588
E. E. Mukwevho and M. Togo
have prompted institutions, government and the private sector to promote sustainable
development in all activities. Many institutions have also started implementing sustainability initiatives though the initiatives and scale of implementation differ with
countries and mostly with institutions. A study by Nyerere et al. (2013) looked at
African universities and their efforts to be sustainable. The study reported on how the
University of Zambia has shown commitment to sustainable development through
teaching approaches and its relationship with government, industry and communities
thus facilitating the building of a sustainable society. This trend was also observed
at the University of Development Studies in Ghana and the University of Nairobi in
Kenya. However, the University of Zambia has fallen behind with regards to research
and technology advancement due to lack of funding for research (Nyerere et al. 2013).
Issues pertaining to lack of resources in Africa have restricted sustainability practices in some institutions to curriculum and teaching, and sometimes community
outreach, leaving gaps in term of innovative practices in the continent. This can
be confirmed from a review of initiatives undertaken as part of the Mainstreaming
Environment and Sustainability in African Universities (MESA) Partnership. The
MESA Universities Partnership was initiated by the United Nations Environment
Programme to advance the implementation of sustainability in African Universities.
The Association of African Universities (AAU) and the United Nations Education,
Scientific, Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) were collaborating with UNEP in the
project. The initiative resulted in many universities actively engaging with environment and sustainability related social practices in universities (Lotz-Sisitka 2012).
About 41 New programmes and courses were developed in institutions across Africa
(e.g. Botswana, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, Seychelles and South
Africa to mention a few) (Lotz-Sisitka et al. 2015). Other initiatives included development of new policies and strategies, development of new management practices,
development of sustainability tools and methods and new structures and networks.
In terms of new management practices, only five initiatives were recorded from the
participating institutions—confirming the tendency in Africa to target initiatives that
do not require huge financial investments.
The realization of sustainable development in African Universities can also be
seen through research and new knowledge generation. In this sphere, there appears
to be more regional/sub regional and international partnership initiatives influencing sustainable development research than locally constituted directions, which can
be attributed to the lack of funding for research in Africa (Lotz-Sisitka 2012). The
survey by GUNi/IAU/AAU conducted in 2011 showed that universities themselves
were investing in sustainable development research, not only from developing partnerships, but also internally from national governments (Lotz-Sisitka 2012). An
example is the Southern African Development Community (SADC) ESD Research
Network that supported small-scale studies through seed funding valued at $500 per
local project (SADC REEP 2011). Adams et al. (2010) relates research output to
GDP where he found that the countries with a higher GDP in Africa had universities with leading research outputs. Four of the six countries identified to have high
research outputs, namely South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria, Tunisia, Algeria and Kenya;
are also leading in terms of GDP.
E. E. Mukwevho and M. Togo
have prompted institutions, government and the private sector to promote sustainable
development in all activities. Many institutions have also started implementing sustainability initiatives though the initiatives and scale of implementation differ with
countries and mostly with institutions. A study by Nyerere et al. (2013) looked at
African universities and their efforts to be sustainable. The study reported on how the
University of Zambia has shown commitment to sustainable development through
teaching approaches and its relationship with government, industry and communities
thus facilitating the building of a sustainable society. This trend was also observed
at the University of Development Studies in Ghana and the University of Nairobi in
Kenya. However, the University of Zambia has fallen behind with regards to research
and technology advancement due to lack of funding for research (Nyerere et al. 2013).
Issues pertaining to lack of resources in Africa have restricted sustainability practices in some institutions to curriculum and teaching, and sometimes community
outreach, leaving gaps in term of innovative practices in the continent. This can
be confirmed from a review of initiatives undertaken as part of the Mainstreaming
Environment and Sustainability in African Universities (MESA) Partnership. The
MESA Universities Partnership was initiated by the United Nations Environment
Programme to advance the implementation of sustainability in African Universities.
The Association of African Universities (AAU) and the United Nations Education,
Scientific, Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) were collaborating with UNEP in the
project. The initiative resulted in many universities actively engaging with environment and sustainability related social practices in universities (Lotz-Sisitka 2012).
About 41 New programmes and courses were developed in institutions across Africa
(e.g. Botswana, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, Seychelles and South
Africa to mention a few) (Lotz-Sisitka et al. 2015). Other initiatives included development of new policies and strategies, development of new management practices,
development of sustainability tools and methods and new structures and networks.
In terms of new management practices, only five initiatives were recorded from the
participating institutions—confirming the tendency in Africa to target initiatives that
do not require huge financial investments.
The realization of sustainable development in African Universities can also be
seen through research and new knowledge generation. In this sphere, there appears
to be more regional/sub regional and international partnership initiatives influencing sustainable development research than locally constituted directions, which can
be attributed to the lack of funding for research in Africa (Lotz-Sisitka 2012). The
survey by GUNi/IAU/AAU conducted in 2011 showed that universities themselves
were investing in sustainable development research, not only from developing partnerships, but also internally from national governments (Lotz-Sisitka 2012). An
example is the Southern African Development Community (SADC) ESD Research
Network that supported small-scale studies through seed funding valued at $500 per
local project (SADC REEP 2011). Adams et al. (2010) relates research output to
GDP where he found that the countries with a higher GDP in Africa had universities with leading research outputs. Four of the six countries identified to have high
research outputs, namely South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria, Tunisia, Algeria and Kenya;
are also leading in terms of GDP.