relevance – Relevance to the socioeconomic development needs of the countries: • to graduates in respect of the perceived value or utility of their learning experience. • development of crucial skills for the labour market and employability, • In a globalized world, entrepreneurial and globally competitive skills have increasingly become critical • Competency based learning • Funding/Financing – The institutional system – Research (including research uptake) and – Staff recruiting, training, deployment and retention – Student financing (e.g., scholarships, bursaries, loans, assistantships, etc)

• Information and technology – Institutional digitization – Research and education networks (RENs). – Open and distance strategies (virtual institutions, open online courses, e.g., massive online open courses - MOOCs). • Partnerships, collaborations, and networks – Formal collaboration among a group of organizations that address higher education in ways, and at a scale, that a single organization cannot. – Enhances capacity, opportunities, and solidarity with the potential spillover advantages, economies of scale and scope and providing mechanism to share benefits and costs of collective action. • Leveraging regional centers, networks and alliances of excellence

– A regional approach is not only a complement to national initiatives, it also has benefits that it brings to higher education, including: • regional public good; promote specialization - makes no sense for each country to invest in training capacity within each specialized area due to high cost; • concentrate the limited quality faculty available; – keep, concentrate, and develop best talent; – knowledge spill-over regionally and share best practice; – demonstration effect - pilot higher education reforms. • Private sector engagement – Leveraging triple/quantruple heritages

• Leadership, management and governance,

• Harmonization/Integration strategies (Regional, continental, etc) • Investing in science, technology and innovation

• Cannot ignore humanities and social sciences

• Giving back to society/communities – Volunteerism and community service – Other forms of experiential learning. – Alumni work

• Leveraging best practices or practices that work – critical in scaling, replicating and elevating successful strategies. • Addressing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), e.g:

– Goal No. 4: “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote life-long learning opportunities for all” and gives three specific targets as follows: • Goal 4.3: “By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university”; • Goal 4.4: “By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship”; • Goal 4.b: “By 2020, substantially expand globally the number of scholarships available to developing countries, • Goal 4.c: “By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers, including through international cooperation for teacher training in developing countries, especially least developed countries and small island developing States”. – Goal 9 meant to “Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation” requires: • Goal 9.5 “Enhance scientific research, upgrade the technological capabilities of industrial sectors • Goal 9.b: “Support domestic technology development, research and innovation in developing countries” Complexity of initiatives (+ their analysis) • The mapping of the initiatives are so far organized or categorized in accordance with their country or national, regional and continental scopes (circulated doc)

• Their assessment, however, to be organized in accordance with what higher education challenges they are addressing or are designed to address. • But, an initiative may have a multiplicity of intentions/impacts

– Most of the initiatives rarely address themselves to one aspect or challenge (e.g., access, equity, quality, excellence, funding, etc) facing higher education.

• An initiative will normally be designed to address a number of challenges/issues simultaneously

– Challenges closely interrelated, intertwined and their resolution is often synergistic

– A simplistic categorization of the initiatives can be misleading/difficult, albeit necessary for analysis of their impact/effectiveness/ innovativeness The Harmonization of African Higher Education

1. African Regional harmonization Initiatives

2. The African/Continental harmonization initiative 1. African Regional Harmonization Initiatives

• The Harmonization of Higher Education in East Africa: The Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA) and the East African Higher Education and Research Space (EAHERS) Initiative

• Higher Education Reform in Francophone Africa:

– The Council of the African and Malagasy of Higher Education/Conseil Africain et Malgache pour l’Enseignement Supérieur (CAMES) – The LMD ('Licence-Master-) Reform in West African Economic and Monetary Union (LMD-(WAEMU)

• Fundamental components of the broader or over-arching socio-economic development and regional integration processes of both the East Africa Community (EAC) and the Francophone Africa. – Pillars of (stepping stone to) the African Higher Education and Research Area The Harmonization of African/Continental Higher Education • The policy of harmonization of the African higher education, launched by African Union as part of its strategic objective of an integrated Africa

• This has demanded an implementation of the – continent-wide, regional and national initiatives to help reform and enhance quality in higher education – as well as promote the responses of higher education to the continent’s development needs and objectives by improving the relevance of higher education and the employability of graduates.

