Founder and President of Kigali Independent University ULK attends THE Africa Universities Summit
Times Higher Education (THE) organized a summit that brought together cross-continental partners from higher education, industry, policy and civil society to discuss the greatest challenges and opportunities facing African higher education and broader society. The Founder and President of ULK Prof.Dr Rwigamba Balinda attended and actively participated in the panel discussion with the theme United leadership: Harnessing African education for sustainable growth among other speakers on 18th March 2025 during the summit at Kigali Convention Centre. University leaders, policymakers, and industry experts from various African countries gathered in Kigali for this significant summit, which seeks to explore innovative solutions and foster collaboration among stakeholders in the educational sector.
Founder and President of ULK alongside Ms. Ndèye Aissatou Masseck Ndiaye, the representative of UNHCR Rwanda and other participants in a group photo.
One of the challenges discussed which universities in Africa and globally face is not only in educating the next generation but also in building societies capable of responding to global crises and contributing to sustainable development goals. Achieving the 15 by 30 target (15% enrolment of refugees in higher education by 2030) is central to this, and requires greater collaboration between UNHCR and universities, particularly in the largest refugee hosting Countries of which Rwanda is inclusive. The Founder and President of ULK specifically discussed and shared a lot of insightful experience including steps that ULK has taken to support the inclusion of refugees and build their long-term self-reliance.
Prof. Rwigamba Balinda said that Kigali Independent University ULK has so far given scholarships to more than 140 refugee students to do their studies at ULK and set up flexible tuition fee payment in installments and committed to offer 20 additional scholarships this year. He encouraged other institutions of Higher learning to help refugees gain access to quality education so that they can build capacity and support their communities.
The panel discussion speakers included the Founder and President of Kigali Independent University Prof. Dr Rwigamba Balinda, UNHCR Rwanda representative Ms Ndeye Aissatou Masseck Ndiaye, President of University of OSLO Svein Stølen and Refugee Technical Advisor at the Ministry in charge of Emergency Management (MINEMA) Eric Mutabazi
