Australia’s Edith Cowan University has established academic partnerships with four Kenyan universities aimed at enhancing training and research in these institutions of higher learning.
A delegation from Edith Cowan University (ECU), which was in Kenya recently, met with the senior management of the University of Nairobi, Kenyatta University, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) and Moi University, as part of the initial steps to firm up collaborations.
ECU Vice Chancellor Prof Steve Chapman said Edith Cowan University is a university recognised for its nursing, education, science and engineering disciplines and is seeking partners who can add value to training. “We are ready to explore links, learn from each other and engage in staff and student exchange programmes,” he said during the signing of the MoU with the University of Nairobi.
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UoN Vice Chancellor Prof Peter Mbithi said the partnership was one of its strategic initiatives to enhance training and quality of education. “We can collaborate on research, mentoring post graduate students, technology and innovation which will empower all graduates to positively contribute towards development of their countries,” he said.
Prof Chapman said the institutions of higher learning will be working on strengthening student satisfaction, helping in organizing staff exchange programs and supporting university staff to get doctoral degrees.
The ECU delegation also visited Kenyatta University. The two universities recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding for developing collaboration opportunities in the area of staff exchange and joint research activities.
Prof Chapman said ECU has a 20-year legacy in Kenya and the region and is now focused on further increasing its footprint.
At the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), representatives of the ECU Schools of Engineering, Science and Education met with their faculty counterparts to discuss articulation of their programs, staff exchange and research collaboration opportunities. Similar talks were held at Moi University.
Edith Cowan University is strengthening its presence in Kenya as it seeks to have more Kenyans study at the institution of higher learning based in Western Australia. Prof Chapman said Kenya is ECU’s most important market in Africa and is thus among the regional hubs the university is targeting to expand its reach.
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“We are strongly focused on expanding our presence in the global education hubs of the Asia-Pacific and the MENA Region (Middle East and Africa),” Prof Chapman said last week at a dinner hosted by ECU for its alumni in Kenya.
Prof Chapman said ECU has a 20-year legacy in Kenya and the region and is now focused on further increasing its footprint through partnerships with business, higher education institutions and other organisations. It has over 5,000 alumni in Kenya and 145,000 across the globe.
Post-graduate studies
Meanwhile, the ECU School of Nursing and Midwifery put up a strong case for student exchange programme, saying it would improve the quality of healthcare services in Kenya. “We can have ECU trained graduates work in Kenya and Kenyan nursing graduates work in Australia,” said Ms Tania Beament, the Director International, at the School of Nursing.
She said the collaboration would enable Kenyan trained nurses to access post-graduate studies in specialized areas not available in Kenya. Under the arrangement, Kenyan students would be enabled to work and study in Australia.
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