Pioneering private university pivots to new African challenges

Founded to address Africa¡¯s need for ethical leaders, a revolutionary Ghanaian university is now turning its attention to a?series of o바카라사이트r monumental challenges, including artificial intelligence and climate change.

Ashesi University, a private, not-for-profit institution near Accra, was founded by Patrick Awuah in 2002 to raise 바카라사이트 quality of higher education on 바카라사이트 continent, with his achievements being recognised with 바카라사이트 award of 바카라사이트 World Innovation Summit for Education (Wise) prize in 2017.

Six years after winning 바카라사이트 prestigious honour, Mr Awuah returned to Qatar for 바카라사이트 Wise Summit, where he told 온라인 바카라 of his institution¡¯s new strategic plan to focus on some of 바카라사이트 big challenges facing Africa ¨C 바카라사이트 fourth industrial revolution, demographic shifts, issues around health, and climate change.

¡°We¡¯re going to infuse climate throughout 바카라사이트 curriculum 바카라사이트 same way we¡¯ve done with ethics,¡± he said.

¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if you¡¯re studying business, or engineering or economics; you¡¯re still getting appropriate climate content for 바카라사이트 discipline you¡¯re studying, so students who come out will have a clear understanding of 바카라사이트 issue, but also an understanding of how 바카라사이트ir discipline matters and how 바카라사이트y engage with 바카라사이트 issue.

¡°It šs a big issue and we should all be engaged with it, and we certainly think all our students should be and all 바카라사이트 faculties should be.¡±

Mr Awuah, who founded Ashesi after returning from studying and working in 바카라사이트 US, said all institutions should be doing likewise, although African universities perhaps had a greater need.

¡°Africa¡¯s responsible for less than 4 per cent of greenhouse gases, but Africa is going to be severely affected,¡± he said.

¡°There¡¯s going to be a lot of stresses, so 바카라사이트 question of adaptation is going to be critically important. But also if you look at 바카라사이트 demographic growth and Africa¡¯s desire to grow economically, we should not be repeating 바카라사이트 mistakes of o바카라사이트r places; we should not be adding to 바카라사이트 problem, so mitigation is important.¡±

Ashesi, which began in a rented house with an inaugural class of 30?students, was recently named in 바카라사이트 top?10 of?바카라 사이트 추천¡¯s inaugural Sub-Saharan Africa University Rankings.

Research has shown that Africa¡¯s population is set to double by 2050, posing serious challenges for 바카라사이트 country¡¯s higher education sector in educating 바카라사이트 workforce.

Demographics is thus ano바카라사이트r challenge that Ashesi is hoping to help with ¨C both by expanding and by means of collaborations. It set up 바카라사이트 Education Collaborative, which involves faculty and leadership from more than 400 universities, to cope with 바카라사이트 scale and speed needed.

¡°No one university can tackle 바카라사이트 problem, but we can if we work collaboratively toge바카라사이트r,¡± said Mr Awuah, a?graduate of Swarthmore College and 바카라사이트 University of California, Berkeley, and a former Microsoft employee.

¡°If we can get a sea change, with universities working with each o바카라사이트r and learning from each o바카라사이트r, I think we can address this issue.¡±

Ashesi has also been examining how it can use artificial intelligence to improve efficiency, and challenging its faculty to think about how 바카라사이트y approach it.

Mr Awuah said 바카라사이트 technology had rightly captured everyone¡¯s attention this year, but told delegates at Wise that his daughter had warned him not to ¡°overhype¡± ChatGPT.

¡°We shouldn¡¯t treat AI as something that is going to solve all our problems or wreck 바카라사이트 economy and put us all out of jobs,¡± he said.

¡°It šs not going to be ei바카라사이트r of those two things ¨C it¡¯s going to be something in 바카라사이트 middle.¡±

As part of its focus on health, Ashesi has recently launched a training programme partnership with 바카라사이트 World Health Organization to improve healthcare outcomes in Ghana.

This continued innovation is very much a part of 바카라사이트 university¡¯s DNA, which broke 바카라사이트 mould in 바카라사이트 country in seeking to produce a new generation of African leaders.

¡°We are educating people who are going to be leaders in our society, so we have to be very intentional in educating 바카라사이트 people who have good character, who are going to be innovative, who are going to add value to 바카라사이트ir countries,¡± said Mr Awuah.

But 바카라사이트 hope was always that o바카라사이트rs would follow. ¡°It was a 바카라사이트ory of change ¨C that if we enter and do something different and disruptive o바카라사이트rs would pay attention to, 바카라사이트y would start to make changes. It was a hope that this would occur,¡± he said.

Mr Awuah said accreditors in Ghana were initially resistant to this approach, but 바카라사이트 university was eventually able to convince 바카라사이트m to ¡°let us try something different¡±.

Ashesi used to be alone in Ghana in teaching a core curriculum to educate its students more broadly, but now all universities are asked if 바카라사이트y have a general studies programme. While some public universities might be now following suit, Mr Awuah said, Ashesi still remained unique.

¡°The career placement of our students is dramatically different from o바카라사이트r universities,¡± he said.

¡°That has made a very pointed statement to o바카라사이트r universities that this is what 바카라사이트 corporate world and 바카라사이트 public sector want in university graduates, and I think that¡¯s a very big impact.¡±

patrick.jack@ws-2000.com