28 August 2022  Issue No: 705

United States President Joe Biden’s long-awaited plan to deal with the student debt crisis – a critical issue with total debt at US$1.6 trillion and 16% of the more than 43 million borrowers in default – offers loan-forgiveness to millions, including middle-class borrowers, and a cap on the rate of pay.

In the aftermath of war and conflict, higher education plays an important role in the process of reconstruction as it provides opportunities for education and training that can assist affected countries to diversify their economies, strengthen technological capabilities and build a skilled workforce.

A recent study at Boston University in the United States shows how a combination of vaccination and risk mitigation measures, including mandatory indoor masking, regular surveillance testing and enhanced air filtration, were highly effective at keeping classroom transmission of COVID-19 at the university to negligible levels.

It is hoped that a future regional centre of excellence in science advice and diplomacy in Southeast Asia will give expression to a growing recognition of the need for science advice in policy-making in the region and an appreciation of its value in promoting regional prosperity.

At a time when the international student market is characterised by ongoing turbulence, and competition in the sector is immense, universities that address the overall well-being of international students, be it economic, emotional, psychological or social, are likely to stand out.

Virtual learning is no longer just a short-term bridge to sustain a commitment to global education during a pandemic. Having entered the mainstream, it now offers a real opportunity to ensure the achievement of inclusive and equitable quality education at a global level.

Universities from the East African Community, guided by the Inter-University Council for East Africa, could soon enjoy a harmonised higher education system with free movement of students and academic staff, and a harmonised tuition fee structure, among other advantages.

Mounting pressure for the decolonisation of higher education presents progressive opportunities for epistemic freedom and the emergence of universities that are authentic African universities, according to Sabelo Ndlovu-Gatsheni, the chair in epistemologies of the Global South at the University of Bayreuth, Germany.

New research that identifies four key reasons behind anti-science attitudes suggests that improving scientific literacy, the default solution for combating scepticism towards science, will only go so far towards solving the problem and a far more informed range of strategies may be needed.