A long-running programme to help millions of African people was being celebrated at a high-profile event in Leeds today. Education Reporter Ian Rosser reports
FOR the past two decades, Leeds Metropolitan University has been providing expertise to its African partners in areas ranging from teaching English language to tips on tourism and waste management.
Today, the projects were being celebrated at the f
ormal launch of Leeds Met Africa – a high-profile event to acknowledge working in partnership with communities, governments and institutions in Africa.
It also provided a formal framework for extending the University's commitment to supporting future programmes to improve Africa's economic prosperity and social development.
"The Leeds Met Africa launch event offers the opportunity to find out more about African development goals, and the work that has taken place between Leeds Met and our African partner institutions in recent years," said Frank Griffiths, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Leeds Met and chair of Leeds Met Africa.
Guest speakers included former Labour MP Paul Boateng, now High Commissioner to South Africa, as well as a delegation from Chainama College, Zambia who discussed public health education in their country.
The event had a strong cultural emphasis and began with a performance by a local African Gospel Choir.
Music
A number of local artists also performed sets, including Lamin Jassey, a Gambian musician who has played WOMAD and Glastonbury festivals, and Oluseyi Ogunjobi from Nigeria, who played at last year's Live8 Africa Calling concert.
There was also a chance to see a preview screening of AmaZulu: the Children of Heaven, which was produced by the University's Northern Film School Foundation.
The film is a moving record of the hopes, aspirations and extraordinary achievements of the pupils of Velabahleke High School in Durban.
Mr Griffiths said: "Over the past two decades Leeds Met has established a network of partnerships with communities, governments and institutions in Africa, through which a wide range of excellent collaborative work has been undertaken.
"We are also delighted to say that we now have more than 200 students from 28 African countries and many staff who have an African or African-Caribbean heritage, or experience of working in Africa.
"Leeds Met Africa celebrates the success of our partnerships and experience to date, and provides a framework for extending the contribution of Leeds Met staff and students to the advancement of economic prosperity and social development in Africa.
"The primary aim is to provide a vehicle for the university's continued commitment to seeking sustainable and effective responses to African development priorities.
"We will provide opportunities for Leeds Met staff and students to make a difference through engaging in capacity building, knowledge exchange projects and volunteering, or through extensive research and exchange programmes.
Horizons
"In turn, these projects and experiences will enrich the intellectual and international dimensions of our university in the UK and enhance the global perspectives of our staff and students.
"Leeds Met aspires to being a world-class regional university with worldwide horizons, using all our talents to the full. Through Leeds Met Africa we hope to enable increasing numbers of African people to use their talents and abilities more effectively for themselves and for the benefit of their communities."
Met scheme comes Haile recommended
Leeds Met Africa has won the support of Haile Gebrselassie, widely regarded as the greatest distance runner of his time.
The 33-year-old is due to receive an honorary doctorate at Leeds Met's first graduation ceremony in Africa.
He also visited Leeds last month, taking time out to talk to students at the university's Headingley campus following his run in the London Marathon.
"Leeds Met Africa is a wonderful project, which I am very happy to support," he said.
Leeds Met Africa aims to:
l Raise awareness among staff, students and UK stakeholders of development issues in Africa through information, debate and discussion.
l Value what they learn from engagement in Africa as much as what Leeds Met can offer.
l Develop joint academic programmes with African partner institutions to address specific regional priorities.
l Deliver Leeds Met academic programmes in-country and identify funding opportunities which will enable the widest range of people to access these courses.
l Support links in teaching, learning, research and knowledge exchange with African partner institutions.
l Coordinate staff and student exchange and volunteering opportunities between Leeds Met and African partner institutions.
l Identify potential sources of external funding to provide scholarships and bursaries for African students who wish to study in the UK.
l Share information and good practice from collaborative projects between Leeds Met and African partners, including African communities based in the UK.
l Take advantage of the opportunities presented by pan-African collaboration and create opportunities for partners in the network to engage with and learn from each other.
l Seek financial and other support from donor agencies who may be able to assist Leeds Met in meeting these objectives.
The partnerships that formed over 20 years of Leeds Met projects
Leeds Met's involvement in Africa over the last 20 years has resulted in the development of partnerships in many African countries and encompasses a wide variety of projects on the continent.
They include:
Ethiopia
The English Language Improvement project in Ethiopia was delivered by the university's School of Languages, and successfully enabled many teachers in primary and secondary schools to improve their English.
Gabon
The Tourism, Hospitality and Events School has provided a training programme to update the capacity of personnel involved in ecotourism and tourism in protected areas.
Kenya
Leeds Met's School of the Built Environment is exploring the possibility of offering learning programmes in Kenya through supported distance delivery.
Malawi
Leeds Met is working with the Polytechnic of Malawi to design and implement a new engineering curriculum and has seconded a member of staff for a year to help deliver this.
It is also working with ministries and donor agencies across Malawi to seek funding for the implementation of a national qualifications framework.
South Africa
The Northern Film School Foundation has produced the film Amazulu: The Children of Heaven, which was filmed on location at the Velabahleke High School in the Umlazi Township in Durban.
The film is a moving record of the hopes, aspirations and extraordinary achievements of the pupils in the face of tremendous obstacles.
A number of partnerships are being developed in South Africa, including those with Mangosuthu Technikon, the University of the Western Cape – where they have been involved in developing distance learning materials for Public Health – and a number of other universities.
Tanzania
Tanzania was the first African nation to welcome Leeds Met some 20 years ago, when it helped developed the transport infrastructure.
The university has since supported the development of the Tanzanian National Qualifications Framework in College and Technical Education, and developed links with a number of ministries and institutions.
Long-term relationships are successfully sustained between the university and partner institutions, including the National Institute of Transport, and the Dar es Salam Institute of Technology – where Leeds Met are developing a waste management centre, and have a higher education link in Solid Waste Management, which is managed by the British Council and funded by the Department for International Development.
A series of new projects are currently in development, which include economic development through tourism, and establishing an alumni association.
Uganda
The School of Education and Professional Training has undertaken work with Kyambogo University in curriculum and institutional development.
Zambia
An MSc in Public Health has been delivered at Chainama College near Lusaka for several years, and is funded by the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission as part of their Distance Learning Programme.
The School of Health and Human Sciences is also working with the University of Zambia to assist in the development of an undergraduate course in Environmental Health, and train six lecturers in Environmental Health with funding from the World Health Organisation.
Continent Wide
The School of Languages is the lead partner in a consortium delivering communications courses for African leaders in 19 sub-Saharan African countries.
They are:
Botswana, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Leeds Met and the Association of Business Executives in Africa are working together to develop the affordable progression routes into UK higher education programmes.
