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This report is the third one that the AAU has
published. It was published some months after the World Conference on Higher
Education and just before the Conference of Rectors Vice-Chancellors and
Presidents of African Universities (COREVIP '99) which will be held in
Arusha, Tanzania from 1st to 4th February, 1999.
These two conferences will have an impact on future activities of the Association.
In the implementation of the programmes approved
by the 9th General Conference in January 1997, in the strengthening
of the permanent secretariat, as well as in the relationships with members,
the OAU and other constituencies in the continent and with funding agencies.
Of particular relevance in the past 12 months
was also the progress made by the implementation of the programme to establish
Regional Cooperation in Graduate Training and Research; the initial phase
of the Database of African Theses and Dissertations (DATAD), a project
geared toward collecting and making accessible theses produced in African
institutions; the finalization of the first phase and its external evaluation
and the preparation for the second phase of The Study programme on Higher
Education Research in Africa; the development of the educational component
of the documentary film project "Hope on the Horizon", a film on the history
of Africa in the past 40-50 years; the realization of a Senior University
Management Workshop (SUMA V) in South Africa.
Initial steps were made to implement programmes
on Quality Assessment and Assurance and on a Graduate Programme in Humanitarian
and Refugee Studies.
Other AAU programmes such as the programmes
to promote Academic Mobility of Staff and Students, the Collection and
Dissemination of Information on Research Results in Science and Technology,
of Results of Research in Science and Technology, the Collection of Information
on Training and Research Capacities of African Universities are still under
implementation.
The AAU played an important role during the
preparation of the World Conference on Higher Education held in Paris (October
1998) as well as by the preceding consultation in preparation for that
regional conference in Africa held in Dakar in April 1998.
The Gender dimension of AAU in all programmes
was further strengthened during the year, including through specific programmes
in West and Southern Africa as well as in cooperation with FAWE.
As happens every year, the Executive Board
of the AAU held its meeting. The last one which was the 53rd
meeting was held in The Sudan in May 1998. A brief report of the decisions
is contained in this report.
Like the two preceding reports, we give an
outline of activities undertaken and the financial and administrative management
of the Association. We hope that you find this report informative.
On behalf of the Executive Board, we thank
all members who have contributed in one way or another to the activities
of the AAU over the past year. We also thank all those who have supported
the AAU in the year that is just ending.
Prof. Narciso Matos
Secretary-General
 This programme has the following projects:
Study Programme on Higher Education Management in Africa; Senior University Management Workshop.
1.
Study programme on higher education in Africa
This programme offers grants to members of staff
willing to undertake research in higher education policy. The programme
is designed to benefit not only accomplished scholars and researchers,
but particularly those in most need of training in proposal writing and
research coordination. This programme started in 1993, is currently in
its second phase, has provided so far, grants to more than 77 research
fellows including 17 female in 37 research teams in almost as many countries.
During the year the following activities were been
implemented:
- a comprehensive external evaluation carried out
by a team of two higher education experts, which resulted in a generally
positive assessment of the programme and recommendations for improvements
in future activities;
- a meeting of the scientific committee of the programme
(the third meeting) held in Harare in March 1998, which contributed to
the information put to the disposal of the evaluation team;
- a seminar for presentation of preliminary results
of a selected set of research results. This was held in Harare simultaneously
with a major AAU/NYAS/ADB conference in March 1998 and benefitted therefore
from the presence of a large number of Vice-Chancellors, researchers and
policy makers from many African countries and foreign experts;
Figure 1
- the publication of research results of the first group of 8 researchers: the activity on dissemination has been very crucial since August 1997. Three articles were published in the Higher Education journal during the year. Eight (8) reports will be published in the new series that the AAU wishes to begin. In addition, the list of reports have been published in the AAU Newsletter (volume 3 no. 3, 1997) and in the Web site of the Association of African Universities. The research reports are available
on request.
Responding to recommendations from the evaluation
team and discussions undertaken with SAREC and NEDA (Dutch Agency for Development
Cooperation), the new phase of the project:
- contains a strategic vision about the future of
the project and the role of AAU and other players
- addresses issues of capacity creation for research
in Higher Education, institutionalization of capacity in African institutions
and dissemination of results and more active contribution to policy dialogue.
Figure 2
In the end, a proposal for the follow-up of the
project was prepared and presented to SAREC and the Netherlands Government
for funding. This second phase is expected to take four years. This new
phase, which considers the recommendations of the evaluation team and discussions
with SAREC and NEDA (Dutch Agency for Development Cooperation) contains
the following:
- a strategic vision of the project and the role of AAU and other institutions involved; - the development and institutionalization of capacities
in higher education, the dissemination of results and reinforcement of
discussion of policies of higher education in the continent.
2.
