The 16th General Conference of the Association of African Universities was held from July 19 to 25, 2025, at the main campus of the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University in Rabat, Morocco.
The delegation of Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University presented to the conference participants — representatives of 400 member universities and educational regulators — a series of reports on topics including the modernization of higher education, the work of the “Nedra Afriki” university consortium, and the implementation of the academic program “Management of Subsoil Use Facilities” at the Mining University (the first cohort of students from eight African countries will begin the program on September 1).
The idea of education sovereignty, which the university has consistently promoted, received strong and unequivocal support from those present. Issues of overcoming the legacy of colonialism — and more recently, counteracting the resurgence of neocolonialism — remain a central topic of discourse within the continent’s intellectual community.
Particular interest and resonance were generated by the Mining University’s approach to fundamentally restructuring engineering education — specifically, the strengthening of its theoretical core alongside an increased emphasis on practical training. Representatives from several technical universities expressed interest in visiting Saint Petersburg to familiarize themselves with the scientific and methodological advances developed by the university.
«It is important to note that we were the only university from Russia at this prestigious event, whereas, for example, the Chinese delegation included more than 40 representatives from 20 universities. This contrast clearly highlights the need for a more consistent and systemic engagement between Russia and the African academic community.
At the same time, there was significant interest in our university. We observed considerable attention to Russian education in general and, in particular, to our Pilot Project aimed at improving the higher education system. This initiative directly responds to Africa’s demand for the development of highly qualified human capital in its mineral resources sector. Many African universities expressed a strong interest in expanding cooperation — both with Russia through academic mobility and scientific initiatives, and specifically with the Mining University in the areas of geology, mining engineering, and the development of mineral resources», - emphasized Evgeny Lyubin, Vice-Rector for International Affairs.
«In October, Saint Petersburg will host a session of the Russia–Africa Raw Materials Dialogue. This event is becoming a key milestone in the development of our cooperation. We have invited all interested colleagues to take part. It is encouraging to see how highly valued this platform is: the level of interest from our African partners is tremendous, and their willingness to participate is confirmed not just in words but in action — we are already receiving the first lists of participants from African delegations. This demonstrates a clear readiness for a serious and substantive conversation about the future of the raw materials sector», - noted Sergey Ivanets, Special Representative of the Rector.
The presentations of other conference participants often echoed the position of Russia’s oldest technical university. For example, Azzeddine El Midaoui, Minister of Higher Education, Scientific Research, and Innovation of the Kingdom of Morocco, emphasized that the future of Africa depends on the quality of higher education, and that universities should be evaluated based on the effectiveness of their graduate employment outcomes.
Hicham El Habti, President of the host institution, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, stated that universities are called not only to educate students but also to generate knowledge that will shape public policy. According to him, there must be a clear connection between the fundamental principles of higher education and the responsibility of universities to contribute to addressing the challenges faced by the state.
Mohammed Rachidi, President of Mohammed V University — named after Morocco’s previous monarch — emphasized that universities must equip students with competencies required by the economy of tomorrow in order to effectively respond to the challenges posed by Africa’s anticipated demographic boom. He noted that even today, 60% of Africa’s population is under the age of 25. By 2050, the continent’s working-age population is expected to double — from the current 849 million to 1.56 billion — accounting for 85% of the projected global population growth.
Ali Bouabid, Head of the Academic Quality Program at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, spoke about graduate education. Like Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University, his institution places increasing emphasis on the development of teaching competencies among doctoral students. Relevant subjects have been included in the mandatory component of their training programs.
UNESCO Assistant Director-General Stefania Giannini dedicated her address to issues of regulatory frameworks in education. She called on university rectors to engage more actively with their national governments to achieve the “urgent harmonization” of higher education legislation across the continent.
As is customary at nearly every higher education forum, the conference dedicated significant attention to the role of artificial intelligence in university activities. Many believe that generative models will soon dominate this space entirely. Mohammed El Refal, a representative of the corporation ADOBE — best known for its innovations in graphic design — presented a report suggesting that by 2030, the global labor market could shrink by 92 million jobs due to the increasing transfer of tasks from human workers to AI. At the same time, however, the market could expand by 170 million new jobs related to the development, implementation, and oversight of AI technologies themselves.
During the discussion of this presentation on the sidelines of the conference, an entirely different viewpoint was expressed — for example, by Salah El Majid, Rector of Morocco’s Al Akhawayn University of Technology. He stated that he could not envision how artificial intelligence could replace real learning, hands-on practice, laboratory work, and many other essential aspects of education in engineering faculties. The speaker recounted an unfortunate anatomical error found in an AI-generated promotional booklet for his university’s medical school: the cover image featured a female graduate with six fingers on one hand.
A critical yet “painful” issue — that of academic publishing — was raised by Professor Reggie Raju of the University of Cape Town. He called for a significant increase in funding for academic libraries and university journals, which would enable them to "transform from vassals of international publishing consortia into independent and leading players in the field of scientific information — with free, decentralized access and self-determined policies on information dissemination.
According to the scholar, these independent structures must develop their own system for evaluating publications — one that is not based on formal indicators such as the number of articles or citation counts, but rather on the actual value of research outcomes in addressing the socio-economic development challenges of the African continent.
Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University was the only Russian university invited to participate in this major event in Africa’s higher education landscape, which takes place once every four years. This recognition is clearly linked to the university’s establishment in 2023 of the “Nedra Afriki” Consortium. This non-profit organization was created on the basis of Russia’s oldest technical university with the aim of strengthening global economic resilience by addressing the shortage of engineering personnel and promoting innovation across the resource sector.
