The event aimed to bring together in Abidjan from 25 to 27 June 2024 higher education and vocational training institutions from sub-Saharan Africa and Europe, active in the Erasmus+ program, or new entrants potentially interested in developing cooperation under this program. 

The main Erasmus+ objectives:

It is the European Union’s program to support education, training, youth and sport. It has a strong international dimension based on EU-funded projects aimed at improving the quality of education and training for young people. 

This program is based on two main principles:

• Partnership: It finances mobility and cooperation activities based on partnerships between universities and vocational training actors in Europe, on the one hand, and regions in the rest of the world, on the other.
• A bottom-up logic: the objective is to meet the needs of the field, identified by the partners of the two continents themselves.

The budget available for sub-Saharan Africa has increased by 3.5 times, from 160 million euros in the previous program to 570 million euros for the period 2021-2027. Half of this budget supports mobility between Europe and Africa, in both directions: this covers the mobility of students from bachelor’s to doctorate for studies or internships and the mobility of higher education staff to teach or train.

Digital tools in higher education:

During the Erasmus+ days in Abidjan, the European Commission chose to focus participants’ discussions on the role and use of digital tools in higher education and vocational training.

The presentations made by the project leaders show that education practitioners, managers and administrators face difficult challenges regarding how the skills education sector is endowed, the necessary know-how and infrastructure. In such a context, it is necessary to develop new knowledge, attitudes and techniques to cope with the digital transition. The question legitimately arises: “Artificial intelligence will radically change the way we work, teach and learn. Are we ready for this? Who is taking the lead and is the traditional education sector really involved?“

The forum provided an opportunity to share knowledge and exchange experiences in order to improve the effectiveness of projects. The contacts, in which USF fully participated, can contribute to the networking of new and established organizations from various countries in Africa and Europe, interested in cross-border partnerships and collaborative project initiatives under Erasmus+.