The role of Higher Education in achieving SDGs: an African perspective, Prof. Bakri Saeed

Professor Bakri Osman Saeed
President
Association of African Universities, Accra
Ghana

Abstract 

Halfway towards 2030, reports on both global and continental development agenda show that Africa is not on its way to achieve the development targets. The Africa Sustainable Development Report (2023) calls for ‘higher order’ strategic approaches for pushing forward the two Agendas of the SDGs and Agenda 2063. The assessment of the progress after the first decade of Agenda 2063 confirmed slow progress towards achieving the development targets. Unsustainable development is deep-rooted in Africa and success of the transformational agenda of development depends on assessment of the characteristics of unsustainable development in Africa and its underlying causes. Both the SDGs and Agenda 2063 assigned a central role for universities in achieving the development goals. However, universities in Africa have been going through “learning crisis”. We need to understand the nature of the challenges involved if higher education is to play its role in driving all of the goals of development.