5th Senior University Management Workshop (SUMA V)
The 5th workshop was held at the University of Cape Town in South Africa in September/October, 1997. FAWESA , the South African Chapter of FAWE, helped to mobilize female participants including one as resource person. Twenty (20) participants, including 11 Vice-Chancellors and Deputy Vice-Chancellors and 5 women participated in this workshop. The following themes were discussed by the participants: institutional culture and gender; Government-University Relations; Strategic Planning; Finance and Efficiency Issues; Staff and Students Management. The 5th workshop had two Characteristics that must be noted: - it is the first workshop for Southern African universities. It showed an amount of enthusiasm for this type of workshop which enables African university staff to share their experiences; - it is also the first workshop for which the AAU did not support all the costs. The Association paid for the full participation of only five (5) participants and paid the per diem of only one person. The other participants supported themselves fully. This is so encouraging that the Association of African Universities wishes that SUMA workshops become financially viable. Before the SUMA V workshop in Cape Town, a workshop
on Case Study Writing was held in September 1997 at the University of the
North, also in South Africa. This workshop aimed at training eight (8)
participants in the writing of case studies for teaching and training for
future SUMA workshops. The production of a monograph is well advanced and
this will be made available to members.
Photo 1: Participants to SUMA Workshop
The Association of African Universities has began
preparation for SUMA VI in West Africa during the first half of 1999.
 So far, this programme has not succeeded to secure
funds and the AAU continues to look for funding so that it can put in place
activities for the elaboration of case studies and the organization of
regional workshops and an international colloquium to discuss the experience
and encourage members to contribute more actively to the entire educational
sector.
This project which aims at stressing the use of
African languages in education undertook a study in this area in 21 universities.
The results obtained from the study shows that most African universities
have made it a point to teach at least one African language. But teaching
in African languages is very rare. Publications in African languages are
also developed. The study recommends among other things the use of African
languages in teaching, development of a data base on training and research
in African languages and the improvement of regional cooperation in this
area.
A synthesis report in English has been published
and distributed to member universities, the funding agency IDRC and other
institutions. The French version of the report is being finalized and will
be published early 1999.
 This programme comprises the following projects:
The AAU continues to look for funding for the beginning
of this programme which was approved by the General Conference. In spite
of the lack of funding, different activities have been initiated:
2. Regional Cooperation in Graduate Training and Research This programme constitutes a follow up to studies
carried out in 1990 by Houenou and 1995 by Aboderin. The WGHE in its meeting
in October 1997 in St. Louis, Senegal approved and decided to fund a proposal
presented by the AAU to advance the programme of Regional Cooperation in
Graduate Training and Research in Africa.
During the year and in response to a call for applications,
41 proposals of Networks involving universities and research centres in
17 African countries have been received. A panel of experts selected the
most promising 7 proposals which are now scheduled to be presented to Vice-Chancellors
and funding agencies during the next meeting of the WGHE in Ouagadougou
in November 1998. It is expected that the best proposals will attract donor
support and will be further refined by the proponents, the AAU continuing
to play a coordinating role during the process.
To give the project more visibility and attract
participants and supporters, a special site on the project was created
on the AAU website.
A proposal presented to the UNHCR in July, 1997
to the Deputy High Commissioner has received a positive reply from UNHCR
and a commitment was made to contribute in kind to some of the activities.
Similar positive response was received from the Under Secretary General
for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordination. A paper based
on the concept project was presented to the Conference of the International
Association of University Presidents in May 1998, and discussions are being
help on cooperation between AAU and IAUP by implementing the programme.
Visits to UN agencies and funding agencies are being
planned to ensure resources for implementation of the programme.
This comprehends three main phases namely, the Identification
of a group of African institutions interested in building a network to
offer training for professionals engaged in humanitarian and relief activities
or in public services where humanitarian law plays a significant role.
A second phase destined to develop the cooperation framework with well
defined ownership responsibility and commitment of all partners to the
network programme as well as the actual training programme to be offered;
and implementation phase during which training will be offered.
The first phase is being jointly prepared by AAU
and IAUP. This phase consists of among other activities, the selection
of participating institutions and a conference of all interested parties
geared towards preparing the next stages. This is being planned for mid
1999.
4.
Information system on higher education in Africa
The objective of this project is to improve the
visibility of AAU in Africa and the World through new information and communication
technologies. Specifically, it aims at:
Since January 1998, the AAU has put its site on the INTERNET. This includes among other things the following information:
The web site address is http://www.aau.org.
The website is being visited actively and 30 visits are now being registered.
It still needs completion, particularly the French version and more update
and graphics.
This first attempt to organize an electronic conference
was however unsuccessful. Some of the possible reasons being considered
are:
- willing participants experienced problems in getting electronic registration during the first weeks of the electronic conference - the time planned for the conference was too long. It is envisaged that future conferences will look into these and other factors during preparatory stages. 5.
Collection and dissemination of research results in science and technology
This project was started in 1996 and during its
first phase the following results have been achieved:
This project which began in 1996 got some results during the first phase. These are:
The project which entered its second phase in 1997/1998, aims at consolidating results obtained in the 1st phase and dissemination of information collected by participating universities. The following activities were undertaken: the publication of a special issue of the newsletter on science and technology. This issue contains the report of the meeting of participating universities which was held in Nairobi in 1997, a paper based on relationship between certain African universities and the productive sector and a list of documents on the subject; the organization of the 2nd meeting of participating universities which was held in South Africa in May 1998. During this meeting, the following concerns were discussed: dissemination of information on research results, publication of a directory of technologies used for the project;
Carnegie Corporation of New York has just awarded
a third grant to finalize the project. This funding should help in disseminating
the results obtained by this project by publishing:
- another special issue of the AAU newsletter on sciences et technologies; - a directory of research results entered in the data base by participating universities; - a guide for the development of data bases on research
results.
