African higher education institutions and historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the United States are exploring ways to advance sustainable partnerships, a development that has resulted in a pledge to strengthen academic ties, joint and dual degree programmes and faculty exchanges.
The collaboration will also explore innovative financing models to make HBCU education more accessible by providing financing options, including loans for African students.
An online symposium to explore partnerships between African universities and HBCUs, including harnessing the contribution of the academic diaspora, was held on 17 September.
The symposium was held by the Association of African Universities (AAU), in partnership with the Historic African Diaspora Placement Program (HADIP) and the United Negro College Fund Institute for Capacity Building (UNCF ICB) and brought together government leaders, university presidents, provosts, policymakers, researchers, philanthropists and resource partners from both continents.
HADIP is a pan-African initiative to foster professional and cultural engagement of African diaspora professionals in the United States with Africa while the UNCF is the largest minority education organisation in America.
Shared values
Professor Sunungurai Chingarande, the vice-chancellor of Zimbabwe’s Women’s University in Africa, told the conference that HBCUs and African higher education institutions must have a common vision informed by a clear partnership framework.
“I think that is critical so that the knowledge, the partnership, the outputs and outcomes are co-created on an equal footing by the participating institutions. I would give an example of arrangements that have been in place in our context with the private sector.
“In some cases, you have initiatives that fail to take off as a result of unequal relationships, a lack of a common vision, a lack of a common strategy, [and] a lack of common values, most importantly. So, it’s important that we have shared values,” said Chingarande.
She said issues of funding are quite critical, hence its importance to explore what funding models are available for the partnership.
The vice-chancellor said that, in the context of Zimbabwe, the country has been pursuing an internationalisation agenda resulting in various initiatives being put in place, but a recent assessment of internationalisation showed initiatives have not been equitable or inclusive.
“So the involvement of the diaspora in this particular initiative is quite critical. It then promotes an inclusive industrialisation process for the continent. So, I’m excited about this initiative because it means we are going to be forging an inclusive internationalisation agenda,” she added.
Chingarande said parties can jointly develop scholarship around Africa – as a united force – and emphasised the importance of sustainable partnerships.
Sustainable partnerships
“It should be clear from the onset how sustainability is going to be ensured in that particular programme,” Chingarande said.
“Then, of course, [there are] issues to do with compatibility of partner institutions. I think that can be considered in the development of the partnership framework.
“Is there compatibility in terms of values, in terms of the vision, in terms of the agenda and, of course, [partners who] come up with a clear action plan that would be followed through?”
Workable models for collaboration
Professor Francisca Oladipo, the vice-chancellor of the Thomas Adewumi University in Nigeria, told the attendees that the collaboration model must not take on a form in which any of the participating institutions are seen as donors. Both parties must contribute something.
“So, for example, [if] we look at the joint degree partnership model [we can say] it’s something that has worked across the African continent. [During these] collaborations, where students, especially graduate students, are jointly taught and supervised for higher degree programmes and then earn a strong qualification, you know [they were] jointly served by the partner institutions. So, this is one model that has worked over time, and then the research consortium model is another that I believe has worked,” she said.
According to Oladipo, these models hold strong promise in driving cross-continental collaboration and impact.
Digital infrastructure can support initiatives
Dr Valerie Kinloch, the president of the Johnson C Smith University, an HBCU which was founded in 1867, told the conference that there were “trials and tribulations” when travelling to the US, as a result of visa restrictions imposed by the administration of President Donald Trump.
As a result, institutions have been discussing the need for a robust digital infrastructure to use and have also reimagined what exchange programmes could be and could look like, she added.
Kinloch, who has visited Nigeria and Ghana with colleagues, said partnerships could be sustained through digital innovations.
“When we cannot physically travel, we can travel technologically. And that’s part of what we’re building our curriculum to do here,” she said.
Dr Koffi Akakpo, the president of Kentucky State University, which opened in October 1887 as a small school for the training of African-American teachers, told the conference that his institution has active partnerships in Africa with Rwanda, Cameroon and Mali.
He said Kentucky State University has enrolled about 15 students from Rwanda and others from Cameroon.
“I took a group of four [US] students with me to Rwanda. While on our way to Rwanda, I asked them if they were taking any classes in the summer. They said no,” he said. “Then we got to Rwanda. We spent one week there and [at] our last supper before we headed back to the US, they all came to me and said: ‘We registered [to do courses in the US]’ and I asked them what changed, and all four of them told me they have never seen [the] level of commitment [that they witnessed in Rwanda] in their entire lives. The students in Rwanda don’t have much, but one thing they have is determination to succeed and that changed these students for good.
“So, it is a truly a win-win for us when we open the door for our students or our faculty to experience what’s happening on the continent and [for] students from Africa to experience the US.”
Akakpo said technology was helping: “One of the [agreements] we signed in Mali, they wanted to take advantage of some of our courses and we do have our online presence.
“So, we’re now building a platform for them where professionals and students from Mali can take courses from Kentucky State University. We are also trying to see how we can enhance that with our partnership in Rwanda and Cameroon.”
In a statement, the UNCF ICB said during the conference it was agreed that HBCUs and African organisations will explore more new channels for student enrolment, institutional collaboration and explore sustainable financing.
The statement said there will be opportunities for African students to enrol at HBCUs, helping institutions attract African talent while enriching campus life with broad cultural perspectives and academic excellence.
“The collaboration will strengthen academic ties between HBCUs and African higher education institutions, including exploration of exchange programmes, joint and dual degree programmes, and faculty exchanges, establishing new partnerships while strengthening existing collaborations between the US and the African continent,” it said.
The conference between HBCUs and African higher education institutions came after the Trump administration announced that it was redirecting nearly US$500 million in federal funding toward historically black colleges and tribal colleges from institutions with a large number of Hispanic students.
