The Kenyan president, Willian Ruto, recently announced that their government has made an agreement with HBCUs following a visit to Atlanta.
After visiting HBCU Spelman College on Tuesday, Ruto and the Kenyan government formally made an agreement alongside representatives from Spelman and other HBCUs like Morehouse, Clark Atlanta and Howard to help both Kenyan and U.S. students.
Members in charge of higher education and business from the U.S. and Kenya were also present at the meeting.
Through the latest partnership, both parties have agreed to create a framework that helps increase STEM education specifically to increase economic development in both countries.
Approximately $850,000 will be donated to develop Kenya’s Edtech Africa initiative, which advocates for student and faculty collaboration to create a future in tech for the country.
Although an agreement has already been made, details still have yet to be worked out.
One main aspect, however, will be for 60 students to have the ability to travel abroad and study at Kenyan schools.
“Nearly 75 percent of our graduates have the opportunity to study abroad, and we think it is so important in this world that we make sure our students think of themselves as global citizens,” said the Spelman President Dr. Helene Gayle per a press release. “Spelman has already had strong ties and engagement in several African countries. And that’s why we are so happy to be deepening this relationship with Kenya.”
The latest partnership echoes the previous Airlift education scholarship. In 1959, Kenyan leader Tom Mboya campaigned for an initiative to have Kenyan and other East African students get more higher education opportunities. The idea was to have students prepare for a future in post-colonialism Kenya.
We have taken our long-standing ties with the United States of America a notch higher with the signing of a partnership in education. This pact will enhance student and faculty exchange, joint research and innovation to accelerate our country’s Silicon Savannah ambition.
— William Samoei Ruto, PhD (@WilliamsRuto) May 21, 2024
We will… pic.twitter.com/wnrwlVCmVF
On September 11, 1959, 81 East African students first arrived in New York to go on to study in a variety of colleges across the U.S. and Canada. Also receiving support from then-President John F. Kennedy, hundreds of students, including Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai, took part in the program between 1959 and 1963.
Donations from Martin Luther King Jr., Jackie Robinson, Harry Belafonte, Sidney Poiter and President Kennedy helped provide support to the program throughout its four year run.
“By following in the footsteps of the historic airlift, we shall empower a new generation of disruptive thinkers, ambitious visionaries, and innovative problem solvers,” said President Ruto per a press release. “And thus divine a brighter knowledge-driven future where progress transcends borders, transforms lives and delivers prosperity.”
