African Higher Education and Training

technology

AAI’s African Higher Education and Training (AHET) programs have contributed to the development of vibrant civil societies and responsive leadership in Africa, thereby increasing Africa’s competitiveness in the global economy. By forging global partnerships, the program aimed to expand higher education, professional training and skills building opportunities for Africans.

 

Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women Initiative, 2008 – 2010

The Goldman Sachs Foundation (GSF) partnered with AAI on the implementation of portions of the Africa component of Goldman Sachs’ 10,000 Women Initiative, which included non-degree and business degree training for African women business managers on full-tuition scholarships as part of the “10,000 Women Certificate Program for Women Entrepreneurs.” Created by Goldman Sachs, The Initiative aimed to increase the number of underserved women receiving a business and management education and improve the quality and capacity of business and management education around the world. The grant was implemented in collaboration with United States International University (Kenya), Enterprise Development Centre of Pan-Atlantic University (Nigeria) and University of Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), and benefited over 300 women.

 Mozambique Participant Training Program (MPTP), 2006 – 2011

The MPTP program was launched in January 2006 and was funded by the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Mozambique office. MPTP was a five-year, $5 million program that provided short-term training for Mozambicans in Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, and the United States as well as long-term training in higher education institutions primarily in South Africa in the fields of economics and agricultural management. MPTP also developed internship and grant programs that benefited both MPTP training participants as well as other USAID/Mozambique target beneficiaries in Mozambique.

 Ford Foundation International Fellowships Program (IFP), 2002 – 2012

The IEP program provided opportunities for advanced study to exceptional individuals who would use this education to become leaders in their respective fields, furthering development in their own countries and greater economic and social justice worldwide. Fellows were drawn from diverse backgrounds, and IFP actively sought candidates from social groups and communities that lack systematic access to higher education. This $280 million ten year program was a global activity that provided support for up to three years of formal graduate-level study leading to a masters or doctoral degree.

African Technology For Education And Workforce Development (AFTECH), 2002 – 2005

The African Technology for Education and Workforce Development Initiative (AFTECH), created and led by AAI, employed new information and communications technologies (ICT) to accelerate workforce development in Africa. It leveraged the power of e-learning to deliver higher education and training content from American and leading institutions to Africans where they lived. Activities included: The Workforce Development Institute; Project Management Training for Healthcare Planners and Implementers; Improving Math and Science Teaching; Children Affected By AIDS (CABA) program; African Workforce Development Policy; and African Perspectives discussion series.

Rural Social Sciences Scholarship Fund, 1998 – 2007

Initiated in 1998 and funded by the Ford Foundation, this project sought to strengthen Mozambique’s national and local rural development agencies through study programs in southern Africa, Europe and Brazil. The project provided assistance to young Mozambican professionals whose careers could benefit from masters’ and doctoral level training, as well as undergraduate scholarship funding for those with only medium level schooling. Candidates committed to applying social science principles to rural development policy and practice.

Namibian Government Scholarship And Training Program (NGSTP), 1999 – 2011

Initiated at the request of the Namibian Ministry of Higher Education, the NGST Program made higher education fellowships available from a fund established by the Namibian Government. The program provided academic training in the United States for selected Namibians in priority subject areas established by the Namibian Government. AAI administered the program and assisted the Namibian Government to leverage the scholarship fund with private sector and other philanthropic support from within Namibia and the United States.

 Strategic Technical Assistance For Results With Training (START), 2002 – 2007

USAID awarded AAI one of three Strategic Technical Assistance for Results with Training (START) contracts. START was USAID’s latest initiative to provide the Agency’s missions, bureaus and global centers an integrated package of participant trainee support and services that included U.S. and third country placement, in-country and follow-on training, program monitoring, impact evaluation and technical assistance.

First Data Western Union Foundation Scholarship Program (FDWUSP), 2005 – 2006

Between 2005 and 2006, AAI administered the First Data Western Union Foundation Scholarship (FDWUSP) in partnership with the Association of African Universities (AAU), based in Accra, Ghana. With a 10 year presence in Africa, Western Union, through the First Data Western Union Foundation, funded this scholarship program that provided 13 qualified Africans with post-graduate training to obtain Master’s and Ph.D. degrees at African Universities in business, education, engineering and natural sciences. The scholarship covered the cost of tuition, books, fees and living expenses for the 2005—2006 academic year to talented Africans from Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal and Tunisia.

World Wild Life Fund, 2002 – 2005

Under this contract with the World Wild Life Fund, AAI managed recruitment and selection activities for Russell E. Train Scholarships and Fellowships in Mozambique and Madagascar in cooperation with the Education for Nature (EFN) Program and WWF offices in these countries.

Claude Ake Memorial Award Program, 2001 – 2004

This program recognized and supported the research and professional development of African scholars/activists who were engaged in thinking about and articulating emergent issues and actively identifying and applying solutions to that affect the future of their countries and/or the continent. Awardees came to the U.S. to present their research and activities at the Annual African Studies Association (ASA) meeting and to visit university campuses for professional exchanges. Nineteen awards were granted in 2001, 2002 and 2003 for scholars from Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

Advanced Training for Leadership and Skills Project (ATLAS), 1990 – 2003

The Advanced Training for Leadership and Skills Project (ATLAS) provided undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate fellowships for highly qualified Africans to undertake academic programs at American universities. With principal funding provided by USAID, AAI administered the ATLAS Project in collaboration with the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS). The CGS Executive Committee of Deans played a major role in the screening and selection of candidates and obtaining tuition scholarships from its member institutions. The emphasis of ATLAS was on preparing Fellows to make positive changes in their sponsoring organizations in Africa to further African development.

