University hosts international conference on job skills
The University of Greenwich at Medway is leading part of an international project aiming to provide postgraduate students in sub-Saharan Africa with the high-level skills and entrepreneurial flair now being demanded by employers.
Representatives of three Nigerian, one South African and three UK universities held an Education Partnerships in Africa project conference at the University of Greenwich’s School of Engineering, at Chatham Maritime, on Tuesday, June 22.
The delegates were focusing on how to best include the high-level skills employers need within courses and training opportunities for engineering, IT and business students in sub-Saharan Africa generally and Nigeria in particular.
It is also hoped that the project’s findings will assist in the development of postgraduate courses and skills training for students in the UK.
The £4.5 million Education Partnerships in Africa (EPA) scheme was launched by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) in 2008 and is managed by the British Council. EPA is enabling UK higher and further education providers to work with similar education organisations in sub-Saharan Africa to boost economic development.
Professor Ndy Ekere, Head of the University of Greenwich’s School of Engineering, said: “We are the lead partner in an 18-month EPA programme looking at the best approaches to embedding employability skills within postgraduate programmes.
“We were delighted to welcome conference representatives from the University of Wolverhampton and London South Bank University to engage with delegates from our Nigerian partners including the University of Benin, the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, and Abia State University, Uturu.
“The conference was opened by University of Greenwich Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and Enterprise, Professor Tom Barnes, and our keynote speaker for the event was Professor Kanes Rajah, Director of the Business School at Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria.”
Professor Iche Kalu, Dean of Engineering and Environmental Studies, of Abia State University, said: “The wide range of conference participants and high level of expertise from across the University of Greenwich enabled us to consider specific case studies from Nigeria and to work through approaches to improve the links between businesses and employers with education providers.”
Plans are now being formulated for creating an additional new network to enable UK and Nigerian universities to work together on employability issues.
Additionally, consideration is being given to developing a bid for funding to enable Nigerian university academic and technical staff to train in the UK and to generate joint research projects between UK and Nigerian universities.
For further information about Education Partnerships in Africa and the Embedding Employability Skills into Postgraduate Programmes, go to www.ukafricapartnerships.org
Ends
For further information and additional images please contact:
Nick Davison
Press Officer
University of Greenwich
020 8331 8092
N.A.P.Davison@gre.ac.uk
Caption: Delegates at the Education Partnerships in Africa conference at the University of Greenwich at Medway