All this information are also available on the AAU
web site.
6.
Directory of training opportunities in ACP countries
This project, which is also in its 2nd
phase aims at collecting available information from higher education institutions
in ACP countries. During the 1st phase, the AAU helped the Institute
of Social Studies Advisory Service (ISSAS) of The Netherlands to collect
information on member universities for the publication of the first directory
in 1997. The first directory which was published in 1997 contains information
on more than 500 institutions in ACP countries of which 19 are African
countries.
The 2nd phase seeks to collect information
in African universities that were not featured in the first directory and
to update the data for the second edition. This main interest of this project
is to encourage academic mobility among ACP countries.
Discussions are underway on the possibility of transferring
this project to regional institutions in ACP countries that are participating
in the project.
 1.
AAU/UNESCO Chair for women in science and technology in Southern Africa
The programme started in May 1996 and ended formally
in December 1997, and aimed at strengthening the participation of women
and girls in science and technology in Africa. It is supported by UNESCO
and The Rockefeller Foundation and hosted by the University of Swaziland.
This Chair is geared particularly to women scientists in Southern Africa,
mostly from Swaziland, Botswana, Lesotho and Zimbabwe. The main activities
of the project were:
- Workshops for female scientists and formation of research networks; - Establishment of a network of women scientists called Women in Science and Technology in Africa Network WISTAN), currently with about 50 members. The network is geared at developing productive and motivated women scientists who are more aware of the country's needs and priorities, to raise the profile of women scientists in Africa, and to undertake relevant research in S&T, Education, Nutrition & Health, Food & Agriculture and the environment; - WISTAN Newsletter published and circulated since July 97; - Scientific Literacy Programme undertaken intended for the rural communities; - Production and circulation of video-documentary on successful female scientists; - Participation and contribution to numerous international
conferences and preparation of progress and final reports of activities
and financial statements.
The overall activity of the Chair can be judged
as successful and importantly, it has acquired a degree of autonomy to
design follow-up programmes and raise the necessary funds for implementation.
During the World conference on Higher Education The Chair-holder played
a very salient role and was awarded a medal for outstanding achievements
in chemistry and promotion of women in science.
The initial funding from UNESCO ended in December
1997 but activities of the Chair have continued beyond this date. Other
activities continue to be undertaken like the production of video documentaries
as well as a new project - a Declaration of the Network and Future Plan
of Action have been implemented in 1998, which resulted from the workshop
on the formation of research networks held in January 1997. The Rockefeller
Foundation pledged an additional sum for activities of this network to
take effect from November 1997.
While keeping in contact with the Chair activities,
the AAU coordinator of the programme will now devote attention to initiating
and starting similar programmes in other regions of the continent. The
programme is therefore completed and closed and no future activities within
it are being presented in this report.
One extra activity being considered by the coordinator
is the preparation of a comprehensive summary report, containing main activities,
lessons learned and recommendations, to be disseminated to all AAU members.
2.
AAU/UNESCO Chair for women in science and technology in Western Africa
The programme was initiated in November 1996 and ends in September 1998, and aimed at strengthening the participation of women and girls in science and technology in Africa and is supported by UNESCO and the Government of the Netherlands, and hosted by the University of Science and Technology in Kumasi. This Chair is geared particularly towards girls in senior secondary schools to encourage them to pursue science related courses, and secondary school teachers to prompt them to motivate girls for Science and Technology. The following activities have been undertaken by the project in Ghana, Togo, Senegal and The Gambia, the four countries selected for the Chair activities: - Science clinics for senior secondary school girls, which have reached about 1000 girls; - Visits with school girls to universities and other work places; - The sensitization of about 200 secondary school teachers about gender issues and strategies to support girls to study science; - Outreach Programmes for Rural School to cover
girls from rural areas.
In addition to these activities the following materials
has been produced or are being finalized:
- Book on Experiences of Girls and Women in Science; - Video documentary of the activities of the Chair; - Photo album of the School programmes;
The project has been successful in creating awareness,
in areas covered, of the urgent need for women's education in general and
in science domains in particular. Results of the project have been presented
to several national and international conferences. The funds for the project
are exhausted and a small fund has been secured from UNESCO/BREDA for the
production and dissemination of the book written by the chair-holder.
The Chair-holder and a Togolese female scientist
prepared together an AAU/FAWE paper on "Women in Higher Education and Research
in Africa", which will be presented to the World Conference on Higher Education
in Paris. The team is also charged with producing a joint "FAWE/AAU database
on female scientists", to be completed in 1999.
The involvement and responsibility of the AAU for
the Chair has now been completed, and therefore no plan for future activities
is part of this report.
Since the beginning of 1997, FAWE and AAU have held
several discussion to help in developing a holistic approach to the gender
problem in African universities. The AAU approached FAWE to reinforce its
capacities and integrate concerns on gender in the Core Programme 1997-2000.
