The Centre for Higher Education, Innovation and Development (CHEiD) “Rethinking Nigeria’s Higher Education” documentary research team led by its interim CEO, Odinaka Iloh, successfully completed about two weeks benchmark visits to top universities and other institutions shaping South Africa’s innovation ecosystem. Some of the institutions visited include University of the Witwatersrand, University of Johannesburg, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and the National Research Foundation.
During the visits, there were extensive interactive sessions, interviews, presentations and facility tours that enabled a deeper understanding of those institutions and constructive knowledge exchanges.
The purpose
One of the key objectives of this higher education documentary film series is to clearly capture and portray the convergences, contrasts and weaknesses in the operations of the Nigerian higher education system compared with the way globally competitive institutions operate elsewhere. With this film series CHEiD seeks to provide alternative views, new insights and fresh ideas to leaders, policy makers and stakeholders in academia, government and industry.
Ultimately, the purpose is to catalyse positive action and lead a monumental shift in the way Nigeria’s higher education system is functioning and performing and elevate it to a level where it may be comparable with other globally competitive institutions in Africa and beyond.
The documentary’s focus areas include, but not limited to, funding, infrastructure, intellectual capital and partnerships.
Support
This project is being supported and crowd-funded through donations from well-meaning individuals, agencies and corporate organisations.
Documentary target completion and release date
While productive engagements and interactions within Nigeria is ongoing, the final leg of the international visits will commence in October, with the goal of covering other top universities and institutions in South Africa, Egypt and Uganda which are shaping the innovation ecosystems of those respective countries.
The documentary will premiere at the forthcoming National Higher Education Forum, which is scheduled to hold in Abuja in the first quarter of 2020.
