UNESCO-ICHEI Attends IUCEA Annual Meeting and Conference in Kenya
From July 28 to August 1, 2026, Mr. CAO Zian, Chief of the International Institute of Online Education (IIOE) Management Centre at the International Centre for Higher Education Innovation under the auspices of UNESCO (Shenzhen, China) (hereinafter referred to as "UNESCO-ICHEI"), and Ms. YUAN Xin, Senior Programme Officer of the Global Partnership and Programme Office, travelled to Nairobi, Kenya, where they were invited to attend the 17th Annual Meeting and Conference of the Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA). Taking this opportunity, they held a series of bilateral meetings with universities from across East Africa and with Kenya's higher education authorities, deepening regional partnerships and contributing to the building of a new ecosystem for higher education in East Africa.
I. Attending the IUCEA Annual Meeting and Sharing Practical Experience in Regional AI Training of Trainers
The 17th IUCEA Annual Meeting and Conference was held in Nairobi from 29 to 31 July, co-hosted by IUCEA and the Ministry of Education of Kenya, under the theme "Powering the Future of Higher Education in East Africa through Strategic Partnerships and Collaborations". The conference brought together more than 400 participants from across East Africa, including representatives of government agencies, universities, higher education regulators, researchers, students, international organizations, development partners and industry, among them Kenya's Cabinet Secretary for Education, the Principal Secretary of the State Department for East African Community Affairs, and the Principal Secretary of the State Department for Higher Education and Research. The conference featured multiple parallel sessions covering strategic partnerships, internationalization and academic mobility, industry-education integration, digital transformation and AI-empowered higher education, cross-border quality assurance and qualifications recognition, and regional networks of AI excellence, among other topics. During the conference, IUCEA officially launched its Strategic Plan 2026–2031 and the Regional AI Network of Universities.
Group Photo of Conference Attendees
On July 30, at the session on "Digital Transformation and AI-Powered Higher Education," Mr. CAO Zian delivered a presentation titled "Partnership on Skilling Academics on the Use of AI in Teaching, Learning and Research." He highlighted the regional AI Training of Trainers (ToT) programme carried out by UNESCO-ICHEI in cooperation with IUCEA, drawing on the IIOE platform and its micro-certification course resources. In its first phase, the programme invited 200 university teachers, working in fields such as artificial intelligence, educational technology and digital pedagogy, from more than 150 IUCEA member institutions, building the first cross-country network of university teachers in East Africa equipped with AI teaching-application skills; the second phase is set to begin soon.
Mr. CAO Zian, Chief of the IIOE Management Centre, Delivers a Presentation
II. Conducting Multiple Bilateral Meetings to Deepen Partnerships in East Africa
During the conference, the UNESCO-ICHEI delegation met with many universities and government authorities from across East Africa to advance practical cooperation.
A key meeting during the visit was with Dr. Beatrice Muganda Inyangala, Principal Secretary of Kenya's State Department for Higher Education and Research. Principal Secretary Inyangala spoke highly of the work of UNESCO-ICHEI and IIOE, expressed willingness to further explore cooperation on IIOE teacher training, and proposed that she could take the lead in forming a local university consortium to support the adoption and sharing of high-quality micro-certification training resources among Kenyan universities.
UNESCO-ICHEI meets with the Principal Secretary of Kenya's State Department for Higher Education and Research
UNESCO-ICHEI also held talks with Ms. Patience Awopegba, Education Programme Specialist at the UNESCO Regional Office for Eastern Africa, and her colleagues. The two sides introduced their respective work in higher education and exchanged views on deepening cooperation, including making fuller use of the IIOE platform, training programmes and network resources to empower the higher education ecosystem in Eastern Africa.
UNESCO-ICHEI Meets with the UNESCO Regional Office for Eastern Africa
In addition, the UNESCO-ICHEI delegation held bilateral meetings with a number of universities, including the University of Nairobi (Kenya), Riara University (Kenya), the University of Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Makerere University (Uganda), Mbarara University of Science and Technology (Uganda), and the Pan African University Institute for Basic Sciences, Technology and Innovation (PAUSTI). The discussions focused on the localized rollout of IIOE micro-certification training programmes such as "AI+Industry", as well as participation in and advancement of the Women Leading Change in Africa project, with many universities expressing a wish to deepen cooperation.
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UNESCO-ICHEI holds bilateral meetings with universities across East Africa
Through its participation in the conference and the series of bilateral meetings, UNESCO-ICHEI further consolidated its relationships with key partners in East Africa and expanded opportunities for cooperation in building teachers' digital and AI-application capacities and in the digital and intelligent transformation of education. Going forward, UNESCO-ICHEI will continue to draw on the global IIOE partner network, deepen South–South cooperation and multi-stakeholder collaboration, and work hand in hand with partners across East Africa to build a more inclusive, equitable and high-quality new ecosystem for higher education in the digital age.
