East Africa Hub Convening 2026: Key Takeaways And Commitments

On 1-2 October, more than 150 people from over 30 institutions in 10 countries gathered in Nairobi for the 2026 East Africa Hub Convening. Over two days, more than 40 speakers and facilitators from within the Hub led sessions and discussions on the challenges and opportunities facing African higher education.

This story is written and edited by The Education Collaborative

2026 marks the East Africa Hub’s fourth Convening and five years of operation. Beyond the Convening, institutions make commitments that translate into systems change on their campuses and in the higher education ecosystem. Institutions made 213 commitments between 2022 and 2024, and nearly 90 per cent of the 2024 commitments are already complete. Six institution-wide systems have grown from that work, across career services, e-internships and entrepreneurship ecosystems, reaching more than 34,000 students.

What turned promises into results was accountability. Commitments were tracked, shared and revisited, and peers expected follow-through, according to Dr George Mugabe, Director of the East Africa Hub. Larger, systemic commitments were also finished more often than small ones.

The central question: are campuses built around students?

The theme was Students First: Advancing Sustainable, Tech-Enabled Campuses for Equitable & Transformative Student Outcomes. Running through the discussions was a question that challenged institutions to look closely at themselves: Are our universities really designed around students, or are students still being asked to fit into the systems that have been built?

Technology is no longer optional, but the discussions were focused on how it can improve the student experience, not on adopting technology for its own sake. Does it make the student journey better? Prof. Mwenda Ntarangwi, Vice Chancellor of host institution United States International University-Africa, described the best campuses of the future as those where technology is invisible because it serves human connection, belonging and success. He added a warning: “Technology can widen inequity if we are careless. Putting students first means using it ethically, transparently, and with students as partners.”

The keynote rule and the debate that tested it

Engaging policymakers is a deliberate part of how the Collaborative works, because what is agreed in the room only travels beyond it if it reaches policy. Dr Beatrice Muganda, Principal Secretary in Kenya’s State Department of Higher Education, gave the keynote and set a rule: “Nothing about students should be designed without students.” She asked universities to move from pilots to institutional change, a step that policy can either support or stall.

The opening debate, facilitated by Claude Kabengera of Kepler College, put that rule to the test by asking whether African universities are truly student-centred. Prof. Wanja Tenambergen of Riara University put the problem plainly: universities know student numbers, not real students. Progress on access, student leadership and choice in learning is real, Tenambergen acknowledged, but support remains disjointed, with students navigating several offices to settle a small problem. Collette Utetanase Ganza of the University of Rwanda described students as recipients of decisions, not partners in making them.

Dr Vincent Ogutu of Strathmore University and USIU-Africa student president Olatunji Lincoln Oladayo offered a more hopeful view. Oladayo cited student governments, a role in strategic planning and financial aid as signs of progress, while admitting the work is unfinished. Ogutu pointed to wider access and entrepreneurship training that prepares students to create jobs, and proposed judging universities by direction and effort, not perfection. On day two, student leaders Sandra Mumbi Ndambuki and Collins Muhia Muchoki pressed the point, using financial aid as the test case. The practical takeaway: define what student-centred means and measure it.

Technology in practice: tools universities have built for students

Career services offered some of the clearest examples of putting student needs into practice. The University of Embu built a portal to track where each student is on their career path. The University of Cape Coast built a digital CV builder that lets students create and download CVs through the student portal. The tool grew out of the university’s participation in Collaborative programming and was supported by a grant from The Education Collaborative. The university is now sharing it through the Collaborative to widen access across the network. At the AI Innovations Showcase, Kepler College demonstrated Iga Africa, which gives instructors an AI summary of student strengths and weaknesses. USIU-Africa showed a dashboard that flags at-risk students, and the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Tanzania, described building AI under 16 policy statements and a governance committee.

