EARTH University hosts visiting African professors from RUFORUM
This week EARTH University hosts 11 members of the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM.) RUFORUM is a consortium of 30 African universities that provide scholarships, support, and leadership opportunities for post-grad and doctoral students, with a focus on agricultural and economic development of the sub-Saharan countries. The group is comprised of nine presidents and vice-chancellors from five universities, as well as the Executive Secretary of RUFORUM and the Grants Manager.
Their visit is the second phase of a year-long collaboration between EARTH and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to provide three African universities with assistance in strengthening their experience-based education programs and community involvement.
Their time at EARTH has been focused on learning about our educational model, visiting local communities, talking to current students, and sharing their experiences from their institutions.
Vice-Chancellor J.H. Nyeko Pen-Mogi of Gulu University in Uganda stated, “I was so impressed with the entrepreneurial emphasis here at EARTH. It is very important to bring this to our universities, because many of our students think they are limited to being scientists or academics because they don’t know how to translate their skills into jobs.
In July, EARTH will again host members of RUFORUM as a group of Deans will arrive to experience the EARTH educational model firsthand, and choose elements to adapt to their universities. The Deans will arrive well prepared, as Executive Secretary of RUFORUM Professor Adipala Ekwamu explained, “The idea of this visit is that we will play the role of trying to pick up all these lessons and share them with the wider network of universities. EARTH has some great programs that should be considered.”
We welcome the RUFORUM members and look forward to strengthening our relationship with African universities, for the benefit of our students and the achievement of our common goals.
