20 October 2022  Issue No: 379

Higher education institutions in Africa are joining the open-science movement, but they face challenges as they develop Africa-oriented practices, according to a new study. It highlighted the importance of open-research policies and problematic issues regarding power and ethics, along with open-science frameworks that could assist policy-makers.

The first-ever tertiary training institution for cinematography in the Central Africa sub-region, the Higher Institute of Cinema and Audiovisual Professionals of Central Africa, has opened in Cameroon. It also aims to serve students from, among others, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Chad, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

The urgency to fund universities in Africa to advance science for climate action has been highlighted by experts ahead of the 27th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP27, which will be hosted by Egypt in the Red Sea city of Sharm el-Sheikh from 7 to 18 November.

University World News passed another significant milestone this week – its 15th birthday – which is a moment for celebration of its achievements since its first edition on 14 October 2007, building a reputation for independent and in-depth reporting and commentary with a truly global perspective.

By 2030 there will be over 40 megacities in the world, putting additional pressure on city planners and leaders to manage growth and reimagine urban centres. Access to higher education institutions will be an important variable in this process.

A growing number of countries are trying to move away from a reductionist bibliometric approach in assessing the performance of academic researchers by developing systems that also consider such factors as teaching quality, social and economic impact, and a willingness to collaborate.

Academic fraud is on the rise and one type that has plagued Zimbabwe in recent years is the use of fake educational qualifications to gain entrance into an institution of higher learning. The use of forged diplomas and degrees to gain employment is a particular problem due to Zimbabwe’s economic crisis.

My name is Felister Makau. I am a postgraduate student at Egerton University in Kenya. I am working on a masters degree in horticulture. During my studies, I have not just learned about the technical side of producing seed potatoes, but I also learned how to organise daily project activities such as budgeting and technical reporting.

Nigeria has doubled the number of its ranked universities – from six to 12 – in the recently released Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2023, but experts differ on whether the achievement is an accurate reflection of the higher education system – in particular against the backdrop of labour instability.

African universities have made dramatic progress in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2023 as, for the first time, 97 universities from 17 countries, up from 71 last year, have been rated to be part of the best universities globally, with 10 of them in the top 500.

The unique role of universities in the European Green Deal has not been sufficiently recognised despite the fact that scientific culture, with its interdisciplinarity and perpetual collaboration and exchange, is a culture of inclusion, and those working towards a green transition can learn from it.

A new academic study shows that the contribution of Muslim-majority countries to global science is still modest but definitely growing, and that most contributions to global knowledge production are in the field of science, engineering and technology research rather than the humanities.