9 November 2023  Issue No: 428

The high study permit refusal rate for African students seeking to study in Canada can be blamed on increases in the volume of applications as a result of a recruitment model that invites mass applications and, in Africa, often relies on inexperienced downstream recruitment agents, an expert in the field has said.

The hopes of thousands of polytechnic graduates to convert their Higher National Diplomas to degrees have been dashed following a recent pronouncement by the National Universities Commission that such an upgrade would be unconstitutional. The National Universities Commission is Nigeria’s regulatory body for universities.

The University of the Free State in South Africa is leading a new consortium which aims to strengthen the capacity of universities in Africa to contribute towards climate-resilient food systems. Professor Linus Franke, who is involved in the initiative, speaks about its role and aims ahead of COP28.

While more needs to be done to mainstream cross-cultural learning and understanding into higher education curricula, the big challenge for the 21st century is to export it, beyond academe, as essential knowledge, skills and abilities in the lives and work of graduates.

Professor Kwamena Kwansah-Aidoo’s dream was to study journalism and communication, and then work in the media. That did not happen. He did, however, become a successful academic, rising through the ranks to become vice-chancellor of the University of Media, Arts and Communication in Ghana.

In Africa, attacks on academics and students as well as the destruction of university facilities occurred in Algeria, Burundi, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Uganda and Zimbabwe, according to the Scholars at Risk report, Free to Think: 2023.

Internationalisation and sustainable development have to be seen as complementary rather than opposing dynamics at higher education institutions. We need to ask how a different kind of internationalisation could contribute not only to making institutions more sustainable, but how it could contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs.

Putting international students at the core of immigration discussions, and reducing or removing their right to relocate with partners or children increase concerns for students’ mental health. By recognising the specific concerns of international students, universities can help to create a more supportive environment.

The latest Free to Think report by the Scholars at Risk network documents hundreds of attacks on students, higher education institutions and scholars in 66 countries. They range from a suicide bombing of an educational centre to laws banning the teaching of critical race theory.

As the United Arab Emirates prepares to host COP28, the global summit on climate action and sustainable development, University World News is running a weekly Special Briefing exploring the contribution of Gulf states’ universities to climate action and to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.