University Of Nottingham, AAU form new partnership to strengthen ties across Europe and Africa

Academics in the UK and Africa are joining forces to advance research and education across the continents of Europe and Africa.

The University of Nottingham and the Association of African Universities (AAU) have signed a five-year agreement which will promote close collaboration on new international studies and projects.

The University of Nottingham will also host the AAU’s first-ever European office and act as its representative institution in Europe.

The Association of African Universities (AAU), headquartered in Accra, Ghana, represents more than 400 higher education institutions across Africa.

The two institutions have agreed to collaborate in specific areas such as building capacity in staff, researchers and students, as well as quality assurance, resource mobilisation, ICT and other infrastructural development.

Professor Robert Mokaya, Pro-Vice Chancellor for Global Engagement at the University of Nottingham, and Professor Olusola Bandele Oyewole, General Secretary at the AAU signed the memorandum of understanding last week.

The partnership will be hosted by the University of Nottingham’s School of Education and led by Professor Juliet Thondhlana, who is also the UNESCO Chair in International Education and Development.

Dr Juliet Thondhlana
International collaboration is essential to teaching and research. The university is developing a new strategy for engaging with partners in Africa, at the core of which is developing equitable partnerships with collaborators, so we are delighted to be partnering with the AAU to advance research and innovation across our continents.
Juliet Thondhlana, Professor of International Education and Development at the University of Nottingham
Professor Thondhlana added: “I look forward to seeing what we can achieve together as our collaboration grows further.”

Despite the AAU having a number of partnerships with institutions in Europe, the University of Nottingham has become a home and focal point to AAU member universities and its other networks for effective partnerships with European counterparts, particularly with the University of Nottingham itself that has emerged as a world-class, research-intensive university whose research transforms lives and shapes futures.
Professor Olusola Bandele Oyewole, General Secretary at the Association of African Universities