The Role of Internationalisation in Improving Intra-African Research Collaboration

Abstract

The importance of internationationalisation of higher education has been widely argued. International research collaboration contributes to the exchange of ideas across borders and disciplines, produces new knowledge and positively impacts the quality of research and education. However, due to global inequalities and the Eurocentric hegemony in higher education and knowledge production, African institutions and scholars tend to engage and collaborate with their counterparts in the global North while sidelining the collaboration with the institutions and researchers on the African continent. Reasons for this can be found in the colonial roots of higher education in Africa, coloniality, postcolonial neglect of higher education systems and institutions by African governments, disinvestment in research and higher education in Africa over the past few decades, and the international funding structures that favour the institutions from the global North. Furthermore, long after the end of colonialism, and despite the declarations and rhetoric about Africanisation and decolonisation, African higher education systems and institutions remain trapped in the Eurocentric epistemologies, curriculum, pedagogies, and research methodologies and approaches (Zeleza, 2012; Nyamnjoh, 2019). International collaboration, research and knowledge production globally, and particularly on the African continent, continue to be framed and conceptualised by the institutions and academia in the global North and characterized by inequities, inequalities, hegemonic structures and power dynamics (Nyamnjoh, 2019). This chapter will explore and unpack the reasons for the lack of intra-Africa research collaboration that leads to research output and knowledge production. We will unpack the data from the Web of Science (see figure below, from Mouton & Blanckenberg, 2018), which shows that the international collaboration with the institutions and academics outside the African continent dominates collaborative research and knowledge production, while collaboration with African counterparts remains miniscule. The chapter will focus on the structural changes that are needed to address these challenges, such as increased funding for research and higher education from African governments. We will also explore the role of internationalisation of higher education in contributing to a meaningful expansion of intra-Africa collaboration and research for the benefit of the African continent and based on the interests, priorities and ownership of Africa and Africans (African Union, 2016).