Building Capacity in Africa
The Need for Coherent Policy and Informed Action
(November 2009)

Damtew Teferra, Ph.D.

Introduction

The power of knowledge in the globalized economy has been unequivocally recognized, and with this realization efforts to revitalize higher education and other knowledge systems around the world have been stepped up. This trend is clearly evident in Africa.

There have been different approaches by a variety of players to build capacity in Africa. Some have focused on select disciplines or fields (such as reproductive health or engineering), others on institutional units or sub-units (such as faculties of teacher education or departments of botany), and still others on whole institutions (centers or universities). In the last decade or so, the emphasis has been placed largely on full institutional approaches, guided by the recognition that only a coherent and comprehensive institutional and sectoral orientation provides a meaningful impact.

Currently, initiatives to selectively and preferentially nurture certain fields and disciplines deemed necessary to build capacity in the region—as largely determined by the specific interests of the respective “major” stakeholders—are now growing in importance.