This archive report was first published on 3 September 2021.
As the fourth industrial revolution transforms the global economy, universities in the East African Community region are facing a pressing challenge: producing graduates who are equipped to thrive in the digital labour market.
According to Prof Gaspard Banyankimbona, Executive Secretary of the Inter University Council for East Africa, the traditional approach to higher education is no longer sufficient. 'The use of robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Augmented Virtual Reality, has created multilevel interaction between human beings and technology,' he notes.
Universities must adapt to this new reality by adopting competence-based education and expanding their traditional functions to include innovation and industrialization. This requires a shift in mindset, as Prof Banyankimbona emphasizes: 'Universities need to permanently consider the important symbiotic relationship between education, industry, and society.'
By embracing this change, universities can produce graduates who are empowered with entrepreneurial skills, ready to create jobs or fit seamlessly into the labour market. This, in turn, will drive economic growth and development in the region.
As Prof Banyankimbona stresses, 'The shift is inevitable.' Universities must now prioritize competency-based curriculum development, benchmarking, and training in industries, incubation centres, and start-ups to produce graduates who are equipped to succeed in the digital age.
