Bukola Olatunji
13 July 2009
Abuja — Higher education curriculum in Africa must be more relevant by focusing on areas of expertise that are crucial for the competitiveness and diversification of the continent's economies, but are yet not receiving the required attention.
In a communiqué issued at the just concluded 2009 World Conference on Higher Education, held at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, member states and participants identified these areas to include agriculture, natural resource extraction, the environment, indigenous knowledge systems, and energy.
To meet the rapidly increasing demand for higher education and research in Africa, the participants said there was an urgent need for differentiated institutions, ranging from research universities to polytechnics and technical colleges, as well as diversified programmes within each institution, to cater to different types of learners as well as the needs of the country.
"The increasing demand for higher education will hardly be met by traditional face-to-face delivery alone. Other approaches such as open and distance and online learning, will have to be resorted to, especially for areas such as continuous adult education and teacher training", the communiqué further stated.
Staff and student mobility within an African higher education area will be fostered through the active implementation of the Arusha Convention on mutual recognition of diplomas, certificates and degrees. The communique also stressed the indispensability of the Pan African University in fostering African integration.
It called on members states, working in collaboration with all stakeholders, to develop policies and strategies at systems and institutional levels to, among others, enhance the attractiveness of the academic career by ensuring respect for the rights and adequate working conditions of academic staff in accordance with the 1997 recommendation concerning the status of higher education teaching personnel;
Member states were also called upon to maintain, and if possible, increase investment in higher education in order to sustain quality and equity at all times and foster diversification in both the provision of higher education and the means of funding.
They should also guarantee women's access to higher education as well as their participation and success, as well as equal access to underrepresented groups such as workers, the poor, minorities, differently abled, migrants, refugees and other vulnerable populations.
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