The current state of our higher education is facing many challenges. Some of these challenges are more linked to the state of the country, such as poor economic growth, funding limitations, poor quality education, and institutions having limited access to advanced technological education systems, as we are a developing country and still dependent on foreign countries with other sought-after innovative skill sets.
These challenges can tremendously impact a student’s educational experience and career life. They are deep-rooted challenges that cannot just disappear in the short term and have no immediate solutions.
How can we work towards changing the negative narrative of limitations in the higher education space?
South Africa and Africa need more collaborative partnerships and consortium agencies such as THENSA amongst higher education institutions to assist in fast-tracking the development status and innovation in the higher education space. That is a critical phase in a student’s life as they are supposedly being developed and trained to be work ready.
THENSA is a Consortium agency, and we are proud to be part of this change and movement of building a future innovative leader! THENSA started with only South African institutions, broadening into the rest of Africa. African economies are underdeveloped and fast-tracking these associations under THENSA is essential.
THENSA identified and filled this gap in the higher education system, as our country needs change. The THENSA partnership stands for quality education to support globally competitive, future-ready graduates and entrepreneurs. We believe change is near through the unity of six South African Universities of Technology, three South African comprehensive Universities, and one African university.
Our existence centres on technology integration, enabling institutions to collaborate and face challenges to achieve the targets set in the NDP, the UN SDGs, and the Africa 2063 Agenda head-on. We can do it when we are united. Through this collaboration, we can share and support each other through Technologically Advanced Education, Research and Innovation.
We need to develop future leaders that can make a meaningful economic contribution to the country, leaders that are career advanced and ready for a suitable career path in Science, Engineering, Arts and Technology Programmes; the skill set must match those of developed countries.
The economy will continue to be hungry for change, and the student who is supposed to be the future leader will continue to be underdeveloped if we don’t join forces to form partnership consortiums such as THENSA for a greater purpose.
This is a partnership that encourages impactful discussions on matters about higher education and comes up with actionable solutions to leverage existing competencies of member intuitions.
Change starts with you today. The future entrepreneur needs us, and so is the economy.
Now ask yourself, how am I contributing to it?