Visit from six African universities sparks academic exchange
Future academic cooperation with exchange of researchers, students and administrators, especially in the field of education. This was the aim of a visit to Stockholm University by six African partner universities from the European University Alliance Civis. The link between all the elements will be “TRACEE”, a joint master's programme focusing on climate research.
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“Europe and Africa are continents that belong together and will belong together. We have much to gain from working together. Europe is an ageing continent, Africa has a young population,” says Stefan Helgesson, Vice President of Stockholm University and one of the initiators.
“What sometimes stands in the way of cooperation is the difficult colonial history that Europe has not fully come to terms with. But there is also a long history of contacts. I think it is in the common interest of both Africa and Europe that we forge closer ties. Not least in view of the ongoing turbulent geopolitical changes in the world,” Stefan Helgesson continues.
Exchange of teachers and students
The visit is an Erasmus+ initiative under Civis, organised by the International Office at Stockholm University. Representatives from six African partner universities in South Africa, Senegal, Uganda, Tunisia, Morocco and Mozambique visited Stockholm University to discuss forms of future cooperation, both for Stockholm University directly and for other European universities within Civis. As a first step, the African universities will nominate teachers to participate in the transdisciplinary master's programme TRACEE with a focus on climate, environment and energy, a project led by Stockholm University.
“The idea is that Stockholm University and other European partners will host researchers from African universities for faculty exchanges, but also that researchers from European universities will be able to work with African partner universities. We also hope that student mobility will increase in both directions. For example by enabling students from Stockholm University to spend a semester at the African partner universities,” says Stefan Helgesson.
How did the week turn out?
“It has been fantastic. We have already achieved a lot of what we set out to do. Firstly, to get to know the six partner universities and the people who work there, in order to establish a basis for cooperation,” says Åsa Petri, Head of the International Office at Stockholm University.
The group, which included academic leaders and researchers as well as administrators from the six universities, visited departments and research centres and made practical plans for future exchanges and collaborations.
“The visits to institutions and centres were very much appreciated, but we also worked practically on funding and visa issues, which are crucial when working on exchange plans. We hope that we, through Civis, can find a way to lay the foundations for that,” says Åsa Petri.
Did the visit contribute to the Civis objectives?
“It was a great success. We managed to achieve much more than I expected,“ says Christian Möllman, coordinator of the partnership with African universities within Civis.
“Stockholm University is the first Civis university to invite all African partners to its campus to establish a bilateral link. This will open up a broader scope of academic cooperation in parallel to the educational exchange. It was also good that all the other European member countries were invited to a part where we could work on the outlines of the larger cooperation within Civis. This part was also a success,” he continues.
What are the synergies between African och European universities?
“It is clear that there is a lot to cooperate on in terms of climate adaptation and climate change, but also social and economic challenges that ultimately drive migration. These are issues where African universities have a lot to contribute. The cooperation is primarily focused on education, but the research component will also be developed in the future, although it depends more on individual initiatives by researchers,” says Stefan Helgesson.
What are the strengths of the African partner universities?
“You have to realise that these are all very large, excellent universities that cover the whole spectrum, including medicine and technology. There is a huge amount of expertise in African universities that has not been made fully visible in the global academic community, so there is much to discover. In addition to climate change, I know there is a lot going on in the humanities and social sciences that we can learn from. For those who want to develop digital technologies in a more inclusive way, there are also great opportunities to do so in collaboration with African universities,” says Stefan Helgesson.
About Civis
Civis - European Civic University Alliance, is an alliance of several European universities that aims to facilitate cross-border cooperation and increase the mobility of students, teachers and staff.
Read more about Civis
Read more about Civis african partners
Read more about TRACEE
What did the partners think of the visit?
Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
The week was rich in experiences, a good mix that gave us the opportunity to see different aspects of how academia is organised at Stockholm University.
“It was inspiring to see how students have designated official spaces for students to do group work at Stockholm University. It was also rewarding to see how natural sciences and humanities can be combined. In Uganda, science is highly valued, but I think it is also important to include the humanities in order to educate the leaders of the future.”
Helen Nambalirwa Nkabala, Principal College of Humanities and Social Sciences Makerere University
It has been rewarding to have the opportunity to understand the Swedish academic culture. I have already identified possible collaborations, including with the Department of Computer and Systems Science.
“Something that surprised me here is that female students are in majority, and that the average age at which a student starts is as high as 22. Another thing is that researchers in Sweden have the right to their own research. It is the intellectual property of the individual researcher. That is a great research environment.”
