Collaboration to boost research and training in East Africa

Two higher education organisations in East Africa, the Inter-University Council of East Africa (IUCEA) and the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM), have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to formalise their collaboration in advancement of postgraduate training and research in East Africa.

The two organisations are both based in Kampala, Uganda. They identified several activities to be carried out towards the realisation of the aspirations of the MoU, and which, they say, will complement the mandates and responsibilities of both organisations.

They will be guided by the broad aspirations of the Continental Education Strategy for Africa, or CESA, 2016-25, and the Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa 2024 (STISA-2024).

Both are roadmaps developed by the African Union, and both place science, technology and innovation at the epicentre of Africa’s socio-economic development.

Specifically, the organisations will collaborate towards the harmonisation of higher-education standards in East Africa, in line with the African Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance, or or ASG-QA.

In addition, they will establish and coordinate regional postgraduate scholarships and mentorship grants and design programmes to promote research, innovation, incubation hubs and centres of excellence in universities.

This will be besides undertaking initiatives to promote collaborations in multidisciplinary postgraduate studies and research in fields of agriculture and related areas.

Extended by a year

Under the MoU signed on 17 December in Kampala, the collaboration, which will run from 2021 to 2026, will, among other matters, focus on implementation of the proposed Eastern and Southern Africa Higher Education Centers of Excellence Additional Financing (ACE II-AF) project, to be funded by the World Bank.

The proposed project is a successor of the Eastern and Southern Africa Higher Education Centres of Excellence Additional Financing (ACE II), which was to end this year, but which will now see the IUCEA retain its former role as host of the Regional Facilitating Unit.

“As you might be aware, the ACE II Project was expected to be officially closed by 31 December 2022. However, the World Bank […] agreed to extend the project for one year […]. The project will, therefore, be officially closed in December 2023,” said Dr Jonathan Mbwambo, the ACE II project coordinator.

In furtherance of the MoU, the institutions have made a call to procure consultants for the upcoming ACE II-AF project which will also be backed by the World Bank in partnership with the governments of Malawi, Mozambique and Ghana, where the project will be implemented.

“Considering the performance of the ACE II project and the importance of agriculture in Africa, the leadership from the Republics of Malawi, Mozambique and Ghana approached the World Bank for possible funding to specifically support the development of agriculture by enhancing capacity in the key gap areas,” Mbwambo told University World News.

The key gap areas that the new project will address include agribusiness and entrepreneurship, agri-food systems and nutrition, agricultural policy analysis and agricultural risk management and climate change. Others are rural innovations and agricultural extension and statistical analysis, forecast and data management.

The other objective of the project will be to strengthen links between universities in participating countries and the needs of regional agricultural sectors.

Higher-education institutions from the three countries interested in participating in the programme have been requested to submit their Expression of Interest by 31 January. Those shortlisted will undertake development of final proposals with support from RUFORUM and IUCEA.