Nine leading scientists from the "Africa Centres of Excellence" (ACE) project visited the university this week.
The delegation from Africa learnt about existing co-operation between the University of Oldenburg and African institutions as well as training opportunities in the fields of sustainability and IT. The researchers' week-long visit to Germany, organised by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), is intended to intensify cooperation between German and African universities.
Prof. Dr Esther Ruigendijk, Vice President for Young Academics and International Affairs, welcomed the guests, who come from countries including Ethiopia, Nigeria, Rwanda, the Ivory Coast and Ghana. Dr Thomas Klenke from the COAST research centre then gave a presentation on the university's research and training activities in the fields of climate, water and biodiversity. Prof. Dr Bernd Siebenhüner from the Department of Economics and Law reported on the CERM-ESA project, a co-operation between the University of Oldenburg and four African research institutions. In this project, a centre of excellence for educational research and educational management was established at Moi University in Kenya as part of a DAAD programme. Dr Herena Torio and Robin Knecht presented Oldenburg's degree programmes on renewable energies. Christian Ossorio gave an overview of the "Centre of Excellence for ICT in East Africa" (CENIT@EA), which is currently being established in Tanzania. This German-African project, led by Oldenburg, includes a Master's degree course in information and communication technologies, with participants specialising in embedded and mobile systems.
In the Africa Centres of Excellence project, which is supported by the World Bank, 22 universities and research institutions from West and Central Africa have joined forces to strengthen training for experts in various fields of research. The programme focuses on sustainable energy, climate change, the environment, water and research management. Among the members of the delegation are, for example, the heads of the centres of excellence for water management, sustainable energy development and agriculture in arid regions.
