Mozambique’s Minister of Education and Culture, Samaria Tovela, emphasized on Wednesday, June 11, in Maputo, the need to expand Centers of Excellence as a key strategy for promoting sustainable development in Mozambique and across Africa, according to the Mozambique Information Agency.
The minister stated that the Centers of Excellence must be increasingly aligned with Africa’s real societal challenges:
“The implementation of the centers’ actions must contribute to ensuring food and nutritional security, climate resilience, and the sustainable development of the African continent,” she said.
Tovela made the remarks during the 19th Technical Advisory Meeting (TAM) of the African Centers of Excellence (ACE) and the 25th Regional Steering Committee (RSC) meeting of the ACE II Project, held in Maputo. The goal of the event was to reflect collectively on opportunities, challenges, best practices, and strategic recommendations for the future of higher education in the region.
She noted that Centers of Excellence could play a vital role in youth employment, industrialization, and digital transformation.
Tovela highlighted that Africa currently has 29 active Centers of Excellence, working in strategic fields such as education, agriculture, health, energy, engineering, information technology, and environmental sciences—all committed to academic excellence, social relevance, and regional impact.
“Their mission is clear: to strengthen the capacity of our higher education institutions to provide quality postgraduate training and applied research in priority development areas,” she explained.
Mozambique joined the project in 2016 through funding granted to the country’s oldest and largest university, Eduardo Mondlane University (UEM). This support led to the creation of two centers:
- The Center of Excellence in Engineering and Petroleum & Gas Studies
- The Center of Excellence in Agro-Food Systems and Nutrition
“These two centers, which focus on agro-food systems and nutrition, and petroleum and gas engineering and technology, are of great importance to the country as they address strategic sectors for Mozambique’s growth and development,” Tovela said.
She cited the Regional Center of Excellence in Agro-Food Systems and Nutrition (CE-AFSN) at UEM as an example. This center aims to transform food systems in Africa by training highly qualified human resources and producing high-quality research in areas such as agro-food systems, nutrition, agricultural policy analysis, risk management, and climate change.
The ACE II Project was launched in 2015 by the World Bank, in close collaboration with the governments of eight East and Southern African countries, and is regionally coordinated by the Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA).
Tovela stressed that ensuring the sustainability of these Centers is one of the greatest current challenges:
“Guaranteeing the sustainability of the Centers is undoubtedly the biggest challenge, but also an opportunity. Our collective duty is to ensure that the investment made is not short-lived, but serves as a foundation for lasting transformation in African higher education,” she stated.
She reaffirmed the government’s commitment to continue creating political, institutional, and financial conditions to support the success of the Centers and universities nationally, regionally, and globally.
Meanwhile, Eduardo Mondlane University Rector, Guilherme Júnior, emphasized the crucial role of both centers in addressing national and continental challenges:
“Both centers are in a phase of growth and consolidation at the national and regional levels. They aim to become hubs for innovation, advanced training, and tangible contributions to current challenges—especially at a time when the management of natural resources and climate change-related issues are gaining increasing relevance,” he said.
Source: Diário Económico
