The Blended Executive Programme (BEP) is a TNE (transnational education initiative) and it is part of the SHARE_Africa initiative, launched by the IHEA Foundation and supported by the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MUR) through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). It is funded by the European Union-Next Generation EU.
The Frame of the SHARE_Africa Project
Africa is today at the center of the debate in Italy, in Europe and in the world, and the continent’s role will become increasingly strategic in the current era of global and urgent transitions. Within this context, there is room for maneuver to revive relations between Africa and Italy by means of a new paradigm of cooperation grounded in science, education & research. In line with the strategic objective of internationalization assigned by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan to the Italian academia and the EU vision on science diplomacy as an asset of international cooperation, the Science Hubs for Advanced Research & Education with Africa (SHARE_Africa) project is designed based on the experience of the IHEA Foundation since its launching in October 2020. Share AFRICA is funded under the call of the Ministry of University and Research: Transnational Education funded within the frame of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan.
SHARE_Africa is structured to empower peer-to-peer scientific cooperation between 6 Italian Universities (University of Bologna, University of Florence, University of Naples “Federico II”, University of Padua, “Sapienza” University of Rome and Politecnico di Milano) and a number of African Higher Education Institutions. The track record of IHEA Foundation boasts a Specializing Master in Ethiopia (60 ECTS) and 5 Intensive Advanced Courses in Tunisia and Ethiopia targeting more than 130 young academicians in 2 years. The asset of the existing relationships and the current records of activities, combined with considerations strategic for Italy in terms of foreign affairs policy, international cooperation strategies, migration policies and industrial interest, led IHEA Foundation to identify the MENA Region and the Horn of Africa, with focal Hubs in Tunisia and Ethiopia, as the target regions. From the same analysis, Early Career Academicians are the target group since they are already part of the academic system, yet young enough to grantee the best exploitation of the projects’ results along their career since they, being alumni of SHARE_Africa will act as the Italy- Africa Education and Research Ambassadors. Among its specific objectives, SHARE_Africa aimsto To Empower Innovative Education Potential within local Academic institutions via a process of mutual learning. A high-quality SHARE_Africa Educational Portfolio, co-designed with the African partners and grounded on 6 Inter-University Specialising and Intensive Courses (“TNE-Advanced Skills”), will be formulated and implemented.
The overall objective is to promote the birth of Italo-African Science Hubs to sustain long-term cooperation in Education and Research between the Italian and African Academic Systems by means of joint Education and Research Ambassadors while providing policy recommendation to empowering science diplomacy. Among its specific objectives, the SHARE project addresses the identification and implementation of 6 Blended Executive Programmes or BEP (“TNE-Advanced Skills”):
- Cultural Heritage and Sustainable Tourism (Università La Sapienza, Roma)
- Sustainable Business for New Challenges (Università degli Studi di Firenze)
- Precision Agriculture and Sustainable Food (Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna)
- Innovative technologies for a sustainable water management (Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II)
- Strategic Energy Planning and Industrial Ecology for Local Sustainable and Just Development in an Era of Geopolitical Uncertainties (Politecnico di Milano)
- One Health, Global Health, Planetary Health (Università degli Studi di Padova)
IHEA Foundation History
In 2019, six Italian universities – University of Bologna, University of Florence, Politecnico di Milano, University of Naples Federico II, University of Padua and Sapienza University of Rome – with the crucial support of the Ministry of Universities and Research, joined together aiming at contributing to facilitate and strengthen the collaboration and the integration between Italian and African higher education institutions with a special attention to transnational education approaches.
The effort culminated in the establishment of the IHEA Foundation – Italian Higher Education with Africa.
IHEA Foundation calls for a reassessment of internationalization as an asset of science diplomacy by fostering the collaborations between Italian and African universities, also by means of strengthening the presence of Italian universities abroad, with the ultimate aim of contributing, in line with the essence of academic cooperation, to local and autonomous development
The IHEA Foundation was formally launched in October 2020 to promote an innovative and collaborative approach to transnational higher education across the African continent, from the Mediterranean region to Sub-Saharan Africa. The Foundation’s transnational education strategy foresees the launch of an Italian transnational campus abroad awarding first, second and third level degrees, and other advanced training courses to be delivered in African countries jointly with local African universities and their staff members.
Organizers
Politecnico di Milano | Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna | Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II
Università degli Studi di Padova | Università di Roma “La Sapienza” | Università degli Studi di Firenze
Supported by the IHEA Foundation – Italian Higher Education with Africa
