Africa Higher Education Research Institute Information

Africa Higher Education Research Institute (AHERI). The university has always been considered the preserve of a few but currently its demand is on the increase as a catalyst for social and professional mobility. The expectation and indeed the purpose of higher education of facilitating development cannot be emphasized. The society expects the university and by extension higher education to steer desirable change. Most African higher education institutions celebrate about 5 decades of existence in congruence with independence period. The common reason for supporting the establishment of the higher education institutions during the independence period was the need to combat illiteracy among the citizens and foster development. For higher education to be entrusted with such a daunting task there is need for greater understanding of institutions of higher education and the resources available to them to enable them achieve this task. The greatest advancements and most instrumental inventions in our times has been in the area of information technology. Information technology is billed to be the most influential factor in any undertaking, improving efficiency and increasing quality tremendously in the long term. It is for this purpose that (AHERI) was established. AHERI's broad objectives are; 1. To promote and Support networking among higher education researchers in the region 2. To identify pertinent issues affecting higher education 3. To carry out relevant research aimed at improving higher education 4. To publish and document information on higher education 5. To advocate for the implementation of the research findings through influencing decision making within the higher education sector towards general development in African States. Geographical focus: AHERI will eventually focus on Africa as opposed to individual countries because the initiative would be more sustainable. This is due to the fact that the overhead cost of individual country or institutional investment into the initiative would be prohibitive. The countries in this region are also interconnected economically and socially hence gains made in one country can easily be lost or have reduced effect if others are not taken into effect. Objectives: 1. To promote and Support networking among higher education researchers in the region 2. To identify pertinent issues affecting higher education 3. To carry out relevant research aimed at improving higher education 4. To publish and document information on higher education 5. To advocate for the implementation of the research findings through influencing decision making within the higher education sector towards general development in African States. Thematic areas: • Governance Structures and Reform within higher education institutions • Quality Assurance systems and structures within higher education system • Accessibility to higher education by all segments of the society • Match and Mismatch of higher education qualification in the job market. • Research Funding and its effect to development of higher education and the society Activities: 1. Organize conferences to increase discourse and debate on thematic areas of concern. 2. Develop and carry out research projects for clients with common ideals of making higher education relevant to world of work and society. 3. Facilitate and promote publications on higher education research. 4. Organize public debates and produce position papers on current and critical affairs of the society. 5. Facilitate scholarship and support for masters and doctoral studies for Africans. 6. Geographical focus of research is primarily Africa, meaning that research objectives and results need to be strategic to Africa.