HBCUs & African Universities as Incubators for Economic Development

Prepared by: DaQuan Lawrence, Ph.D. Candidate, African Studies, Howard University

December 4, 2023

Introduction: Universities as Economic Drivers for Marginalized Populations

Considering Africa’s significant and increasing youth population and challenges brought by the global economy, such as unemployment, underdevelopment, and economic inequality, higher education institutions, entrepreneurial programs, and professional development opportunities are critical for the global youth population. Whereas many youths in Africa and the United States (U.S.) desire to attend higher education institutions, only a few have the privilege of matriculating, graduating, and obtaining employment. Therefore, international minority-serving institutions with moderate and high rates of matriculating and graduating African diaspora students are also critical. Many of these establishments are located in urban areas. As a result, this research paper focuses on the potential of urban localities that contain Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and African universities to serve as incubators of economic growth and international development.

Cities are the site of many HBCUs and African universities, with sister cities hosting several minority-serving institutions. Washington D.C. – which is the location of Howard University, a leading institution in African Studies and African language studies that has the most students in America studying African languages and sister cities with Pretoria, South Africa; Dakar, Senegal; Accra, Ghana; and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia –  Atlanta, GA, New Orleans, LA, and Raleigh and Winston-Salem, NC, are all U.S. municipalities that are simultaneously sister cities with African municipalities and areas that host HBCUs. (Washington D.C. Office of the Secretary [OS], 2006; 2011; 2013) Furthermore, African states that simultaneously contain sister cities and high numbers of universities, such as Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, and Egypt, deserve further investigation as such locations can spur economic growth and international collaboration. Whereas Washington D.C. is the global epicenter of public policy and international relations, this paper proposes an investigation of the capacity of “academic diplomacy,” otherwise known as an institutional collaboration among international higher education institutions located in Africa and the U.S. This paper defines academic diplomacy, as initiatives that include partnerships with municipal leaders and agencies and universities. These private-public and city partnerships can facilitate the economic development of the cities in which these institutions reside.

In addition to serving as transformative institutions that catalyze their graduates’ social and economic mobility, HBCUs also benefit the local municipalities they are located in, whether the environment is urban, rural, or suburban. Considering the central role of HBCUs as a mechanism for African Americans’ economic development, this paper seeks to explore Africa-based universities’ potential to boost economic and social mobility for marginalized populations across Africa. This author notes that the social and economic conditions are vastly distinct in nations such as the U.S., which is a hegemonic global superpower state, compared to African states, which are equally as crucial to the global political economy, yet experience international marginalization due to the hierarchical nature of the world economic system.

In order to account for such differences and the polarizing nature of the global economy, this paper seeks to centralize marginalized populations, primarily people of African descent, and identify ways in which institutions in the Global North and Global South can improve the economic and social conditions of disadvantaged groups. The author proposes a two-folded systemic and programmatic recommendation: institutional partnerships between HBCUs and Africa-based universities, as well as the cities in which they are, to drive economic development. HBCUs and Africa-based institutions currently occupy the role of an economic drivers for the regions in which they are located. By establishing intercontinental partnerships among HBCUs and universities in Africa, proponents of such institutions would increase their resources, human capital, and capacity, as students, alums, faculty, staff, and parents across Africa and the U.S. would benefit from such a network.

HBCUs Boost Local Economies

In 2018, the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) report titled “HBCUs Make America Strong: The Positive Economic Impact of Historically Black Colleges and Universities,” showed that HBCUs have a nearly $15 billion annual impact on the U.S. (UNCF, 2018) HBCUs also created more than 134,000 jobs, and their alumni generated over $130 billion throughout their lifetimes. Proponents of the report argued that in rural, suburban, and urban localities, HBCUs produce talented practitioners who support local businesses. Closing such institutions would force local communities to suffer economically.