Robert Wamala, Director of Research, Innovation and Partnerships.
Read more about Makerere University
Hassan II University of Casablanca, Casablanca, Morocco
The week has helped us to get to know each other better on an academic level within the Alliance, which will enable us to make great strides forward.
“Having both researchers, PhD students and administrators in the group is rewarding. The administrators are the glue that makes the collaboration work. My goal is to build a Civis team of both administrators and researchers, who can work together on the different projects that come out of the cooperation.”
Mustapha Lkhider, Professor and Vice President for Research, Cooperation and Partnership
This cooperation offers great opportunities for networking, both between Africa and Europe and between African universities.
“Contacts between Anglophone and Francophone universities in Africa are not so common. For me, the exposure to different forms of entrepreneurship at Stockholm University has also been rewarding. I believe that an entrepreneurial mindset should be present in all areas, including education, research and administration.”
Sara Yassine, Professor of Business and Management
I would like to do exchanges myself in the future. Morocco is increasingly affected by climate change, including in agriculture, which is my field of research.
“We are looking for research-based solutions to increase resilience and reduce stress on local systems, but I don't feel we have the technology to move forward. It was inspiring to see how the laboratory environment at Stockholm University works when you are a PhD student. I think that the fact that PhD students have their own places to work in connection with the labs provides better opportunities to be productive.”
Fadoua Mekkaoui, PhD student in Organic Agriculture
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University of Sfax, Sfax, Tunisia
For our part, it was rewarding to meet with the Department of Computer and Systems Sciences and talk about digitisation.
“We have already started working with the other three francophone universities in the cooperation, Casablanca, Brussels and Marseille, where we have resolved many of the funding issues. But this week has allowed us to take a further step in the exchange plans for teachers and students.”
Ahmed Hadj Kacem, Professor and President of University of Sfax
For me personally, it was particularly interesting to see how Stockholm University works across disciplines. For example, languages can be combined with engineering and computer science.
“This has made me interested in broadening my field. I would like to do an exchange. As a mother, the shorter exchange formats we discussed during the week would be perfect. It was rewarding to discuss the transition from theory to practice in collaboration. It has become much clearer how to apply for a programme or how to apply for scholarships and visas, information that I will share with other doctoral students when I return home.”
Hana El Ghoul, PhD student in English Linguistics
Université Cheikh Anta Diop de Dakar (UCAD), Dakar, Senegal
I see many advantages and great synergies in cooperation between Africa and Europe. Together we can find ways to build a better world.
“But it is important that it is an equal cooperation, where we are seen as complementary, not inferior or superior. Meeting the other African partner universities has sparked my interest in organising exchanges with some of the African universities, for example to study how the impact of colonialism on culture differs between Anglophone and Francophone countries.”
Moussa Sagna, Comparative Literature Researcher and Humanities Area Director
Perfection is the enemy of progress. What we do does not have to be perfect, the important thing is that we move forward together, that we create something together.
“I believe that cooperation within Civis is an opportunity for our university to become more open. In today's world, it has become increasingly important to be open and to learn from others.”
Aminata Mboup, Partner Manager
Read more about Université Cheikh Anta Diop (UCAD)
University of Witswatersrand (Wits), Johannesburg, South Africa
Lyriche DrudePhoto: Anette Gärdeklint Sylla
The infrastructure and funding opportunities available in European research could really contribute to advanced research in both Europe and Africa if we work together.
“As I near the completion of my PhD, I am unfortunately unable to participate in student exchanges myself. However, this week has highlighted promising opportunities for postdoctoral and teaching exchanges in the near future. I also look forward to sharing any valuable information with colleagues back home.”
Lyriche Drude, PhD student in Biology with a focus on invasive species
Eduardo Mondlane University, (EMU), Maputo, Mozambique
Manuel JuniorPhoto: Anette Gärdeklint Sylla
I really appreciated all the discussions, which helped us to get more involved and committed to working together.
“We can now build on all the contacts made during the week. A positive side effect is that we have also initiated cooperation between the African universities in the Alliance. The week helped us to build sustainable relationships for the future.”
Manuel Guilherme Júnior, Professor and Rector at EMU
We have only just begun our journey towards internationalisation and need to do this work at a pace that works for us.
“This week has been very meaningful for us and we look forward to continuing to work together. It's so important to meet face to face to lay a good foundation for future collaboration.”
Ângela Fernandes, Area Director Academic Exchange Department
Read more about Eduardo Mondlane University (EMU)
Last updated: March 28, 2025
Source: Communications Office