Education and Science Policy Conversations in Africa

In February 2019, Dr. Axel Kassegger and Erwin Angerer, both members of the Austrian

Parliament, traveled to Ethiopia, Uganda, Rwanda and Angola and held numerous

meetings on education policy over the course of their delegation trip.

At the working meeting with Ethiopian Minister of Science and Technology, Ms.

Missganal Arega, the two parties each presented their respective higher education

systems and engaged in an animated discussion on specific issues in connection with

quality assurance in the tertiary sector.

At a visit to Makerere University in Uganda, the delegation focused on high-quality

education and discussed the possibility of top qualifications as well as issues of social

and economic development. In this area, Austria and Uganda are working together as

partners to strengthen the level of specialized knowledge and promote the scientific and

technological independence of Uganda.

At a working meeting with representatives of the Rwanda Development Board (RDB), the

delegation explored the potential and necessary procedures with regard to foreign

investment in Rwanda and discussed the challenges faced in the education sector as a

result of the positive economic development.

In Angola, an intense exchange of ideas took place with Minister Maria do Rosário

Teixeira de Alva Sequeira Bragança Sambo concerning challenges arising in connection

with economic development in the areas of education and research and how to

appropriately support the areas of health, engineering and renewable energies in

consideration of their ever-increasing importance and in the interests of sustainability.