The last consultation between the two institutions was held in Dakar in
October 1997. This consultation permitted the starting of the following
projects for the promotion of gender issues in African universities:
- an inventory of women in science available in
institutions. A data base and some publications will be disseminated to
institutions to motive girls to undertake professions in science;
Photo 2
- a paper on women in Higher Education and Research in Africa was prepared and presented jointly by FAWE and AAU during a panel at the World Conference in Higher Education; - a survey of female scientists is being undertaken and a database and publications will be made and disseminated among girls and women at educational institutions in Africa, to encourage them pursue university and science careers; - a grant scheme for girls and female students to
complete theses and dissertations has been started with financial assistance
provided by the Rockefeller Foundation of New York.
Moreover, the AAU is now monitoring each and every
one of its programmes to ensure equitable participation of girls and women.
Special services include the programme on academic
mobility of lecturers and students. A total of 35 exchanges have been undertaken,
10 are scholarships, 11 small grants for thesis and 14 for staff exchange.
Figure 3
Women represented 34% in this programme.
Figure 4
The objective of the programme is to promote cooperation
among African universities through staff exchange. The exchanges, which
are also to improve the quality of training and research, teaching and
participation in thesis boards. A total of 212 requests have been received
which a lot of lecturers nominating themselves for the exchanges. It must
be noted that only lecturers and researchers chosen by member universities
can participate in this programme. Finally, 14 exchanges were approved
among which were 3 women. Please note that only these 3 women applied for
the exchange.
Figure 5
2.
Graduate Education Scholarship Programme
The objective of this programme is to promote student
mobility in Africa. This year, 10 scholarships were made available for
the 1997-1998 academic year. For these 10 scholarships, the Association
received 150 requests. Out of the 10 scholarships awarded in September
1997, 4 were given to women.
This programme also aims at improving the quality
of research to enable students to finish their thesis in other universities
other than in their countries of origin. A total of 196 requests were received
but only 11 grants were awarded, of which 9 were for Ph.D and 2 for Masters.
5 women received the grants.
1. AAU/ALO cooperative pilot network activity for leadership training This programme was unsuccessful. Despite repeated
calls for applications and direct contacts with member universities it
was not possible to assemble 6 African universities willing to engage in
bilateral contacts with equal number of American universities.
Some of the possible causes for the failure (note
that no evaluation was carried out to determine this) might be:
- the subject of cooperation "university-community links to promoting good governance" was not considered a priority and university leaders might have wished to be part of the process of defining the scope and priorities for the linkages; - the material and financial benefits included in the project were very limited and below the "cost" of involving Vice-Chancellors and other leading persons in African universities in the project; - the pre-selection of a pool of about 30 universities
in the continent (5 per region) who have been invited to submit proposals
might have excluded other institutions potentially more motivated.
Representatives of ALO who attended the 9th
General Conference in Lusaka jointly with the AAU held a meeting with Vice-Chancellors
who declared their interest in the project, but also this did not move
the programme further.
The first phase of this programme was financed by
the IDRC and resulted in 1990 with the production of 4 reports of studies
carried out in 4 different African countries. A synthesis report has also
been produced and presented in Botswana at a conference organized by ATLAS
in August 1997 and in Harare in May 1998 at a joint conference organized
by The New York Academy of Sciences, The African Development Bank, The
Economic Commission for Africa and The African Business Round Table Dissemination
Workshops have also been carried out in the countries hosting the studies.
A further dissemination workshop is being planned
for November 1998 and Vice-Chancellors, representatives of small and Medium
Enterprises among others are being invited to attend.
The Hopes on the Horizon is a documentary film project
which seeks to show the rest of the world and Africans about the problems
and struggle during the years of independence and the progress accomplished
on the continent since the last 50 years. The film also shows the cultural
heritage and challenges that Africa will face in the 21st century.
The title of the film is Hope on the Horizon: The Rise of the New Africa
(1945-1995). It has an educative motive. The AAU is responsible for
the educational component of the project, which is being implemented in
collaboration with Blackside Film Corporation. The educational component
which is in its pilot stage aims at:
The film was screened in 7 institutions where students
and university staff attended, responded to
questionnaires and were involved in debates about the content
and quality of the documentary film.
Academic communities and other communities who had
the opportunity to see the film in 6 countries
by and large considered it good to very good and saw it as adding
to their knowledge of African contemporary history.
3 schools of political and social science who were
invited to develop lesson plans
The board of scientific advisors of the project
constituted by the AAU approved of
A transitional phase (June 1998-April 1999) is now being implemented, which will be followed by a second phase which will produce a documentary film and a study programme to beinaugurated in January 2000.
Photo 3: Participants to the 2nd Scientific
advisory board meeting
Considering resolutions AHG/Res.215 (XXVIII) and M/CRes.1601 (LXII) of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) on the role of universities and higher educational institutions in development, and resolution CM/Res.1534 (LX) on the new approach at promoting African Unity, the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and the Association of the African Universities (AAU) launched "African University Day" in 1994.
The purpose of the Day is to sensitize people and decision makers on the role of the African university in the economic and social
development in Africa.