More recently, a 2021 report found that increased funding for HBCUs could help close the racial wealth gap, diversify the American workforce, and benefit the national economy. (Bevins et al., 2021) The report shows explicitly that if a strong network of HBCUs could enroll, retain and graduate more students, the institutions could yield a $10 billion-per-year increase in Black worker incomes. (Bevins et al., 2021) In addition, according to the report, the growth of HBCUs could also translate into $1.2 billion in incremental business profit, an additional $1 billion in consumer spending, and a $300 million reduction in student loan debt. (Bevins et al., 2021)

The report shows that HBCUs disproportionately propel graduates into higher-earning careers. (Bevins et al., 2021) Whereas HBCUs comprise 3 percent of total American colleges and universities, the average HBCU endowment was seven times less than the average non-HBCU between 2018 and 2019. Despite this, such institutions have produced 50 percent of Black lawyers, 80 percent of Black judges, 40 percent of Black engineers, and 40 percent of Black Congressmembers. The report also suggests that HBCU alums are 51 percent more likely to move into a higher-income group than students at other institutions. Nevertheless, more than 80 percent of HBCUs are in counties with below-average median wages, 82 percent are in broadband deserts, and 50 percent are in food deserts, uniquely situated to support high-need communities. (Weissman, 2021)

In the Global North, particularly in the U.S., colleges, and universities play a central role in local economies. Studies show that funds by college towns and cities to support local higher education pay dividends to surrounding economies. The local economic benefits of higher education can be measured against the trend of economic and social decline in some cities in previous decades due to the reduction of manufacturing operations in several major industrial U.S. cities. Recently, cities with college operations were shown to be more economically resilient amid the global COVID-19 pandemic due to college’s economic impact on local economies. In localities with colleges and universities, institutions of higher learning tend to drive economic activities, as students, parents, visitors, faculty, and staff attract residents and businesses. The relationship between city leadership and the heads of HBCUs is increasingly vital due to the economic disparities that African Americans endure in the U.S. In 2022, HBCU leaders noted that relationships between HBCUs and city leadership result in economic growth, research connecting with policy, and increased opportunities for Black and brown individuals to give back to their community as they accelerate into the middle class and beyond. (Herder, 2022)

In a webinar in 2022, the Rutgers University Center for Minority Serving Institutions convened HBCU presidents and municipal leaders from the African American Mayors Association (AAMA) to discuss the importance of building relationships between the postsecondary institutions and the municipalities in which they reside. (Herder, 2022) The AAMA represents over 500 mayors across U.S. cities, which make up over one-third of the U.S. GDP. (Herder, 2022) Throughout the presentation, leaders discussed how the HBCUs provide employment and produce sales tax revenue for their cities. During the webinar, the Mayor of Little Rock, AR, and president of the AAMA, Frank Scott, Jr., discussed connections with three local HBCUs, Arkansas Baptist College, Philander Smith College, and Shorter College, calling them “hubs [and] think tanks to test pilot programming for policies.” (Herder, 2022)

“We are focused on … building the middle class … and setting carbon-neutral metrics for cities. HBCUs play a vital role in those pillars. County executive leaders must understand that HBCUs are churning out qualified students … and are economic generators for our cities.” (Herder, 2022)

Mayor Scott, Jr.

In addition to their contributions to the cities and the local economies in which they reside, HBCUs have historically collaborated with institutions on the African continent for educational, technical assistance, and business development programs. HBCUs are especially poised to engage in African affairs due to historical connections among the African diaspora, as enslaved Africans were brought to North America during slavery and colonialism.

1900s-1980s: Historical HBCU-Africa Engagement

Historically, HBCUs have produced many notable alums and world leaders who have meaningfully engaged Africa and its diaspora. HBCUs also have a history of educating international students, such as the first leader of independent Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah, who attended Lincoln University (PA). (Challenor, 2002) From WEB DuBois’ involvement with the African leaders and promotion of international Pan-Africanism, Booker T. Washington’s Tuskegee Institute’s support of international development and agricultural initiatives in African states, to Ralph Bunche’s work as a Howard University professor at the Library of Congress and State Department, HBCUs have been involved in African affairs on several levels. Such engagement has often been facilitated by U.S. governmental departments or divisions and their influential leaders, who also have ties to HBCUs. (Challenor, 2002)

The complex histories of HBCUs are rooted in 19^th-century American segregation and racial tension as clergy members and philanthropists developed the institutions to educate formerly enslaved Africans, who would later be identified as “African American”, a nomenclature that still remains contested in modern society. Most HBCUs were founded by religious (Christian) organizations, including Baptist, Methodist (African Methodist Episcopal, Christian Methodist Episcopal, and United Methodist), Presbyterian, and Episcopal Church organizations. (Challenor, 2002) Teaching enslaved Africans how to read and write was illegal, so Black colleges and universities were not established in southern U.S. states until after the Civil War. (Challenor, 2002) In 1837, the first Black institution for learning, the Institute for Colored Youth (now Cheyney University), was established in Pennsylvania. Lincoln University (PA) was founded in 1854, and Wilberforce College was later founded in 1856 in Ohio.