• A multidimensional and multi-actor process taking place at different system levels that promotes the integration of the Higher Education Space in the region - is intended to be achieved by collaborating across borders, continentally and regionally comprises several related areas/ activities/ projects:

• Establishment and Maintenance of Continental Political Commitment to the Process of Harmonization – including the establishment of the Education Division of the African Union

• The Addis Convention (former Arusha Convention): Mutual recognition of studies, certificates, diplomas, degrees and other academic qualifications in Africa

• African Quality Assurance Mechanism (AQRM) • Pan African University

• Pan African Institute of Education For Development (Iped)

• The African Quality Assurance Network (AfriQAN)

• Education Management Information Systems (EMIS)

• Association for Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) The Africa-EU partnership projects in support of harmonization

– Europe-Africa Quality Connect: Building Institutional Capacity Through Partnership – Nyerere Scholarship and Academic Mobility Programme: • Basic Nyerere Scholarship Scheme; • Intra-Africa Academic Mobility Scheme. • Intra-ACP Academic Mobility Scheme • Africa India Fellowship Programme – ERASMUS + Programme – Tuning Africa Project – Development of Pan-African Quality Assurance and Accreditation Framework (PAQAF) Research, funding, networks, etc The Carnegie led Research and Advocacy Networks Project …..Led to the establishment >>>

The Higher Education Research and Advocacy Network (HERENA) • Administered by the the Centre for Higher Education Transformation and (CHET) The African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA) • Launched by 15 universities from 8 African countries during the First High Education Summit: Revitalizing Higher Education for Africa’s Future, March 10, 2015 in Dakar, Senegal. • ACU Low Cost Journals Scheme: Protecting the African Library Scheme within Africa – In collaborating with International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP) – assist member universities in Commonwealth developing countries to secure access to high quality journals at an affordable price

• Science, Technology and Innovation Cooperation Between Sub- Saharan Africa and Europe: CAAST-Net Plus Project

– Cordinated jointly by the ACU and Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, and funded by the European Union’s Framework Programme for Research and Innovation – to support the EU’s policy of international cooperation in scientific and technological research and innovation with Africa. – Focuses on the three global societal challenges: health for all, food and nutrition security, and climate. – Supported competitive grants in these areas by Africa and European universities. • MasterCard Foundation • The Matasa Fellows Network – policy-oriented research around the challenges of young people and employment in Africa • International Development Research Center (IDRC) Initiatives – Canada-Africa Research Exchange Grants Phase II Project – Science Granting Councils Initiative in Sub-Saharan Africa (SGCI) • The Planet Earth Institute (PEI) Initiative • The African Institute for Capacity Development (AICAD)

– Jointly financed by the East African Governments - - Kenya, and (and more recently and Burundi) -- with the support of the Government of Japan through Japan International Cooperation Agency, (JICA).

– It has country offices in each of the East African Countries. Research Uptake Management

• Getting knowledge generated through research to those who need it, can benefit from it, and put it into use.

– Demand for universities to demonstrate the impact of their research – evidence-based policymaking

• Research uptake management requires specialist individual capacity, aligned organisational structures, and strategic management processes to optimise conditions for the dissemination, uptake, and application of scientific evidence, including facilitating evidence-based policymaking. ….>>>>>>>> • The Development Research Uptake in Sub-Saharan Africa (DRUSSA) Programme • to improve the capacity of universities in Sub-Saharan Africa to contribute contextualized research evidence in the development of pro-poor policy and practice. • 8 African countries and 22 universities • Funded by DFID and managed by ACU.