The first celebration was held in 1995. The AAU coordinated with the University of Ghana and held a seminar on the theme: "Promoting Gender Equity in Universities in Africa".In 1996, the theme chosen was "The University in the Education Sector: Supporting Other Levels to Support Itself". The theme for 1997 was "Quality Promoting in African
Universities".
Some of the universities which organized any activity to celebrate the day in 1997 and shared their experience with the AAU are: Cuttington University College (Liberia), The Open University of Tanzania, Sudan University of Science and Technology, Université d'Abobo-Adjamé (Côte d'Ivoire) and Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, Mozambique. All these universities organized a seminar on the theme "Promotion of quality in African universities".
The theme for this year 1998 is "Revitalizing Universities in Africa: Strategy for the21st Century". An appeal and a poster were sent to all member universities in June1998 requesting them to celebrate this activity
as was done in preceding years.
To provide a framework for concerted efforts by all African countries to promote improvements in their educational systems. The eradication of illiteracy, provision of education for all school going age children, development of life-long education, coordination and mutual help by all levels and sub-sectors of education are some of the goals included in a draft implementation programme now being developed by the OAU. The AAU is participating in the development of this plan of action, as it was involved in the launching. The AAU was represented at the launching of this programme by the Head of Information and Communication who also presented a paper on The Role of the University in the Promotion of the Decade. The launching took place in Addis Ababa in November, 1997. 6.
AAU Documentation and information centre
Considering the role of information in the reinforcement of cooperation among African universities, the AAU set up an Information Centre on Higher Education in Africa. This centre has a library and data bases of which the most important will be on capacities of African universities (address, staff, courses, degrees etc.) For the development of such data bases, the AAU sent out a questionnaire between March and May 1998 to collect the necessary data. A guide on higher education in Africa will be published at the beginning of 1999. This activity is being done in collaboration with the International Association of Universities. The Secretariat recruited an information specialist in January 1998 to strengthen the Information and Communication Section.
7.
Meeting of the Scientific Editors
In February 1998, in collaboration with the International Network for the Availability Scientific Publication (INASP) and the National Academy of Sciences of the U.S.A. The AAU organized a workshop for scientific journal editors in Africa. This workshop brought together 14 participants (including 3 women) from 5 African countries. The objective was to train editors in the management of publication and editing of scientific journals. A session was organized on the INTERNET at the offices of the AAU. The workshop helped participants to better understand marketing, management of subscriptions, costs of production and publication using the computer.
An electronic mail information exchange was set
up.
In February 1998, the AAU also organized a meeting between donors and university libraries. It brought together 23 participants including 11 women. 11 African countries were represented at the meeting. The meeting had as its aim to discuss ways and actions to be put in place for better funding of university libraries in Africa. Discussions centred on methods of funding and strategies to put in place to make university libraries viable and enable them to play their role in the improvement of teaching and research in African universities. At the end of the meeting, one of the recommendations adopted was the setting up by the AAU of an Ad hoc Committee on University Libraries. The
objectives of the committee are:
- to encourage the Vice-Chancellors and Donors to take note of the needs of university libraries; - to organize training sessions for information professionals; - to coordinate research on university libraries in Africa; - to organize workshops and seminars to discuss
the problems of university libraries in Africa.
Photo 4: Participants at the meeting
A interim bureau has been set up and is being management by the AAU secretariat. The Executive Board of the AAU in its deliberations in Sudan in May 1998 support the initiative to establish a committee and strengthen libraries but remarked that the approval of the Ad hoc Committee will depend on results arrived at by the interim bureau.
The 9th AAU General Conference decided to call the next AAU Conference of Rectors, University Vice-Chancellors and Principals (COREVIP) for February 1999, to be hosted by the University of Dar-es-Salaam (UDS) in Tanzania. In March, 1998 an AAU Organizing Committee was set up and a letter went out to UDS to initiate the planning process. This Organising Committee meets every two weeks. "Revitalizing Universities in Africa: strategy for the 21st century" has been chosen as the main theme for the COREVIP. The sub-themes for COREVIP are the following: Regional Cooperation in Graduate Training and Research; Information and Communication Technology; Access, Quality
and Resource Management.
The conference will also be presented with a summary of the results of the World Conference on Higher Education and their significance and impact for Africa, as well as with a summary of the work of the Task Force on Higher Education. A seminar on "Tracer Studies on Graduate Employment in Africa" and a workshop on "Human Resource Development in Science and Technology in Africa", jointly organized with ANSTI, will follow immediately after
the conference.
The Association for the Development in Africa (ADEA) held its biennial meeting in October, 1997 in Dakar, Senegal. In parallel with the ADEA meeting different working groups held their meetings, as was the case of the Working Group on Female Participation (WGFP) . The AAU was represented in the two previous meetings by the Secretary General who presented to the plenary of the WGFP a summary of the priorities for action jointly identified
by AAU and FAWE.
The Working Group on Higher Education held its annual meeting in St. Louis, Senegal. The host was the Université Gaston Berger and besides the Secretary General, the AAU was represented by the Vice Chancellor of the host university, also a member of the AAU Executive Board, who addressed the opening ceremony on behalf of the Board; the Director of Research and the Senior Programme Officer in charge of Programmes.
