Africa: AHEFT Prize Launched to Recognise African Universities Leading Higher Education Transformation
[allAfrica] Rio de Janeiro, Brazil -- As Africa grapples with shrinking international development funding and rising pressure to create jobs for its rapidly growing youth population, the Mastercard Foundation is making one of the continent's biggest long-term investments in higher education, committing US$500 million over the next decade to transform African universities.
As Africa faces rising youth unemployment and dwindling international aid, the Mastercard Foundation is investing $500 million over the next ten years to transform African universities, according to Dr. John Nkengasong, Executive Director for Higher Education at the Foundation. Universities, he says, are essential engines for developing the talent, innovation, and leadership needed to drive Africa's economic growth.
Nkengasong, a renowned virologist, argues that strategic investment in higher education has enabled countries worldwide to build knowledge-based economies.
Unlike direct scholarships or workforce programs, the Foundation believes universities are the key lever for change. Through strategic investments in higher education, Africa can generate the talent needed for sustained economic growth and livelihoods for its young people. The Mastercard Foundation's Africa Higher Education for Transformation (AHEFT) Prize aims to strengthen the higher education system as a catalyst for talent development, expanded opportunities, and inclusive socio-economic progress.
The Prize focuses on systemic, institution-wide transformation rather than isolated excellence. It assesses universities based on their impact on teaching and learning, research, entrepreneurship, student experience, and broader societal outcomes. The inaugural winners demonstrated transformation in various ways, from creating pathways from learning to employment to advancing applied research and innovation.
The inaugural cycle of the Prize reinforced the crucial role of African universities in human capital development and socio-economic progress. It also validated the importance of assessing universities holistically, examining how leadership, systems, partnerships, teaching, research, and student outcomes work together to create lasting change. The insights gained will inform future cycles of the Prize as it expands to universities across the continent.
Written by urgent.news from AllAfrica Health's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