International Visitors Program (IVP), 1962 – 2003

For more than 40 years, AAI welcomed thousands of current and future African leaders to the U.S. from a wide variety of sectors for short-term educational and professional development exchanges. Funded by the U.S. Department of State (DOS), AAI worked collaboratively with DOS and the Council of International Visitors to design and implement U.S. itineraries for the participants. Visiting cities and small towns across the country, visitors learned firsthand about how Americans are addressing relevant issues and interacted with American decision makers to gain valuable information that could be adapted to their situations when they return home. Through these unique people-to-people contacts, Americans became more informed about Africa. These exchanges served as fora for public diplomacy, promoting greater understanding of the importance of a stronger partnership between America and the nations of Africa.

Global Training For Development (GTD), 1997 – 2002

AAI partnered with World Learning Institute to implement a broad array of training services for Africa. As part of this program, AAI developed results-oriented training plans, managed participant recruitment, placement, monitoring and administration for training in the U.S. and Africa, and designed follow-on enhancement activities. Within the context of USAID’s reengineered focus on achieving strategic objectives, training under GTD was intended to result in measurable workplace impact and enhanced institutional performance, in addition to imparting knowledge and skills.

Africa Center For Strategic Studies (ACSS), 1999 – 2002

The ACSS was a U.S. Department of Defense-funded project in which AAI provided limited staffing and expertise to engage senior African civilian and military leaders in a substantive dialogue, program of study, seminars and exchange activities on civil-military relations, decision-making and economic resource management in a democratic context. The program of study was designed to promote productive inquiry on the military’s role in democratic society.

Effective Management and Leadership Skills For NGOS In Nigeria, 2001

This pilot project, funded by the Texaco Management Institute (TMI) and Texaco, Inc., involved a series of workshops that focused on management and leadership issues for individuals working in NGOs in the Niger River Delta Region of Nigeria. The workshop format included presentations, open discussions and small work group sessions. Presentations addressed global trends in management and leadership including: managing people and resources effectively, and strategic thinking and defining modes of effective leadership.

Nigeria NGO Training Project, 1999 – 2002

This project provided leadership skills for non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Nigeria. Funded by the Ford Foundation, this project was designed to respond to the needs of leading NGOs in the field of reproductive health and women’s empowerment. Middle management staff was enrolled in customized short courses and graduate classes in several critical subject areas for NGOs such as intervention research, impact evaluation, participatory project planning and management, NGO management, policy advocacy, documentation and communications, and fundraising/endowment building.

South African Black University Faculty Skills Enhancement Program (SABUFSEP), 1993 – 1997

A cooperative effort of participating American colleges and universities, South Africa’s historically black universities, USAID, the Educational Opportunities Council, and AAI. This program provided short-term training, research opportunities and skills enhancement in the U.S. for 60 black South African faculty and administrators. SABUFSEP emerged from the Ford Foundation-funded University of Western Cape Program, 1989-1993, which sponsored over 30 Western Cape junior faculty and graduate students in six-month programs at U.S. graduate institutions.

The African Graduate Fellowship Program (AFGRAD), 1963 – 1997

The predecessor project to ATLAS, AFGRAD provided quality graduate education for over 2,900 African students from 45 countries. AFGRAD sought to prepare individuals to assume high-level positions of responsibility in the service of their governments, national universities, and the private sector. Administered by AAI since its inception in 1963, AFGRAD was a cooperative effort of the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS), USAID, and the participating African governments, with central funding provided by USAID and tuition scholarships contributed by over 200 universities.

 African Scholarship Program of American Universities (ASPAU), 1961 – 1975

The ASPAU program was a cooperative effort between AAI, American universities, USAID, and African governments to provide U.S. undergraduate training for 1600 scholars from 32 African countries. Short-term, on-the-job training was also arranged at more than 200 private firms and organizations, and special workshops were held on such issues as African development, communications, economic development, engineering, and management.

 

 Sierra Leone Senior Officers Training Program, 1996 – 1998

 Partners For International Education And Training (Piet), 1982 – 1997

 Role Of Women’s Organizations In Social And Political Affairs, 1992 – 1997

 Phillips Petroleum Training Program, 1993 – 1996

 The First Africa-Wide Consultation For Women In Politics, 1995

 Maternal And Child Health/Family Planning Ii Project, Rwanda, 1991 – 1994

 Southern African Training Program, 1976-1994 For Refugees From Namibia, South Africa, Zimbabwe

 Societe Nationale D’investissement Du Cameroun (Sni), 1981 – 1988

 Development Training Program For Portuguese-Speaking Africa, 1975 – 1985

 Nigerian Staff Development Programs, 1977 – 1983

 Southern African Refugee Education Project (Sarep), 1975 – 1981

 Southern African Student Program, 1961 – 1983 For Over 600 Students From South Africa, Namibia, Angola, Mozambique And Zimbabwe

 Starr Foundation African Scholarship Program, 1972 – 1980

 Southern African Training Program, 1971 – 1974

 East Africa Refugee Program, 1962 – 1971

 Guinea Scholarship Program, 1960 – 1969

 African Training Program, 1964 – 1969

 East Africa Junior College Program (Kenya), 1962 – 1964