Africa
By the mid-20th century, it was well established that the three missions of universities are teaching, research, and community service or outreach, the latter being to provide services or reach out to the community. , was understood to be essentially a unilateral, outward-looking process.
By the end of the 20th century, perhaps in view of the criticism that universities were in ivory towers and did not contribute to national development, the concept of universities engaging with society emerged. It was not clear what such engagement meant or how it should be carried out.
What is University Engagement?
In an attempt to explore this issue and better understand university engagement, the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) launched a research project on this issue in 2000. A year later, a survey of 500 member universities across the Commonwealth was carried out following extensive consultation. A document entitled “Engagement as a core value of the university.”
This document defines engagement as follows: “Energetic, thoughtful, and argumentative interaction with the world outside the university in at least four areas; setting the aims, objectives, and priorities of the university;” linking teaching and learning to the wider world; A back-and-forth dialogue between researchers and practitioners. And we accept broader responsibilities as neighbors and citizens.
The result was a book published by ACU in 2003 entitled The Idea of Engagement: Universities in Society, in which 13 senior academics from five Commonwealth countries I am expressing my views on the debate.
The book argues that in order to meet the demands of government, industry, the world of work, society and communities, ‘universities must be fully engaged, not just implicitly but explicitly, not just through research partnerships, but in deeply engaged ways. “There is a need,” he concludes. Influence both teaching and research, as well as reaching out to meet the intellectual, social and cultural needs of society.
Two years later, in 2005, a group of universities from around the world came together in Talloires, France to establish the Participating Universities Talloires Network, with the aim of strengthening the civic role and social responsibility of universities.
The network currently comprises a global federation of 437 universities, including 65 in Africa, spanning 86 countries.
First generation African universities
In almost every country in Africa, public universities were established by the suzerain powers just before or at the time of independence.
These were the first higher education institutions to be established, and are essentially Africa’s ‘first generation’ universities.
Their academic structure, governance model, course curriculum, language and teaching methods were all modeled on European universities, and they had strong ties with European universities.
They were often staffed by European academics who supported European-trained Africans. These were created in large cities to target Africa’s elite societies, alienated from the rural areas where most of the population lives and where the development challenges are greatest.
At the time, there was little hope that these universities would get involved. Indeed, the relevance of such higher education institutions to Africa’s post-independence development has often been questioned.
These universities flourished for decades thanks to generous funding from the Global North. Then, over the next 20 years, not only did Africa’s economic downturn rise, but also the rise of some international funders and donors who believed that funding basic and secondary education rather than tertiary education would yield greater results. As a result of misguided policies, it faced severe budget cuts. Economic and social benefits.
The situation was further exacerbated by political turmoil in African countries in which these universities were inevitably involved. Despite the blows, the university weathered all the storms and showed remarkable resilience.
They gradually recovered and, over time, strove to become more attuned to the development needs of their respective countries. These are often referred to as flagship universities because they are not only the oldest, but also the largest and most reputable public universities in the country.
University involvement at flagship universities
An open access book entitled Revisiting Africa’s Flagship Universities: Local, National and International Dynamics by James Ransom has recently been published and focuses on this topic in more detail.
The authors survey 10 flagship English-speaking universities in 10 countries in sub-Saharan Africa to understand how these universities engage with and contribute to the development of their local environments, while at the same time Responding to global development challenges.
And he does so by analyzing the university’s strategic plan to gain insight into the university’s organizational priorities and values, as well as its practices for engagement with communities, governments, cities in which the university is located, and international partners. I’m doing it.
This book explores how these universities have now evolved into institutions recognized both nationally and regionally as centers of learning and research, shaping national policy, fostering innovation, and addressing pressing societal challenges. It shows that they play a very important role.
However, it is questionable whether they will adhere to trends in northern higher education, regardless of their relevance to local circumstances.
We may also need to reconsider our aspirations to become world-class universities or to be ranked globally, which many higher education observers believe are wasteful and inappropriate.
What types of partnerships exist?
As a result of their past history, a characteristic inherited by most flagship universities is weak linkages with other African universities.
In comparison, there are far more partnerships with northern universities.
Individual universities in Africa lack the resources to address some of the continent’s real development challenges. However, by collaborating and sharing resources with other universities in the region, we can overcome that shortcoming.
Over the past few decades, several networks and joint projects involving African universities have been established to strengthen regional collaboration. Some examples include the African Economic Research Consortium, the Regional Universities Forum for Building Agricultural Capacity (RUFORUM), and more recently the Alliance of African Research Universities (ARUA). However, this is still a work in progress and much more needs to be done by individual universities themselves.
Ransom’s book provides valuable knowledge to policy makers, university leaders, and development practitioners alike by illuminating the complexities of African development and the role of flagship universities in it.
This challenges us to think differently about Africa’s flagship universities. More importantly, it provides the tools to turn that idea into action, providing a valuable resource for everyone invested in the future of higher education in Africa.
Other enthusiastic African universities
Of course, several public universities were established in Africa after the first flagship university. Many of them are established in small cities and towns, and in some cases even near or within rural areas, giving them greater opportunities for community engagement.
One notable example is the University for Development Studies (UDS) in Tamale, northern Ghana. Founded in 1992 as a public university, UDS’s main purpose is to “bring together academia and the local community, and to create opportunities between the two for the overall development of Northern Ghana in particular and of Ghana as a nation.” “Providing social interaction.” whole’.
The university focuses on poverty alleviation, plays an active role in solving social problems, especially in rural areas, and aims for rapid development. A unique feature of this university is that every year, all students must spend a “third semester” in a community-based field experience.
Another example is Busitema University, a multi-campus public university established in 2007 in eastern Uganda. It defines civic engagement as a mutually beneficial partnership between the university and the community. In teaching and learning, we encourage faculty and students to solve problems facing their communities. In our research activities, we consider the needs of the community and value their input and knowledge.
In general, it can be concluded that most public universities in Africa are actively engaged and aware of their role in the social and economic development of their communities and countries.
However, they still have to address two thorny issues: achieving financial sustainability and reducing graduate student unemployment. It is through further engagement with the community that they can overcome these challenges.
This article is an adaptation of the foreword by Ghoulam Mohamedbhai from the book Revisiting Africa’s Flagship Universities: Regional, National and International Dynamics by James Ransom, published by African Mind, 2024.
Goolam Mohamedbhai is an internationally respected higher education expert. He is a former Secretary-General of the Association of African Universities, a former President of the International Association of Universities, and a former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Mauritius. He is also a former member of the Governing Council of United Nations University and currently a board member of University World News – Africa.