The legacy of HBCU involvement with foreign development assistance programs dates to the 19th century when 17 southern institutions became known as “Negro land-grant colleges” or land grant institutions. (Challenor, 2002) Public funds for Black state institutions were authorized by the National Land Grant Colleges Act (First Morrill Act) passed by Congress on July 02, 1862. (Challenor, 2002) Although the legislation was passed, the U.S. maintained dual higher education systems for Black and white people. The Second Morrill Act of 1890 required states with dual education systems to provide land grant institutions for Black and white people. (Challenor, 2002) Alcorn State University, which became the first land grant college in 1872, Jackson State University, and Tougaloo College have all provided technical assistance with education and agricultural and science programs via partnerships with the U.S. government. (Challenor, 2002)

In 1899, Tuskegee University (formerly Tuskegee Institute) was invited to teach cotton cultivation in Togo, which was then under the colonial rule of the German government. According to Dr. Suchet L. Louis, former associate provost and director of the Office of International Programs at Tuskegee University, the agricultural techniques were so helpful that they were reproduced across West Africa. (Morgan, 1995) The development of the Booker T. Washington Vocational Institute by Prairie View University in Liberia is an example. (Morgan, 1995)

Government programs such as the Peace Corps, which have since expanded and been applied in other countries, originate at HBCUs. In “World View: HBCUs Have a Little-known History of Involvement in International Development,” Joan Morgan unearths these often-overlooked origins. (Morgan, 1995) Highlighting an interview with Gloria Braxton, former director of Southern University’s Center for International Development Programs in Baton Rouge, Morgan asserts, “According to Braxton, the decades-old Peace Corps program was modeled after Crossroads Africa, a once-flourishing HBCU exchange program founded by the Rev. James H. Robinson to promote international scholarship, foreign language proficiency, and cultural and racial understanding.” (Morgan, 1995) This is likely because the first international program in Africa offered by Southern University began in the 1960s via assignments to teach language and cultural skills to over 100 Peace Corps volunteers in French-speaking Gabon and Guinea. (Morgan, 1995) Southern University has also featured programs focused on agriculture, including a research project conducted with farmers in Cameroon and Sierra Leone, cited in the Congressional Record as one of the nation’s most successful agricultural projects. (Morgan, 1995)

Howard University and its faculty have also played a significant role in developing relations and increasing engagement with the African continent. Notably, Howard became the first HBCU with an African studies program in 1953, five years after anthropologist Melville Herskovits established the first African studies program in the U.S. at Northwestern University. In addition, Howard began offering its doctorate program in 1969 and remains the only institution in the U.S. with an African Studies department with such a program and its faculty. The development of African studies at Howard began in the early 20^th century as Kelly Miller, former dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and professor of sociology at Howard, and Alain Locke, professor of philosophy, led faculty who advocated for Negro studies. (Morgan, 1995) Some materials on Negro history were added to Howard University’s Teachers College curriculum. However, they did not formally become part of the academic program of the College of Arts and Sciences until 1919, when Carter G. Woodson joined Howard’s faculty. Howard professors Charles H. Wesley (1919) taught about European imperialism in Africa, and William Leo Hansberry (1920) taught about ancient African civilizations, respectively.

In the post-World War II era, much engagement between HBCUs and African states has continued to be facilitated by government agencies working on the African continent in various capacities. For example, in 1982, the Gray Amendment, sponsored by former Democratic Rep. William Gray of Pennsylvania, targeted HBCUs to receive more funds from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). (Morgan, 1995) The amendment required USAID to allocate 10 percent of all development assistance funds to contracts awarded to HBCUs. (Morgan, 1995)

1990s-2020s: Modern HBCU-Africa Relations

In the early 1990s, Tuskegee received some of its funds for international programs from funders such as the Kellogg Foundation and McKnight Foundation and organizations like Africare. (Morgan, 1995) In 1993, Prairie View, Tuskegee, Clark Atlanta University, North Carolina A&T State University, Grambling State University, Texas Southern University, North Carolina Central University, Virginia State University, Lincoln University, and Hampton University established a consortium in collaboration with the University of Michigan School of Business Administration to integrate Africa into the international business study to produce a generation of experts to cultivate emerging African markets. Established in August 1992, the consortium relied on faculty and student exchanges and developing a new curriculum. (Dent, 1993)  

