The U.S. Embassy and the Ministry of Science and Higher Education (MoSHE) are hosting a three-day workshop from March 5-7, 2019 in Addis Ababa focused internationalization – process where universities and colleges around the world seek opportunities develop mutually beneficial relationships, creating direct exchanges that drawing in diverse experiences, skills, and knowledge from around the world to their institutions.

Over 80 participants representing public and private higher education institutions in Ethiopia, American scholars, Ethiopian alumni of U.S. exchange programs, and other key stakeholders in the education sector attended the opening day of the workshop. 

At the opening U.S. Ambassador Michael Raynor focused on the effort to share best practices from the U.S. perspective. “We look to U.S. universities to help our young people develop new ideas, encounter new experiences, broaden critical thinking skills, think about their place in the world, and prepare themselves to be productive members of society. We want our universities to prepare young people to fill the jobs we need to keep our economy running, and to innovate and bring the next big ideas to fruition”, adding that the goal of the conference is to strengthen the capacity of Ethiopian institutions to attract and develop the talent that can prepare Ethiopia’s students for the challenges they, and their country, will face in the future.

Each day of the workshop focused on a specific themes including internationalization, implementing quality assurance and partnerships, and institutional development and capacity building. The workshop is being facilitated by Dr. Charles Bankart, Associate Vice Provost for International Programs, at the University of Kansas.

In closing, Ambassador Raynor stated, “As Ethiopia looks to a future that is fundamentally different than today – as it builds a future that is both more inclusive and more prosperous –Ethiopia’s youth must be prepared to lead the way, and that process can start with their university experience.”