The main theme of the WGHE was Distance Education. As preparation for the next meeting Regional Cooperation in Graduate Training was discussed. A session was dedicated to the presentation of AAU activities and programmes to all participants. The sessions on Distance Education and Regional Cooperation were quite productive, not so the AAU-participants consultation. Another important achievement was the approval by the WGHE of two project proposals presented by the AAU, one with the objective of providing the AAU with a website, the second on a survey followed by a proposal on best practices to strengthen regional cooperation.
The next meeting of the WGHE is tentatively planned for the first half of November, 1998 to be hosted by the University of
Ouagadougou.
In partnership with the World Bank, agencies represented in the Working Group on Higher Education and nine other major international and regional agencies, as well as representatives of higher education institutions in Africa, the AAU prepared and published a document entitled "Revitalizing Universities in Africa: Strategies and Guideline" . The document was widely disseminated particularly in Africa and was presented to, and well received by, the Governors of The World Bank at their annual meeting in September, 1997 in Hong Kong. It was decided to establish a fund for capacity building and it has been proposed that part of the activities will be implemented by the AAU. English and French versions of the report have also been sent to all AAU members and other institutions. Requests for the document and comments commending the timeless and quality of the publication continue to be received.
Continuing the contacts started in January with the presence of a FAWE representative at the last AAU General Conference in Lusaka, and the AAU-FAWE meeting held in April this year in Dakar, the Technical Assistant represented the AAU at a FAWE seminar in July in Nairobi. The Secretary General attended the last FAWE conference in Dakar, in October and a special meeting was organized with a major FAWE delegation which included the President, the Executive Secretary, female vice-chancellors who are members of the FAWE Council, as well as representatives of FAWE chapters in several countries. A set of activities to be carried out jointly by FAWE and AAU was approved, and subsequently a programme proposal "Main- Streaming Gender in AAU Activities" was presented to FAWE and The Rockefeller Foundation for consideration. The Head of Administration and Finance represented the AAU at a FAWE Meeting of female vice chancellors held in Nairobi, Kenya in February, 1998 and follow-up activities are now being implemented among others the preparation of a joint AAU/FAWE paper on Women in Education in Africa, to be presented to the World Conference on Higher Education, the preparation of a database and subsequent publication of a "who's who" on female academicians and scientists in the continent, and the publication of a survey of gender programmes in higher education institutions in Africa.
4.
Task Force on Higher Education and Society
UNESCO and The World Bank have jointly established a Task Force on Higher Education and Society, composed of 15 members representing all continents, with the mandate to make recommendations to the forthcoming World conference on Higher Education (held in Paris, in October 1998). The AAU is represented in the Task Force by the Secretary General. A meeting was held in Cape Town, South Africa in February 1998 at which the Secretary General was present. In Cape Town hearings were also undertaken and representatives of about a dozen African universities presented their views about the state of Higher Education and the priority actions to be taken. The Task Force decided to orient its activities in the following directions: Governance, Higher Education as a public good, Science and Technology, Liberal Education, and a layered system of education. Activities of the Task Force will continue for about one year and a report on findings and recommendations will be presented to the convenors of the group, UNESCO and the World Bank.
5.
AAU/NYAS/ADB/ABRT/ECA CONFERENCE
This Conference was held in March 1998 in Harare. It was sponsored by the Carnegie Corporation and a number of other agencies. Co-conveners were the African Business Round Table, the African Development Bank, the Economic Commission for Africa and the AAU. This conference aimed at representing a partnership of leading public, private and academic institutions in Africa to consider both the substance of effective policy that would encourage technology investments and programmes in Africa and the pragmatic processes needed for its successful completion.
The AAU was represented by the Secretary-General, who presented a paper based on case studies previously conducted by the AAU about "University Productive Sector Linkages".
6.
PIAC Meeting in Nairobi, Kenya
The AAU was represented by the Director of Research at a Planning Meeting for a Project for Information Access and Connectivity (PIAC), organised by the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations in Nairobi in January, 1998. As a follow up to this meeting, the AAU is cooperating with the two agencies to prepare a Databse on Thesis and Dissertations produced in Africa (DATAD), which will be available on CD-ROM. A pilot phase of this initiative is already under way and aims at determining the availability of materials to publish, country or institutions, regulations and copy rights, marketability of the
product.
In February and March 1998, the Head of Information and Communication participated in the evaluation of training programmes in management and marketing of information systems in Africa. This project intends to put in place a training programme for the African context. There is a plan to publish a manual on management and marketing of information system in
Africa.
8.
UNESCO/South Africa Council of Ministers
The Council convened in Durban, South Africa, in April 1998. The Head of the Information and Communication Department represented the AAU at the Durban Meeting.
This constituted the seventh conference of African Ministers of Education (MINEDAF VII) and addressed in one of its sessions strategies to strengthen higher education in Africa. The session on higher education also came about as a result of the appeal made by the AAU to OAU to put higher education on the agenda of African governments in fulfilment of the recommendation of the AAU Colloquium held in Lesotho in 1995.
