Italian and African universities have reaffirmed their commitment to deepening academic cooperation following high-level deliberations at the closing meeting of the TNE UNITAFRICA project in Bari, Italy, where two senior scholars from KNUST played prominent leadership roles.
Prof. Daniel Yaw Addae Duah, Head of the Department of Architecture and KNUST Lead for the UNITAFRICA project, co-chaired the “Long Term Vision” session of the meeting on Thursday, February 26, 2026. The session, held under the theme of strengthening the Italy–Africa academic alliance, focused on proposals for future pathways for sustained collaboration between partner institutions.
The two-day closing meeting, held from February 25–26 in Bari, marked a key milestone for the project, which aims at “empowering academic cooperation between Italy and Africa to foster the quality and effectiveness of higher education systems in a mutual learning environment”.
According to the programme document, the workshop sought to present the project’s final outcomes, assess their impact, discuss opportunities and challenges, plan long-term developments, and explore strategies for future sustainability.
Prof. Duah co-chaired the Morning Session I on “Long term vision” alongside Emanuela Gamberoni of the University of Verona, steering discussions on the transition “From CUCS to Unitafrica Alliance” and coordinating interactive group work on educational activities, international mobilities, administrative tasks, and research.
He also participated in the Final Session roundtable on “Strategic priorities and needs in the Academic Cooperation between Italy and Africa” in his capacity as Rector Delegate for KNUST.
Also representing KNUST was Prof. John Humphrey Amuasi of the Department of Global and International Health, who co-chaired the session on “Universities, Cooperation and Science Diplomacy: Italian–African Dialogues for Innovation in Teaching” . The session examined the project’s impact on master’s and PhD education, advanced skills development, student mobility, and teaching staff exchanges.
The UNITAFRICA initiative, funded by Italy’s Ministry of University and Research (MUR) under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), brings together 21 Italian universities and 78 universities from 18 African countries, forming one of the largest structured higher education cooperation platforms between the two regions.
Deliberations in Bari also reviewed the project’s six work packages: coordination; network and digital platform; innovative education for master’s and PhD studies; skills development; impact evaluation; and communication and outreach.
As the project approaches its formal conclusion in May 2026, participants endorsed the launch of an Alliance Charter and outlined steps toward consolidating the Italy–Africa Alliance as a long-term framework for joint research, teaching innovation, mobility programmes, and science diplomacy.
