University Of Burundi Participates In Africas Higher Education Conference – Addis Ababa

The Doctoral School of the University of Burundi has joined other African stakeholders in higher education at the 17^th Conference of Saint Marys’ University on Private Higher Education in Africa and the 2^nd Symposium of the Higher Education Forum for Africa, Asia and Latin America from 25-27^th July 2019 in Addis Ababa Ethiopia.

The Conference under the theme Internationalization of Higher Education in the New Era of World Order attracted participation from Saint Mary’s University, University of Kwazulu Natal, the African Union, the Association of African Universities, Carnegie Corporation of New York, UNESCO, the Ethiopian Airlines Academy and several African Universities. The conference attracted presentation on various thematic areas related to Internationalization of higher education, including Advancing research and innovation in higher education through international partnerships and technological advances in education delivery as drivers of Internationalization.

Following the introduction of the University of Burundi Doctoral program, the University has witnessed numerous invitations to present in high level fora for higher education in different parts of the world. In the ongoing conference in Addis, the school’s Director, Professor Juma Shabani and one of its international students, Fred Awaah were invited to share perspectives on the works of the school. Speaking on African Higher Education in the Realm of Sustainable Development, Professor Shabani said… Given the role that universities must play in the implementation of SDGs and National development plans, African Governments are challenged to invest heavily in research and doctoral education. He further outlined the drivers of the Doctoral School as extensive use of technology for learners and facilitators, conference opportunities and mobility programs for students and employing the best of human resources within the African region and beyond through online and sit in models at enriching student experiences in learning. He particular noted the contribution of Professor Peter Okebukola of the Lagos State University to the development of the programme. His presentation attracted commendations, with other stakeholders seeking to benchmark the doctoral program for implementation in their institutions.

Fred, on his part presented some findings of his ongoing doctoral thesis. Presenting on the topic Rating Lecturer - Related Classroom Academically Dishonest Practices in Ghana’s Institutions of Higher Learning, he reported initial findings of the rating of the academically dishonest practices in Ghana. The findings suggest that the most recurrent form of lecturer - related classroom academic corruption in Ghana’s higher education is; lecturers not making available to students their interim assessment (IA) grades before the main examination (53.5%), followed by lecturers not completing syllabus before close of semester (22.8%) and in the third place was a number of practices including lecturers coming to lectures late or not showing up for lectures and lecturers not making available to students course outlines at the beginning of the semester (23.7%).

Since its inception in 2018, the University of Burundi has witnessed two enrolments with increased visibility within the African region and enrolments from 3 different nations apart from Burundi.