Following a revision of the status of all NGOs with working relationships with UNESCO, a new Framework Agreement between UNESCO and AAU has been signed and the AAU admitted as an observer during the 29th Session of the Executive of UNESCO held in October 1997.
10.
Members of the Executive Board Serving on Councils of Other Organisations
i. AAU Representative at ANSTI Council The Vice Chancellor of the Kwame Nkrumah University
of Science and Technology , Ghana, and member of the Executive Board of
the AAU as been appointed representative of the AAU at the Council of ANSTI
with effect as of September 1997.
ii. Member of the AAU Executive Board on UNU Council The Rector of the Université de Saint Louis,
Senegal and member of the AAU Executive Board has been appointed, by the
Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Director General of UNESCO
to the Council of the United Nations University in March 1998. The AAU
supported his candidature by sending a letter to UNU to this effect.
iii. Member of the AAU Executive Board on the Council of the University of Venda, South Africa The Vice Chancellor, University of Namibia, has
been appointed member of the Council of the University of Venda upon recommendation
of the AAU in March, 1998.
11.
AAU Representation in International Conferences and other events
IFS/TWAS/TWNSO General Conferences
The AAU was represented by the Secretary General at the jointly organized conference of the International Foundation for Science, Third World Academy of Sciences and Third World Association of Scientific Organizations, in Rio de Janeiro, in September, 1997.
Conference on Internationalization of Higher
Education
On the joint invitation from the Swedish Ministry of Education and SIDA, the Secretary General, representing the AAU, presented a paper on "Internationalization of Higher Education: An African Perspective" to the aforementioned Conference, held in Stockholm, Sweden in September, 1997. This was followed by a seminar on "The Image of
Africa".
UNESCO Round Table in Tokyo
The Director of Research attended and presented a paper at the UNESCO Round Table on "The Relationship Among Research, Policy and Practice in Higher Education", in Tokyo in September 1997.
IAU Mid-Term Conference
This was held in Bangkok, Thailand in November, 1997 and AAU, as associate member with observer status on the IAU Board was represented by the Secretary General. The conference was mainly devoted to preparing the World Conference on Higher Education and as such addressed the main themes of Academic Freedom and University Autonomy, Internationalization of Higher Education, Relevance and Sustainable Development. Having been charged by UNESCO to prepare a Declaration on Academic Freedom, the IAU organized a special meeting with representatives of regional university associations to jointly address the matter. Following the conference the AAU contributed a paper on Academic Freedom as seen from the perspective of African universities.
Africa Round-table at Carnegie Corporation
As part of a review process of programs the newly appointed President of Carnegie Corporation in New York invited about 30 Africans to a meeting in November, 1997 in New York to consult them on the current situation in the continent and what they see as the priority actions to be undertaken by Africans with the assistance of the international community. Particular focus should be given to what Carnegie should do in the future. To note that AAU had been requested early last year to submit its thoughts concerning these matters. To this end the AAU was represented at the New York meeting
by the Secretary General.
The new President stressed his commitment to supporting revitalization of universities and the renovation of libraries in
the continent.
NARS Conference in Cotonou
The Head of Administration and Finance represented the AAU at the International Workshop on Strengthening the Role of Universities in the National Agriculture Research Systems in Sub-Saharan Africa in Cotonou, in November, 1997 and presented a paper on the role of universities in the reinforcement of agriculture research.
NIRP Seminar in Accra
On request of the Israel-Netherlands Research Programme the AAU organized a seminar in November, 1997 in Accra which was attended by members of the governing council and African researchers involved in NIRP projects. The AAU Director of Research delivered the keynote address. An AAU-NIRP meeting was held as part of the programme.
IITA International Workshop in Ibadan
The Senior Programme Officer in charge of Programmes attended, on behalf of the AAU, the Inter-Centre Training Annual Meeting of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture IITA in Ibadan, Nigeria in
November, 1997.
SISERA Steering Committee in Abidjan, Cote
d'Ivoire
The Steering Committee of the Secretariat for Institutional Support for Economic Research in Africa (SISERA) held its first meeting in Abidjan in December 1997. The Director of Research, who represented the AAU, was elected Chairman of the Committee.
CSD Workshop in Pretoria
A workshop on "International Scientific Collaboration: Building Bridges Within Africa", was organised by the Centre for Science Development, Human Sciences Research Council of South Africa, in Pretoria in March 1998. The Director of Research represented the AAU and led a session on the AAU and African scientific cooperation.
IAUP Conference
The Senior programme officer represented the AAU at the IAUP Conference held in Cape Town in February, 1998 and presented a paper on Regional Cooperation in Graduate Training in Humanitarian and Refugee Studies. IAUP took note of the presentation and promised to support the AAU to implement a project proposal on the same matter.
Conference on Policies and Strategies for Higher Education in Latin America
This conference was conveyed by the Regional Centre for Higher Education in Latin America and The Caribbean and held in Caracas, Venezuela, January 28-29, 1998. The AAU was invited to attend and discuss possibilities of cooperation and exchange of information between Latin American and African Universities. The Secretary General represented the AAU.
