This archive report was first published on 13 October 2019.
Published on October 13, 2019, by Collins Odote, a columnist for Business Daily Africa.
Universities in Kenya have lost their influence in shaping the national agenda, and it's time for them to scale up their research to regain their position.
Several weeks ago, this column highlighted the need for universities to focus more on research. Recently, a colleague at the university took a step in the right direction by inviting a public audience to share his research agenda as the director of one of the institutes at the university.
He presented a theoretical framework called the Usable Past, which involves learning from experience to develop future priorities. The framework also discussed the contribution that history and experience can make in charting a path for the institution.
Kenyan citizens engaged on Twitter, applauding the initiative while raising critical questions. One such question was why the academy had abandoned its role in influencing the national agenda through research outputs.
While academics can argue about whether they have abandoned this role, the fact remains that the university of today is not as respected and influential as it was in the past.
To regain their influence, universities must make several changes. First, academics and academic departments must deliberately set out their research agenda and share it with the public. This will enable them to be held accountable for knowledge generation.
Secondly, while academic papers and journal articles are essential for scholarship, it's time for the academy to realize that such papers alone do not influence policy. Policy makers require to be engaged in a manner that catches their attention and communicates effectively.
Learning about policy briefs, penning opinion pieces, and engaging on social media become important avenues for policy influence.
Thirdly, research must be undertaken for society. Context therefore matters. Researchers in Kenyan universities must focus on studying the Kenyan society and using the information gained from such studies to develop new analytical frames.
This way, the basis for analysis will increasingly be more Kenyan and Afrocentric, based on the lived realities of the Kenyan society. Information from such research is more likely to help transform the society, as opposed to an approach and worldview that is largely Eurocentric.
In pursuing its research agenda, universities must create linkages with industry and with society. This may be in the form of collaborations in identifying, funding, and pursuing a research agenda, as well as having public discourses on research outputs.
The youth are the future of any society, and universities offer a fertile ground for inculcating in young people values and ideas that can shape their worldview for years to come.
The way universities carry out their business has great potential for shaping the future of Kenya. Beyond instructions in lecture halls, it is necessary that higher learning institutions develop programs for engaging young people in research.
With their vigor and inquisitive mind, young people are capable of leading innovations in the country and thus spurring Kenya to a faster rate of development and to be a leader in technological innovations.
