Arab-Islamic education in general and Koranic schools in particular are largely excluded from programs advocating for education for all in Africa. Yet this education concerns a large number of children, many of whom are considered as “out-of-school” by the public authorities. Consequently, recognising its existence, importance and diversity is a prerequisite for building a dialogue framework between all stakeholders. The starting point is to go beyond certain clichés.

Cliché 1: Arab-Islamic education is recent phenomenon in Sub-Saharan Africa

Arab-Islamic education appeared in Sub-Saharan Africa at the same time as the dissemination of Islam in the 11th century. It was initiated by Arab-Berber merchants in West Africa and was subsequently spread by religious brotherhoods in the 19th century. More...

South Africa has very poor student throughput (that is, from enrolment to graduation) and low retention rates in undergraduate education. Only 30% of students complete a three-year bachelor’s degree in three years. And less than two-thirds complete within an additional two years. More...

When South African academics want to set up a new degree module, they’re entering into a process that can take years to germinate. These modules must be approved through an incredibly cumbersome process – departmental, school, faculty, various university quality control committees, an institution’s senate, the South African Qualification Authority. Only then can they be registered by the National Qualification Framework. More...

The current highest salaries for various academic ranks range from about Ksh 250,000 (USD$ 2,507) for a professor to Ksh 121,000 (USD$1,211) for an assistant lecturer. More...

Since the 1994 genocide against Tutsi, Rwanda has made considerable progress towards gender equality, now ranking fifth in the world on the Global Gender Gap Index. More...

Universities across Africa are sitting on – and ignoring – a potential gold mine: their graduates. Research from the global North, where tracking and keeping in touch with alumni is common practice for universities, shows that this reaps huge benefits. More...

Universities are at the forefront of any country’s economic development efforts. They play an invaluable role in passing knowledge on to the next generation and creating new knowledge through research. Both these endeavours can set graduates up to contribute to their country’s growth. More...