European University Association Autumn Conference Giessen, Germany, 8-10 October 2009 WORKING GROUP 3a: INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH COOPERATION Constraints, Challenges and Prospects for International Research Cooperation by African Universities By Goolam Mohamedbhai Secretary-General Association of African Universities
Introduction For African universities to participate fully in international research, they need to be research active Evidence shows that research output from Africa is very poor compared to other regions (see Tables) Many constraints & challenges: a) pressure of teaching b) too few research-strong academics c) insufficient research funding d) research not relevant to Africa s needs e) poor ICT infrastructure
Research Output from Africa (1) Papers in Science Citation Index by Region: 1981-2000 Region 1981 1990 2000 Americas 158,108 199,347 230,060 Europe 163,471 203,598 264,829 Asia 45,906 62,217 123,572 Africa 5,305 6,539 8,311 Source: ISI, compiled in Macluso, Statistics on World Science, INRS 2004
Research Output from Africa (2) World Share in Publications and R&D Expenditure Region Share in Publications Share in R&D Expenditure 1990 2000 1990 2000 North America 41.6% 36.7% 38.2% 37.2% Europe 34.0% 40.2% 24.9% 23.1% Asia 14.5% 21.1% 23.0% 30.5% LAC 1.7% 3.2% 2.8% 2.9% Africa 1.4% 1.4% 1.3% 0.8% Source: UNESCO (2004). A decade of investment in R&D:1990-2000. UIS Bulletin on S&T Statistics, Issue No. 4 April
Constraints and Challenges
a) The Pressure of Teaching (1) Large increase in HE enrolment over past decades: 1991: 1m 1999: 2m 2004: 3.3m Paradoxically, SSA has lowest HE enrolment than any other world region (see chart) Increase in enrolment will and must continue (e.g. producing teachers to meet EFA targets) for HE to have a meaningful role in Africa s development Bulk of enrolment in public HEIs Private HEIs coming up, but enrolment still very low & quality dubious in many cases Real danger that public African universities will increasingly place emphasis on teaching, to detriment of research
The Pressure of Teaching (2) Tertiary Gross Enrolment by Region 70 60 50 40 30 20 1999 2006 10 0 SSA S&W Asia E Asia & P L Am & Car C&E Eu N Am & W Eu Source: UIS 2008
b) Too Few Research-Strong Academics (1) Limited number of research-strong (PhD) staff a major handicap in initiating, undertaking & supervising research. In most African universities, staff with PhD barely exceed 30%, some departments having much lower % Staff have very heavy teaching load, no time for research Brain drain: to the North, but also to private & public sectors Poor salaries & conditions of service difficult to attract & retain staff Poor research infrastructure e.g. lab & library facilities
b) Too Few Research-Strong Academics (2) Many staff take up evening part-time teaching in private and CBHE institutions research is neglected Best qualified staff take up lucrative international consultancy, to detriment of good research Most researchers work individually, no team of researchers, no multi-disciplinary research Ageing research-strong faculty, difficult to replace them Shortage of graduate programmes and very low output of postgraduates hence insufficient training of future generation of research-strong academics
c) Insufficient Research Funding 80% of university budget used for staff salaries & student grants; hardly any funds for research & staff development Govts increasingly look at HE as private good, not public good, requiring public universities to generate significant part of their budget Public universities start to function as private institutions, running parallel programmes by charging full-cost fees, giving preference to market-driven courses; hence even greater staff involvement in teaching Bulk of research funded by donor/development agencies Research funding by private sector almost non-existent
d) Research Not Relevant to Africa s Needs Agenda for most research done set by funding agencies Main objective of research by academics is self-promotion, to publish in internationally refereed journals not always relevant to Africa s development needs Lack of information on African research work in Africa hence duplication of research. Often universities in the North have more information on research in Africa Very few reputable national/regional research journals in Africa those created are not sustainable Most PhD theses end up as monographs in university libraries, not accessible to other researchers Key findings of research not communicated to policy makers for appropriate action
e) Poor ICT Infrastructure (1) Universities around the world use ICT extensively to acquire, produce & disseminate knowledge In SSA, however, poor national ICT infrastructure: - most universities rely on internet provision using satellite (VSAT), high cost of internet access - few telephone lines (see chart) - low internet users penetration (see chart) - low bandwidth (see chart) Interrupted electricity supply & no power supply in rural areas Lack of skilled technical & support staff No enabling ICT policy at national & institutional levels African academics unable to fully participate in Open Access revolution for accessing & disseminating knowledge
Source: ITU 2008 e) Poor ICT Infrastructure (2)
Source: ITU 2008 e) Poor ICT Infrastructure (3)
e) Poor ICT Infrastructure (4) Source: ITU 2008
Prospects for International Research Cooperation
Prospects (1) Renewed interest in African HE worldwide clear message at WCHE Research collaboration between European & African universities has always existed - historical In all research collaboration encourage African universities to set the agenda Ensure research is of direct relevance to development in Africa SD, MDGs, etc. Ensure community outreach aspect in research projects rural community development a priority for Africa Link research to teaching & learning very important
Prospects (2) Large number of university staff require PhD training Full-time PhD training in Europe not advisable - split-site training should be encouraged Include capacity development in all collaboration training for research, writing research grant proposals, monitoring & evaluation of research projects, etc. Because of limited resources, encourage networking with other African universities Facilitate African universities to have access to international publications in print or online Ensure research findings are published within Africa & made accessible to other African universities e.g. UWC s African Higher Education Research Online (AHERO) & AAU s DATAD
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