Higher education leaders, policymakers and industry partners from across the continent wrapped up the Times Higher Education (THE) Africa Universities Summit 2026 in Nairobi on Monday with a shared call to align university systems with Africa’s fast-changing economic needs and to produce graduates who can drive inclusive development.
The two-day summit, held in one of the continent’s most active innovation hubs, brought together more than 60 speakers and 350 participants from over 150 organisations and universities to examine four priorities: tackling global challenges through cross-border research collaboration, building entrepreneurial ecosystems, improving graduate work readiness, and advancing gender equality and inclusion in higher education.
Opening the summit, Kenya’s Principal Secretary for Higher Education and Research, Dr. Beatrice Muganda, set a clear continental ambition. “Africa must not simply respond to global challenges,” she said. “Africa must shape global solutions.”
South Africa’s Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology, Buti Manamela, challenged delegates on gender progress, noting that while women now enter and graduate from universities in larger numbers than before, enrolment gains alone do not confirm systemic equality. “The question is whether our systems are producing genuine equality,” he said, “and whether they are doing so for everyone.”
The summit featured prominent voices from across the continent, including Letlhokwa Mpedi, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Johannesburg; Barnabas Nawangwe, Vice-Chancellor of Makerere University; Tonny Omwansa, Chief Executive of the Kenya National Innovation Agency (KENIA); and Caroline Nyaga, Founder and Chief Executive of the Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) Initiative.
This year’s edition follows the 2025 summit held in Rwanda, which focused on equitable partnerships and digital transformation in higher education. The Nairobi gathering shifted emphasis toward the entrepreneurial and economic dimensions of university education, reflecting growing pressure on institutions to produce graduates who are not only academically prepared but economically productive.
The convening underscored a broader continental reality: with over 400 million young people, Africa’s universities carry enormous responsibility in shaping whether that demographic dividend becomes an engine of growth or a governance challenge.
