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African Universities from Medieval to Post-Modern challenges dominant colonial and Eurocentric narratives by tracing the history of African higher education. Reclaiming medieval and indigenous epistemologies, it reframes the decolonization agenda as a practical strategy for institutional transformation, curriculum reform, and policy design.
Through cross-national studies and interdisciplinary methods, chapters document how medieval learning centers shaped disciplines, research cultures, and university–community linkages that survived colonial disruption. The collections demonstrates how integrating African ways of knowing can broaden methodological pluralism, strengthen university relevance, and resist global North hegemony. It highlights implications for governance and stakeholder engagement, proposing pathways for universities to become more responsive, equitable, and socially embedded.
This book stands as a pivotal work that successfully repositions African scholarship within its ancient and medieval foundations, tracing an intellectual lineage from the Pharaonic period and the Islamic Golden Age to the present. By confronting the historical amnesia that often frames African higher education as a mere post-colonial product, this book offers a powerful emancipatory reappropriation of the continent’s rich heritage. It serves as an essential roadmap for a decolonised renaissance, using robust frameworks like Valentin-Yves Mudimbe’s colonial library to challenge Eurocentric narratives and reclaim Africa’s unique intellectual identity.
— Prof Andre Keet, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Engagement and Transformation
This book is a must-read for anyone interested in the future and prosperity of the African university, and impact of education on our society. The editors are bold in challenging the lies always told about the history of African scholarship and the supremacy of European knowledge, impressive in their connection between African medieval learning institutions and evolution of society, and instructive in their insights to documenting African epistemologies to deepen inquiry and illuminate African realities, and ultimately (re)connect our universities to serve the needs and aspirations of society, now and into the future.
— Dr John Mugo, Executive Director, Mizizi Elimu Afrika
The African Universities from Medieval to Post-Modern: Evolution, Complexities and Future Prospects offer a timely and intellectually rigorous examination of higher education across the continent. By weaving historical foundations with contemporary debates, the book illuminates how African universities have been shaped by, and continue to shape, societal transformations. Its engagement with decolonization, Africanization, and indigenous knowledge systems provides a compelling framework for reimagining the university’s role in a postcolonial and globalized world. This volume is an essential contribution for scholars, policymakers, and educators seeking to understand and advance the future of higher education in Africa with depth, clarity, and contextual sensitivity.
— Prof. Faith Maina, Texas Tech University, USA
Samuel Fongwa is a Program Officer at the Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA), Senegal. He is also a Research Fellow at the Centre for Development Support, University of the Free State, South Africa.
Abdelkader Djeflat is Professor in Economics at the University of Lille, France. He is Senior Fellow researchers at the Clerse Laboratory (CNRS).
Ishmael I. Munene is a Professor in the Department of Educational Leadership at Northern Arizona University, USA.
Section A
Chapter 1. Introduction to the Book: Evolution and Complexities of the African University; Samuel Fongwa
Chapter 2. Education in Egypt from Antiquity until the End of the Medieval Period; Amar S. Baadj
Chapter 3. The Evolutionary Journey of African Universities: From the Sankoré University to the University of Mali; Hamidou Magassa
Chapter 4. The Evolution and Influence of Medieval University Models on the Character and Development of Higher Education in East Africa; Ntimi N. Mtawa, Abel GM Ishumi, and Afrael Sarakikya
Chapter 5. The Evolution of the Higher Education System in Algeria (1962–2022): Quality Challenges and Modernization Perspectives; Abdelbaki Benziane
Section B
Chapter 6. Reimaging University Faculty Development in Africa: Spaces for Conservative Change or Disruption in Kenya; Ishmael I. Munene
Chapter 7. Digital Pedagogy's Unfold: Tracing Higher Education's Journey in Kenya and Envisioning a Transformative Future University through a Critical Lens; Ngigi S. Kangethe and Mungai Eric Mburu
Chapter 8. The Growth of Private Higher Education Provision in Southern Africa: Opportunities and Challenges for Human Development; Edward Mboyonga and Chimwemwe Phiri
Chapter 9. Evolution and Contribution of Private Higher Education in East Africa; Joseph Besigye Bazirake and Taabo Mugume
Chapter 10. Bilingualism, Cultural Diversity, and the Quest for Academic Identity: The Complex Trajectory of Cameroonian Universities; Anuchebua Veronique Nkimih
Chapter 11. Transforming the Role and Position of Women in Higher Education in Africa; Refiloe Mohlakoana and Annamagriet De Wet
Section C
Chapter 12. The University as an Agent for Local Economic Development: An African Case Study; Samuel Fongwa, Bongiwe Mncwango, and Stewart Ngandu
Chapter 13. The Africanisation of Higher Education as a Modern Application of Ubuntu: A Perspective from North Africa; Leonie Schoelen
Chapter 14. Universities in North African States between Cooperation and Alienation: What Prospects for Post-Modern Freer Trajectory?; Abdelkader Djeflat
Chapter 15. Re-imagining the Future University in Africa: Between Re-colonisation and Decolonisation; Bertha Kibona and Ibrahim Oanda
Chapter 16. Conclusion: What Possibilities for a Decolonised, Engaged African University; Abdelkader Djeflat and Samuel Fongwa