Rankings roundtable: defining excellence on African terms

The Africa Higher Education Rankings roundtable concluded that Africans should define excellence themselves, measure it by impact and purpose, and pursue it together. Prof. Robert Gateru, Vice Chancellor, Riara University, framed it as a matter of priorities: what we measure is what gets done, so measures should reflect African values. Dr Olive Sabiiti, Vice- Chancellor, Cavendish University Uganda asked institutions to look at graduates’ impact on their communities rather than counting outputs. Prof. DeBrenna Agbenyiga of the International University of Grand Bassam, Côte d’Ivoire, separated prestige from excellence and offered a test: can graduates create jobs, not only get them? She closed: “Africa is plural, and so are our knowledge systems.”

Communications Connect: building a network of communications teams

Communications Connect, an invitation-only evening, gave peers operating in the communications space within the EA hub, a room of their own to swap what works and make the network’s work easier to see. A key takeaway was the need for stronger relationships among communications and marketing teams across member institutions, much like those that already exist among institutional leaders. Participants raised several ideas: a more structured community for communications professionals, shared priorities and practical deliverables, stronger continuity in institutional engagement, and more ways to amplify the work and impact of each institution. A further point was that communications teams should stay actively involved in future Convenings and other Collaborative activities, in line with the Collaborative’s intention to strengthen their role across the network.

Five years of the Hub: what member universities have gained

Prof. Samuel Gudu of Rongo University traced the Hub back to a simple idea: universities should help each other grow instead of competing. Dr Sabiiti pointed to the career office and innovation hub Cavendish now has, and to a Hub where institutions “do not see each other as competitors but as collaborators.” Dr Juster Nyaga, Dean of School and Management and Leadership at the Management University of Africa, credited the Collaborative for the University’s first career office and its first career fair, held this year. Prof. Ntarangwi called the Hub’s completion record “returns on trust.”

In their words: members on the value of the Hub

“For the East Africa Hub, bringing together over 30 universities to date is a very big plus because we are able to learn from each other, relearn from each other and unlearn from each other … we are instead supporting each other to grow even stronger.” Harriet Adong, Director of Communications and Public Relations, Uganda Christian University. “Being part of the East Africa Hub has given us a good space to learn and set up structures for our Office of Career Services … It gave us the opportunity to learn from structures that had already been established.” Dr Marilyn Ronoh, Coordinator, Office of Career Services, University of Embu.

Looking ahead: the 2027 Convening and commitments that travel home

The next Convening takes place on 2 and 3 June 2027 and marks ten years of the network. The focus widens to industry, regulators and policy, as the Collaborative builds a more visible collective voice. The location will be announced through the newsletter and social media.

Dr George Mugabe set out where the Hub is heading: “Looking ahead, the Hub is working to deepen mentorship, expand mobility for faculty, staff, and students, strengthen cross-border partnerships, grow investment in systems change, and influence education policy across the continent.”

Commitments open and close this story. On day two, institutions went into rooms to turn what they had heard into the next round of commitments. Those commitments now travel home with each institution, to the campuses where the work gets done, and the value of the Convening continues there, with peers holding one another to what they promised.

Until the next Convening, participants leave with simple homework: take at least one idea home, remember which institution is doing what, and visit one another’s campuses. The Hub’s record suggests why that works: ideas that are written down, shared and revisited tend to get done. Putting students first, the Collaborative reminded everyone, is continuous improvement and not a destination.

Closing message: ownership, and pride in what Africa is building

Rose Dodd, Executive Director of The Education Collaborative, closed the Convening by reminding participants that no institution solves its challenges alone. She highlighted USIU-Africa’s willingness to take on greater responsibility for the Hub by funding the campus visit, a coffee break and a hosted dinner from its own resources. As the Hub grows, this kind of ownership offers a model other member institutions can build on, helping to share the responsibility for sustaining and strengthening the network. Her final words turned to pride in the continent:

“We see the shape of Africa worn proudly, in necklaces, earrings, and symbols of home. There is a deep connection to this continent and pride in what we are building here. We should build on that pride: looking inward, learning from one another, and investing in the people and institutions already moving Africa forward.”

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