Critical element of DRUSSA Programme: Research-policy nexus – The Policy Fellowship programme • embedding scientist in decision-making process

– Need to train the Scientist/Policy Fellow: • Evidence-Informed Policy Making Toolkit by International Network for the Availability of Publications (INASP) • ROMA framework: Knowledge exchange and Policy Entrepreneurship – Overseas Development Institute’s (ODI’s)/IDRC’s RAPID(Research and Policy Development) Outcome Mapping Approach (ROMA) framework

– …..“Polipreneurship”!! • Partnership for African Social and Governance Research (PASGR) – Seeks to increase the capacity of African academic institutions and researchers to produce research that can inform social policy and governance. – 12 African countries and 16 universities. – Funded by DFID

>>> Enormous opportunity for expanded partnerships for the Masters and Professional programmes Scholarships, fellowships, bursaries • The Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship (CSFP) Plan (including the CSFP Endowment Fund)

– The Plan, almost 60 years old, is managed by the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) who report the Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (CCEM) • Largely funded by UK through the DFID – The CSFP Endowment Fund, established in 2009, supports Commonwealth Scholarships in low and middle income Countries • Has enabled more Commonwealth countries to contribute (funding) and host scholars: enormous room/need for expansion – The CSFP Taskforce completes exercise December 2016! • The Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) – The Competitive Grants System. • supporting the training of agricultural post-graduate students (Masters and PhD levels): Graduate Research Grants; Community Action Research Programme; Field Attachment Programme Awards; Doctoral Grants – Highly resourced and networked: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Carnegie Corporation; Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research; DAAD; USIAD; European Union…

– …>> but need for more support • The MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program – Support Bachelor’s, Master’s and Doctoral level study in North American universities and African universities. • The Program uniqueness: Through Foundation partners, selects young men and women from economically disadvantaged communities who have demonstrated academic talent, commitment to giving back, and potential to lead attributes – The Matasa Fellows Network – policy-oriented research around the challenges of young people and employment in Africa. – >>>Opportunity for expanded partnerships. • PASET Project – A game changer subject to expansion of participation by Africa governments, African private sector and donors

• ACE Project – Room for expansion/ Expansion of the Nigerian Nigerian model to other African countries

• The Higher Education and Research in Africa (HERA) programme • M.A. and PhD Programmes: Fostering the next generation of academics (, South Africa and Uganda) • Need to extent to more countries and to increase collaborations • DAAD scholarships – Normal DAAD scholarships – Joint DAAD-African governments PhD Scholarship Project (Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania) • >>>> Expansion/ High case for best practice

• IDRC supported scholarship projects: – Strengthening Research Capacity on Enterprise and Entrepreneurship: Supporting Inclusive Growth PhD Studies Project – Scholarships to students from Sub-Saharan Africa (other from South Africa) at the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS), University of Pretoria. – >>>> Great practice/expansion and emulation Centres/Networks of Excellence • German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) African Centres of Excellence in Africa (Best practice model)

– Ghanaian-German Centre for Development Studies (GGCDS) at

– Tanzanian-German Centre for Eastern African Legal Studies (TGCL) at the University of Dar es Salaam

– Congolese-German Centre for Microfinance (CGCMF) at the Université Protestante au Congo, Kinshasa

– Namibian-German Centre for Logistics (NGCL) at University of Science and Technology, Windhoek formerly Polytechnic of Namibia

– East and South African-German Centre for Educational Research (CERM-ESA) at the Moi-University, Kenya

– South African-German Centre for Development Research (SA-GER) at the University of the Western Cape , Bellville

– South African-German Centre for Transnational Criminal Justice at the University of the Western Cape , Bellville • Regional Initiative in Science and Education (RISE) Networks (Good practice model)

– A project of the Science Initiative Group (SIG), established in 1999 to provide scientific and administrative oversight for the Millennium Science initiative (MSI) and hosted by the Institute of Advanced Study, – Supports scientists and engineers pursuing MScs and PhDs in selected disciplines through regional university-based networks in sub-Saharan Africa – RISE is currently made up of five university-based networks spread throughout sub-Saharan Africa, each focused on a particular research area: • African Materials Science and Engineering Network (AMSEN-RISE)) • African Natural Products Network (AFNNET-RISE) • Southern African Biochemistry and Informatics for Natural Products Network (SABINA-RISE) • Sub-Saharan Africa Water Resources Network (SSAWRN • Western Indian Ocean Regional Initiative (WIO-RISE) • African Mathematics Millennium Science Initiative (AMMSI) • Carnegie Corporation initiated networks (Another good practice model/replication/expansion)

