By Sharon Dell. If universities exist in part to solve the most pressing problems of our time, they have their work cut out for them. The reality is that if humans maintain their current rate of consumption, which already exceeds the capacity of Earth to renew itself, we will soon need two planets to live off, National University of Singapore mechanical engineering professor and circular economy guru Seeram Ramakrishna told the annual South African Technology Network (SATN) Conference held in Durban, South Africa, last month, which explored the role of universities in the fourth industrial revolution (4IR). More...08 octobre 2018
4IR – The key to our future on Earth, and beyond?
By Sharon Dell. If universities exist in part to solve the most pressing problems of our time, they have their work cut out for them. The reality is that if humans maintain their current rate of consumption, which already exceeds the capacity of Earth to renew itself, we will soon need two planets to live off, National University of Singapore mechanical engineering professor and circular economy guru Seeram Ramakrishna told the annual South African Technology Network (SATN) Conference held in Durban, South Africa, last month, which explored the role of universities in the fourth industrial revolution (4IR). More...Call to increase ICT research funding at universities
By Rodrigue Rwirahira. Rwandan universities have called for extensive funding to research how information and communications technology (ICT), including mobile phones and the internet, could be leveraged to benefit ordinary users in various sectors. More...E-learning boosts brain-gain and reduces costs
By Rodrigue Rwirahira. Experts have called on African universities to immediately adopt the philosophy of brain-gain, facilitated by e-learning programmes, in a bid to reduce the cost of academic services and management, and invest more money in research and development. More...Africa vs rest of world in lively digital revolution debate
By Wachira Kigotho. “This house believes Africa has nothing to fear from a fourth industrial revolution and should seize the opportunity it represents,” was the motion of a highly contested debate at the 13th International Conference and Exhibition on ICT for Education, Training and Skills Development in Kigali, Rwanda, on 28 September. More...Online MOOCs battle against traditional mindsets
By Wachira Kigotho. The once glittering allure of massive open online courses (MOOCs), viewed as new learning vehicles to carry most of Africa’s youth to the frontiers of a university education, has dimmed. More...Call for urgent ‘e-volution’ of university libraries
By Wachira Kigotho. Universities in Sub-Saharan Africa need to move away from the idea of libraries as buildings that stock books on dusty shelves to learning spaces that can facilitate access for students, academics and researchers to information at any time or place. For those libraries to attain cutting-edge status, however, they need to be properly funded. More...Leaders urged to work towards digital knowledge parity
By Wachira Kigotho. African leaders were urged to work towards 'digital parity' so as to enable the continent’s inhabitants to participate in and be represented as equals in both the digital and material worlds. More...Challenges of ensuring quality education
By Wondwosen Tamrat. Ethiopia is at the crossroads in terms of making a choice between consolidating current higher education achievements – by moving its budget focus to academic activities that improve the quality of tertiary education – or continuing with the old model of expansion that succeeded in creating an impressive number of new universities, but failed to provide the quality of output required. More...Accreditation lies at the heart of development
By Eric Fredua-Kwarteng and Samuel Kwaku Ofosu. Over the past three decades, governments in developing countries, particularly in Africa, have realised the significant value of higher education for national development. Accordingly, many governments in those countries have invested substantially in higher education expansion and have enacted liberalisation policies to allow private entrepreneurs to participate in the higher education sector. More...Minister unveils ambitious plans for higher education
By Tonderayi Mukeredzi and Kudzai Mashininga. Zimbabwe’s new and extensive development plans include creating innovation hubs at universities, upgrading student accommodation, making higher education more affordable for students and establishing the country’s first geospatial and space agency. More...
