New African Network for Educational Sciences to Strengthen Regional Cooperation

Three African higher education institutions in Mauritania, Morocco and Senegal have joined forces to establish the African Network for Educational Sciences, known by its French acronym ‘RASED’ (Réseau africain des sciences de l’éducation), in a bid to strengthen scientific research, enhance academic partnerships and develop local talent aligned with African needs and conditions.

The agreement was signed by the deans of the participating institutions in the presence of Mohamed Bilal Ahmed, secretary general of Mauritania’s Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research. The signing took place on the sidelines of the first Nouakchott International Conference on Learning, held under the theme ‘Challenges and Prospects of Learning in the Region’ in Mauritania earlier in February.

Founding Institutions of RASED

The new academic framework brings together:

The Higher School of Education in Nouakchott, Mauritania, also known as Ecole Normale Supérieure de Nouakchott
The Faculty of Sciences and Technologies of Education and Training at Cheikh Anta Diop University in Senegal
The Faculty of Education Sciences at Mohammed V University in Rabat in Morocco

RASED aims to promote cooperation between higher education institutions and researchers across the African continent and will be open to other African institutions working in the field of educational sciences.

Networking as a Tool for Achieving the SDGs

RASED will join a number of existing African education and research networks, including:

AFRA-NEST
African Research And Education Network
African Network of Scientific and Technological Institutions
African Network for Internationalisation of Education
Network of African Science Academies

Networking is widely seen as a practical mechanism for supporting the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. By facilitating the sharing of best practice and resources, networks can strengthen coordination between institutions and advance progress in the academic sector.

A November 2024 study titled ‘The transformative power of networking in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals’ highlighted how collaborative frameworks can enhance the impact of SDG implementation, particularly in higher education.

A Scientific and Strategic Necessity

The launch of RASED was framed by participating leaders as more than a symbolic partnership. Speakers emphasised that deeper academic collaboration is essential to respond to Africa’s shared educational challenges and long-term development ambitions.

“The agreement signed today will constitute a bridge of knowledge linking teacher training institutions and scientific research centres, thus guaranteeing the sustainability of educational development, according to a purely African vision, emanating from the realities of the continent and anticipating its future.”
Mohamed Bilal Ahmed, secretary general of Mauritania’s Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research

“This agreement stems from a firm conviction that academic cooperation in the field of education is no longer a complementary option, but a scientific and strategic necessity, particularly in an African context undergoing profound educational transformations and facing common challenges related to the quality of training, the development of scientific research, and the qualification of human resources.”
Abdellatif Guédai, dean of the Faculty of Education Sciences at Mohammed V University in Rabat

Moustapha Sokhna, dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology of Education and Training at Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar said, “Africa must assume the role assigned to training and advanced scientific research institutions within a participatory framework serving the common interests of the continent’s countries.”

Challenges and Solutions

While the network’s objectives are ambitious, experts acknowledge that implementation will require careful coordination and strategic alignment. Structural differences across national systems and capacity constraints remain important considerations for RASED’s success. Dr Abdennasser Naji, former adviser to Morocco’s minister of higher education and president of the Amaquen Institute said, “It is very important to reinforce educational collaboration between African countries, notably in the research, the initial education of teachers, the curriculum development and the evaluation under its different aspects. However, the RASED will face several key challenges during its implementation and operation. These challenges include difference in the framework of education reform, the weak human capital in educational research, the weakness of initial education of teachers, and the sovereignty of the education policy in some African countries. Education sovereignty is the authority of nations, communities or indigenous groups to control, design, and direct their own learning systems, curriculum and language to preserve culture and identity. To face these challenges, it is very important to build a strong strategy linked to the African vision 2063 and Continental Education Strategy for Africa 2026-35 (CESA 2026-2035) aiming to prepare very skilled researchers in the field of education, with a clear mission to serve the common construction of African citizens who have the ability to help the continent to be prosperous and independent”

RASED must also align its strategy and action plan with the Africa EdTech 2030 Vision and Plan, which aims to equip African workforces with future digital skills and make education systems more inclusive, resilient and innovation-driven.