The Sustainable Development Goals Center for Africa (SDGC/A) is an international organization set up by African Leaders to support African governments, civil society, businesses and academic institutions to accelerate progress towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Africa. The SDG Center for Africa Is based in Kigali, Rwanda. Dr. Belay Begashaw is the Director General and H.E. Paul Kagame,President of the Republic of Rwanda, Founding Board Chair. It is a partner of the UN SDSN Directed by Prof. Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University, special adviser on the SDGs to the UN Secretary General.
Details of the Center can be found on their website and on Facebook.
The Sustainable Development Goals Center for Africa hosted an important conference on “Mobilizing African Intellectuals Towards Quality Tertiary Education” (Agenda). The conference brought together Vice Chancellor’s from all over Africa and High Level Delegates to discuss Tertiary Education in Africa and strides that be made to ensure that African Universities address the UN 2030 Agenda and top the Global Ranking of Universities studying Sustainable Development by 2030. Prof Patrick Paul Walsh attended as a representative of the Education initiatives of UN SDSN and University College Dublin.
Session 3 of the conference focused on “Building Reputable University Systems in Africa”
Chair: Dr. Fred Swaniker, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, African Leadership Academy and the African Leadership Network, South Africa
Presenter: Professor Patrick Paul Walsh, Professor of International Development Studies, University College Dublin, Ireland
This session focused on the necessity for African universities to be considered as international institutions that attract students and scholars from all over the world, by upgrading their quality and global ranking. The session addresses the importance of the university system in building a strong reputation in an increasingly competitive global space, the development of multicultural communities of students and staff, preparing the students for global political and social environments; as well as the development of international alliances in research, education and business.
Prof Jeffrey Sachs with Prof Paul Walsh
Prof Walsh reported the findings of this Session on “Building Reputable University Systems in Africa” during the SDG Center for Africa Conference on “Mobilizing African Intellectuals Towards Quality Tertiary Education”
The talk is available on YouTube and you can view the slides here also (PPWalsh Slides).