– Academic Networks and Fellowships Programme: Connecting centres of higher education and academics across Africa and the diaspora

– Peace-building in Africa: Supporting research, training, and networks leading to African solutions for Africa's problems

– Developing and Retaining the Next Generation of Academics Initiative » fostering postgraduate training networks • African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) – “Building Science in Africa” – “Next Einstein Initiative” (An A+ model/ expansion/replication) – AIMS is a pan-African network of centres of excellence for postgraduate education, research and outreach in mathematical sciences with its headquarters in Cape Town, South Africa, with centres/nodes already in Tanzania, Ghana, Senegal and and two more planned for Rwanda and Morocco.

– The project intends to reach 15 educational centres in Africa by 2023.

– Established in in Cape Town, South Africa, in 2003 as a partnership project: Cambridge, Cape Town, Oxford, Paris Sud XI, Stellenbosch, and Western Cape.

– The goals of AIMS are to: promote mathematics and science in Africa; recruit and train talented students and teachers; and build capacity for African initiatives in education, research, and technology. • Nelson Mandela African Institutes of Science and Technology – A network of Pan-African institutes of science and technology offering post graduate certificates and located across the continent. – (A+ model) • The African Higher Education Centers of Excellence (ACE) Project – promote regional specialization among participating universities in areas that address regional challenges (Agriculture, Health, STEM) and strengthen the capacities of these universities to deliver quality training and applied research – West and Central Africa (ACE I) • (19 Centres) Agriculture, Health, STEM – Eastern and Southern Africa (ACE II) • (24 centres) - Industry, Agriculture, Health, Education and Applied Statistics. • (***Three star model/expansion, replication, sharpen…) • Welcome Trust African Institutes Initiative: Strengthening Research Capacity in Africa

– Creation of 7 new international Consortia, each led by an African institution and aimed at strengthening health research capacity in sub-Saharan Africa: – Examples: • The Southern Africa Consortium for Research Excellence (SACORE) • The Consortium for Advanced Research Training in Africa (CARTA) • The One Medicine Africa-UK Research Capacity Development Partnership Programme for Infectious Diseases in Southern Africa (SACIDS), • AfDB supported East Africa’s Centres of Excellence for Skills and Tertiary Education in Biomedical Sciences

– network of four Centres of Excellence for Skills and Tertiary Education in Biomedical Sciences programme in East Africa:

• EAC Regional Kidney Institute in Kenya (nephrology and urology); • EAC Regional Heart Institute in Tanzania (cardiovascular); • EAC Regional Cancer Centre in Uganda (oncology); • EAC Regional Centre of Excellence in Biomedical Engineering, eHealth and Health Rehabilitation Sciences in Rwanda (biomedical engineering and e-health). • EAC Regional Centre of Excellence in Burundi on Nutritional Sciences (2nd phase) Partnerships, collaborations, etc

• Partnership for Skills in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology (PASET) Project – (“Creating a Critical Mass of Highly Skilled Science and Technology Professionals in Africa”)

• Partnership for African Social and Governance Research (PASGR)

• The African Economic Research Consortium (AERC): The Collaborative Research, PhD and Masters Programs in Economics Initiative

• The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) Africa Project*** Institutional, Leadership, Policy and Governance Initiatives

• Partnership for Higher Education in Africa (PHEA) – Carnegie teamed up with the Ford Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the Rockefeller Foundation, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and the Kresge Foundation to establish PHEA • Leadership, Policy and Governance: Supporting advancements in select countries in sub-Saharan Africa • University strengthening project • Development and implementation of strategic plan

