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According to the 2016-2017 Times, Higher Education World University rankings, Nigeria’s overall top performing Higher Education Institution (HEI) is the University of Ibadan, ranked at >800 out of the 980 Universities on the list. The report noted significant improvements in a number of Asian countries including China, Hong Kong and Singapore. While I am aware of the weaknesses of rankings when it comes to HE, the bigger message here is one we all know and in recent times is becoming of greater concern to me personally. Nigerian Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are not globally competitive and there is a lot of work to be done if our goal is to be. Our political, social and economic development cannot be divorced from the quality of graduates churned out each year. They are our bankers, our medical doctors, our lawyers, our teachers and our politicians.
 ‘When we fail in education, we fail at everything.’
A few months ago, I was invited to participate in a panel discussion titled ‘Restructuring Africa’s Tertiary Education System To Make It Globally Competitive’ at an African Diaspora Summit, at the University of Cambridge. As expected, whenever the words ‘Africa’ and ‘education’ come together, it was a lively and passionate discussion as we noted a myriad of challenges; such as limited funding, limited infrastructure and an outdated curriculum. However, it is time for us to change gears and focus our conversations around solutions and empowerment. In this article, I would like to share a few ideas to contribute to ongoing conversations about education and Nigeria. My central thesis is this; for us to rebuild our education systems, we cannot afford to wait for the Federal Government to prioritise education. We must identify those things that are within our power to change and start there.

Courageous and Effective

What does courageous and effective leadership look like? It means challenging the status quo. At the core of Nigeria’s education challenges are poor leadership structures and systems (not necessarily people). We have deeply entrenched systems that recognise religious/ethnic/gender affiliations above character, competence and capacity when filling leadership roles. Leadership goes beyond a title. This is a challenge to all,whether you are a Lecturer 1 or a Vice Chancellor. I will borrow a powerful slogan from Linda Cliatt-Wayman, ‘If you’re going to lead…lead!’ I recommend that every educator watch her TEDTalk on why leadership matters in education and how, despite all odds, her team was able to turn around a low performing school. “But that’s just one school!” you may say, the principle remains the same though, disruptive change is always a result of a change in mindset. Effective leadership is transformational. It looks for solutions. It does things differently. If our brightest and our best are in academia, what do our HEIs say about us?
The significant problems we have cannot be solved at the same level of thinking that created them. ~ Albert Einstein ~

Build Small Wins

With enough focus, the sun’s rays can start a fire. Small(er) wins generate the momentum for larger ones. Trying to make strides in many different directions limit focus and reduce the chance of success. How many Universities in the same region are trying to build a centre of excellence around the same discipline? What about building the success of the whole institution, around smaller hubs of excellence? I know some excellent research directors with brilliant ideas who are not supported because of internal politics. See why leadership is important? I learnt recently that 40% of the Nigerian HE curriculum is within the remit of the University. Why can’t the 40% be excellent in terms of presentation and relevance, particularly in solving today’s challenges?

Build/Strengthen Effective Industry Partnerships

One of the biggest challenges faced by Nigerian HEIs is limited funding. While the pressure for the Federal Government to provide adequate funding must continue, HEIs must in turn proactively look to other sources of support. Limited funding remains a global challenge; although I appreciate the Nigerian case is, well, particularly Nigerian. An important source of funding is working with industry through Knowledge Transfer partnerships. A University’s role goes beyond awarding degrees of Higher Education. It involves conducting research, that is of value to society. What solutions do HEIs have that industry will pay for? Nigeria is trying to diversify its income, agriculture has been noted to be one of our key assets. We have many agricultural universities, how effective are the links between agro-research and agro-business?

Build Successful Collaborations with other HEIs

Reinventing the wheel means investing significant resources of time, energy and effort with little to show for it. For every point I have discussed so far, there are HEIs within Nigeria and/or Africa who are excelling. We must learn to co-operate and not just compete. How many successful inter-regional research collaborations do we have? I have observed where some professional societies are run like town meetings. When the President is from one region, the whole Executive Committee follows suit. During my postdoctoral research, I was involved in an international project which was a collaboration 5 countries and 2 continents. It was an important learning experience. How many international research grant applications would be more successful if they are submitted by a consortium of researchers across different institutions?  I have had the privilege of working with Nigerian based scientists who have come on short research trips to the UK to improve their technical skills and know-how which they can share with their colleagues. I do acknowledge that there are many challenges and obstacles faced by my colleagues working in HEIs across Nigeria. However, we should continue to work on what we can do. Nigeria’s future depends on it. What should be the first steps in this thousand mile journey? I welcome your comments.
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This article was first published on 9th July 2017

amara-anyaogu

Amara Anyogu, PhD is a lecturer and researcher in Microbiology at the University of Westminster where she is teaching and mentoring our next generation of scientists. Amara is the Co-Founder of aspiringprofessionalshub.com; resourcing our global network of professionals with the tools they need to build successful careers. I am always happy to have a conversation on Twitter @amaratweets.

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