21 October 2021  Issue No: 333

France is strengthening partnerships with the African higher education sector – a move perceived to be part of a broader strategy of higher education diplomacy or ‘soft power’ aimed at strengthening African alliances to serve France’s cultural, economic and political agendas.

Academics and students are worried that the fragile peace in Nigeria’s education sector is under threat as bandits continue their rampage across the country, kidnapping undergraduates and making the citadels of learning across the country unsafe.

‘Knowledge curatorialism’ is the process through which contemporary universities shape students’ learning journeys. This process of guiding and curating is filled with ideology, politics and choice, and will require from academics to be mindful about the choices they make as they guide students’ attention.

Debating broadens students’ way of thinking, develops their ability to think critically and solve problems – and increases overall confidence and public speaking abilities, said Abiel Intwarane, a third-year law student from the University of Rwanda, who has emerged as the best speaker at the Global Commonwealth Inter-Tertiary Schools Debating Championship.

A hunger for a university degree, a scholarship opportunity and entrepreneurial savvy have enabled a Tanzanian student to start growing and selling mushrooms. His agriculture studies at Egerton University provided the foundation that Mohamed Jumanne Manjale could build on.

Peer reviewers provide an essential service, contributing to the quality of articles, but the experience also helps support their own career development, keeping them up to date with developments in their field, building networks and connections, enhancing their writing skills and earning them recognition as experts.

What is an entrepreneurial university? What is the role of universities in nurturing a culture of entrepreneurship amid alarming youth unemployment rates in South Africa and the rest of Africa? What should the nature of entrepreneurial education be amid existing concerns over academic capitalism? Experts put their heads together during a four-day hybrid conference to consider these questions.

Universities should not merely ‘consult’ their faculty (and students) about proposed new policies on governance issues surrounding internationalisation. They should involve academics from the outset and in every stage of the process – including in key decision-making and in the formulation of policy.

Pressure to publish and climb the rankings is everywhere in higher education and it affects younger academics in developing countries more, where access to journals is more challenging. The skewing and fatigue it induces is damaging higher education in the Global South.

Today the average white family has roughly 10 times the amount of wealth as the average black family in the United States, while white college graduates have over seven times more wealth than black college graduates and the black student debt crisis is widening the wealth gap.