• Need to reboot this partnership/review/expansion • Developing and Retaining the Next Generation of Academics Initiative*** – Establishment supported by Carnegie • strengthen postgraduate programs at select universities • strengthen disciplines through providing fellowships • fostering postgraduate training networks • improving institutional training, policies and leadership. • ACU Structured Training for African Researchers (STAR) Initiative***

– Funded by Robert Bosch Stiftung, works collaboratively with African universities to provide structured professional development for academic staff early in their careers. – Helps to strengthen the long-term vitality of research and teaching activities. – Assists participating universities to strengthen and develop their institution’s support framework for early career researchers; collaboratively developing an openly licensed, online professional skills course, which is backed-up by individual mentoring; and helping institutions to adapt the training courses and embed them within their own training programmes • ACU Gender Programme*** – Supports the recruitment and retention of women in higher education leadership and management, and promotes gender equity as an integral institutional goal.

• ACU Measures: Management Benchmarking*** – An online benchmarking exercise for university management to benchmark their performance in key areas of university management. – Rather than seeking to rank institutions, ACU Measures helps universities to compare and contrast their practices and policies with their peers, supporting senior university management in decision- making and strategic planning. • Carnegie Corporation – The Leadership, Policy and Governance: Supporting advancements in select countries in sub-Saharan Africa – Supporting a key recommendation of the African Higher Education Summit to further improve the environment for African higher education by promoting the production of policy-relevant research on the higher education sector and evidence-based information to guide higher education policies on the continent.

• ACU Climate Impacts Research Capacity and Leadership Enhancement (CIRCLE) Programme*** – Initiative to develop the skills and research output of early career African researchers in the field of climate change and its local impacts on development. – institutional strengthening programme to strengthen capacity of the institutions involved in the programme. • PASET – Regional Benchmarking Initiative for Universities; Country ASET Action Plans; Regional TVET Centers for Excellence; Data Initiative; Regional quality assurance framework for post graduate programmes

• SADAC Management and Governance Project (SARUA) • The SARUA Programme for Climate Change Capacity Development (PCCCD)***

“To significantly enhance the climate adaptive capacity and resilience of the SADC region through the development of a collaborative network of higher education institutions capable of pooling resources, maximising the value of its intellectual capital and attracting significant investment into the region.”

(Expansion to all Africa) • Programme for University Leaders in the Southern African Region (PULSAR)

– The development of senior executive managers in SARUA member organisations in the governance, leadership and management of the universities .

– (Essential programme for the entire African continent) Gender/women

• Carnegie Women Scholarship Programme

• ACU Gender Programme: Resources and Workshop Grants

– Supports the recruitment and retention of women in higher education leadership and management, and promotes gender equity as an integral institutional goal.

– (Need for expansion of women support/advancement programmes) ICT, National Research and Innovation Networks (NRENS)

• The Carnegie led Bandwidth Consortium – Pioneering initiative: universities joined together to purchase discounted Internet service/ negotiations with satellite service providers. – Paved the way for the formation of NRENs as terrestrial broadband became increasingly accessible.

• Carnegie Research Commons Initiative – Designed to support postgraduate students and early career faculty members and emerging researchers, enabling them to complete advanced degrees and become productive researchers. • Creating spaced within eight university libraries for fitting with IT infrastructure and access to online resources. • Carnegie/PHEA Education Technology Initiative – Utilization of e-learning tools to reach more students and to enrich the curriculum. • To advance new e-learning models (for the classroom at select universities to serve as catalyst for the continent. • The universities worked collaboratively to identify and implement new approaches to harnessing technology for the classroom

• IDRC supported networks/Initiatives

– Network of Internet and Society Research Centers • University of Cape Town is a participant. It host the Research ICT Africa.Net (RIA) comprising 20 African countries. – Universities in Innovation for Inclusive Development Africa Projects • Support a research network of universities and research councils from six African countries - , , , South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda - as well as three Pan-African associations of higher education. • IBM Research - Africa Initiative – “Developing solutions in Africa, for Africa and the world” – The Catholic University of East Africa, Nairobi, Kenya and University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.