GTZ Conference in Kampala
The Secretary General was invited to deliver the keynote address at a Conference on "Challenges and Perspectives of Universities in Africa" held in Kampala, Uganda from March 1- 6, 1998. The conference was organized by the German agencies GTZ, CIM, DAAD. Possibilities to expand the programme grants for students were discussed with DAAD.
1.
53rd Executive Board meeting
At the kind invitation of the Omdurman Islamic University, the Executive Board of the Association of African Universities (AAU) held its 53rd meeting in Khartoum, Sudan from 26th to 28th May, 1998. The conclusions and recommendations of the meeting are the following:
- The Executive Board considered and endorsed a
project currently being implemented by the AAU, which is designed to promote
regional cooperation in graduate training and research. The aim of the
project is to strengthen the capacity of African universities in the area
of graduate education, by building synergies through cooperative networking.
The Board sees the pooling of resources as necessary in this era of globalisation,
if Africa is to move along the path of rapid and sustained technological
and economic development;
Photo 5: Participants to the 53rd
Executive Board meeting
- The Board noted with satisfaction the successful implementation of the work plan, within the constraints imposed by funding limitations; - The Board also reviewed and approved the plan of activities for 1998/99. In addition to consideration of work within the Core Programme, the Board noted and endorsed a number of programme initiatives under development by the Secretariat. Among these was a major project for the collection, indexing and electronic dissemination of theses and dissertations produced in African universities; - The Board reviewed the finances of the AAU. These included the Auditor's Report, the Financial Performance Report, the State of Payment of Membership Subscription and, most importantly, the Proposed Budget for 1998/99 that will guide its operations for the next fiscal year. It was clear from these reports that the Association will need to work harder to improve its finances and control the cost of its operations. Recommendations to this effect have been made by the Board; - The Board also reviewed matters concerning new appointments of professional staff and improvements of the conditions of work of the staff of the secretariat; - The Board admitted to membership of the Association, two universities, one South African, the other Kenyan. This decision is subject to ratification by the General Conference of the Association at its next convening. These additions bring the total membership of the Association to 148 universities; - The Executive Board assessed the preparations for the World Conference on Higher Education billed for Paris, France in October 1998, and underlined the importance of ensuring adequate representation of the AAU at the Conference; - The Executive Board endorsed the preparatory work being undertaken to hold the next Conference of Rectors, Vice Chancellors and Presidents of African Universities in Arusha, Tanzania from February 1 - 4, 1999; - The Executive Board expressed its deepest appreciation
to the Omdurman Islamic University for the excellent hospitality and for
all the arrangements made for the success of the meeting.
2.
Funding of the AAU programmes
The AAU has been fairly successful in negotiating the continuation of support from traditional major benefactors. A number of small grants have also been obtained. This is about 57% of the total budget estimated for the Core Programme. There is the need to emphasis that most grants received are earmarked for specific activities and little progress is being made in the efforts to acquire core financing (unrestricted grants).
Two (2) institutions have applied for membership to the AAU which would bring the total number of member institutions to 148. Invitations have also been sent to Technikons in May 1998 in South Africa as well as to private universities in some African countries for them to join the Association. A study project from private universities has been elaborated and sent to donors.
4.
Staff Recruitment and improvement
Since July 1997, two Senior Programme Officers have joined the staff of the Secretariat. At the support staff level, a Librarian/Archivist was recruited in January 1998.
A series of training courses were organised for the staff: a proficiency course in French from April to June 1998 and training sessions
in informatics.
Since January 1997, the AAU has been in the process of improving and/or replacing its information tools. The following equipment were acquired during the year: - a new server for the local area network; - 2 new computers for staff and 3 old ones have
been upgraded.
It must be also noted that there has been improvement in the access of the Secretariat to the INTERNET through the acquisition
of a dedicated line.
Since 1995, the AAU has established a System for Follow-up and Evaluation of its projects. This is mainly the periodic revision of the implementation of planned activities contained int he Work schedule. A report is then sent to our consultants. After the consultants have examined it an annual meeting within the AAU secretariat then goes on to consider the consultants comments. The Consultants are also expected to visit some universities before the annual meeting. During 1997-98, three (3) meetings were held to review the activities. The Follow-up and Evaluation report was submitted to and approved by the 52nd Meeting of the Executive Board.
The main aim of the follow-up and evaluation system is the effectiveness and efficiency of AAU's programmes and projects for them to meet the needs of member universities. To ensure that the presentation of the activities follow the same pattern, a guide-line has been provided. In addition to a report of activities each Director of the Secretariat should submit a work schedule with the activities, the budget and the anticipated results at the end
of the project.
Since the establishment of this system there has been a better follow-up of projects and programmes.
In the same vein, the Secretariat organised a retreat for its professional staff and their assistants to reflect onthe mission and activities of the Association. This was an occasion to review on-going strategies and the constraints linked to the execution of projects. The following topics were discussed during the retreat; strategic planning; marketing and fundraising; administrative and financial management of the Secretariat.
During the year that is just ending, the following documents were published:Annual Report 1996-1997 (English and French) ; 3 issues of the Newsletter (English and French) ;
Report of the 9th General Conference (English and French);
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