– (A+ expansion/replication) Science, technology and Innovation

• The Regional Initiative in Science and Education (RISE) – A project of the Science Initiative Group (SIG), established in 1999 to provide scientific and administrative oversight for the Millennium Science initiative (MSI) – Build capacity in science, technology and innovation as a key to economic development in sub-Saharan Africa. – Supports scientists and engineers pursuing MScs and PhDs in selected disciplines through regional university-based networks in sub-Saharan Africa. U.S. International Higher Education, Science and Technology Partnership Programmes

• The International Research and Sciences Program

• The U.S. Partnerships for Enhanced Engagement in Research (PEER) Program.

• The Higher Education Solutions Network (HESN): Connecting to Accelerate Global Development Program, e.g., The Resilience Innovation Labs (RILab) project at the Resilience Africa Network at Makerere University, Uganda.

• The U.S. Global Development Lab • ACU Titular Fellowships – funded by the ACU’s Development Fellowships Fund (ACUDFF) largely for sciences and technology fields, including STEM, Health, Agricutlture, etc • The African Centres of Excellence (ACE) Project • PASET project

• ALL THE above STI PROGRAMMES REQUIRE EXPANSION/MORE PARTNERSHIPS Strengthening Research in the Humanities and Social Sciences in African Countries

• Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) – CODESRIA is headquartered in Dakar, Senegal, was established in 1973 as an independent pan-African research organization primarily focusing on social sciences research in Africa.

• The ACU Nairobi Process: Strengthening Research in the Humanities and Social Sciences in African Countries – Collaboration between the ACU and the British Academy – aims to strengthen research in the humanities and social sciences in African countries

• Partnership for African Social and Governance Research (PASGR) Innovative National Funding Initiatives in Higher Education in Africa

• Models for Creatively Funding Higher Education in Nigeria: The Intervention Funds in Nigeria – the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund): – Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF): and – Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF).

• Innovative Funding of Higher Education in Ghana – The Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) • Funding Higher Education and Research in Kenya: – The Universities Fund – Competitive Research and Innovation Fund – Performance Based Funding – Kenya Higher Education Student Financing: University Students Loans Scheme Initiative

• Funding Higher Education and Research in South Africa – The National Funding of Research and the National Research Foundation (NRF). – Research and Development (R&D) Tax Incentive. Innovative Employability and Inclusive Development Initiatives in African Universities***

• South Africa – Graduate employability and citizenship through social entrepreneurship at the Department of Management Practice, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU). – Entrepreneurship and community engagement at the Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP), Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE), Vaal University of Technology (VUT) – Access, participation and success at the Faculty of Commerce, University of Cape Town (UCT). • Kenya – Incubation Hub and @iLabAfrica Research and Innovation Centre, . – The Chandaria Business Innovation and Incubation Centre (BIIC),

• Ghana – Kumasi Business Incubator at the KNUST

• Nigeria – Centre for Entrepreneurial Studies (CES) at the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), Ogun State. – Centre for Entrepreneurship at University (KWASU), Kwara State Conclusion

The examples presented here represent a small but indicative sample of innovative initiatives in African universities. There is significant opportunity to both learn from these evolving initiatives and tap into the vast resource of increasing knowledge and expertise to ensure that that Africa’s best minds are brought to bear on its, and indeed world’s, biggest challenges and that the best insights are mobilized for maximum impact. Africa’s research findings must also contribute to informing best practices and/or practices that work in the search for efficient, effective and innovative solutions to global challenges, of which it is a part. Finally, enormous opportunity exists for even more innovative initiatives, allowing for creative partnerships at all levels, including governments, the private sector or industry, and development partners. … post script !

“We must try, through education, to realize something new in the world by persuasion rather than by force, cooperatively rather than competitively, not for the purpose of gaining dominance for a nation or an ideology but for the purpose of helping every society develop its own concept of public decency and individual fulfilment." (Sen. J. William Fulbright)