Lincoln University conducted a summer program at its Center for Public Policy and Diplomacy during this period. (Morgan, 1995) Mid-level officials from developing countries improved their technical and managerial skills during a two-month session. Participants included citizens from Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, South Africa, Cameroon, The Gambia, and Egypt. (Morgan, 1995) After the transition from apartheid in South Africa, both Southern University and Tuskegee planned programs with the new South African government. Southern worked with historically Black colleges in South Africa, which parallel the HBCUs in the U.S. Tuskegee is planned a cooperative with South Africa’s Zululand University to assist in developing a farm extension program. (Morgan, 1995)

In 1995, the federal government contributed a $1 million grant to the United Negro College Fund Special Program Corporation to manage the Institute for International Public Policy. Created by Congress in 1992, the institute’s purpose was to increase minority representation in foreign service careers both in the private and public sectors. (Morgan, 1995) In 1997, the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO) coordinated an HBCU Faculty Study Abroad program with Mobil Europe Ltd. via a $25,000 grant. (Black Issues in Higher Education, 1997) Faculty members and administrators from HBCUs attended seminars in South Africa via the Mobil faculty fellowship program.

In 2004, USAID worked closely with the host ministry of education and higher education institutions in Africa, local and international NGOs, and the private sector to develop the Africa Education Initiative (AEI). (Los Angeles Sentinel, 2004) The AEI was a $200 million multiyear initiative focused on increasing access to quality essential educational opportunities in Africa via a girls scholarship program, teacher training program, and program which provided textbooks and other learning tools in partnership with HBCUs. (Los Angeles Sentinel, 2004) Participating HBCUs included Hampton University, Elizabeth City State University, Alabama A&M University, Albany State University, Dillard University, and St. Augustine’s College. The African states that participated in the AEI program were South Africa, Senegal, Ethiopia, Mali, Guinea, and Benin. (Los Angeles Sentinel, 2004)

              HBCU-African relations continued to develop in the 21^st century, although there is a need for more departments dedicated to African studies at HBCUs in contemporary society. While every HBCU does not have an explicit African studies program, many have some form of history, global studies, international business, communications, health, or social science program with courses related to Africa or access to study abroad or exchange programs. In addition, HBCU alums and faculty members have continued to be premier advocates for HBCU engagement on the African continent as numerous conferences, events, and seminars have taken place at HBCUs, in Washington D.C., and virtually due to the leadership of alumni who lead their own enterprises focused on Africa or who work for U.S. government agencies such as the Department of State, Department of Agriculture, and USAID, as well as multinational organizations like the United Nations.

In 2012, Paine College, Alabama State University, Prairie View A&M University, St. Augustine College, and North Carolina Central University participated in the Global Entrepreneurship Initiative and received a $75,000 grant from the United Negro College Fund for a trade mission to Johannesburg and Tshwane (Pretoria), South Africa. Faculty members and students accompanied entrepreneurs seeking business opportunities in South Africa. The grant also helped fund a new course at Paine College on entrepreneurship. (Journal of Blacks in Higher Education [JBHE], 2012)

In 2014, Morehouse College received a $1 million gift from the Buffet Foundation to establish the Rugari Scholarship Program to educate young men who live in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, and Uganda. Eventually, the future Morehouse Men are expected to help lead this region of Africa forward. (Gasman, 2014) In 2019, Xavier University and Southern University in Louisiana collaborated with the University of Oregon for students to participate in study abroad program in Ghana. (Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, 2019) Students spent time in New Orleans visiting landmarks and other important sites in the state, then traveled to Ghana, where they will live with host families while attending classes and excursions, including visits to historical points of interest related to the trans-Atlantic slave trade.

In 2018, the Center for Global Africa (CGA) was founded at Delaware State University and is a strong example of an HBCU that has fostered international relationships, particularly with Africa-based institutions and universities, and is pioneering several innovative programs. CGA is a global multi-HBCU think tank that engages in research, consultancy, advocacy and enterprising practices for global African development. The organization is known for exposing HBCU students to Africa and diaspora related affairs and operates HBCU innovation hubs in addition to its partnership with the African Union.

In 2020, Morgan State University (MSU) in Baltimore, MD, pioneered a new pathway in HBCU-Africa relations, establishing a satellite campus in partnership with the African University College of Communications (AUCC) in Accra, Ghana. (Morgan State University News, 2020) The program allows Ghanaian citizens to complete courses at Morgan State while in Ghana as they matriculate toward obtaining a degree. (MSU News, 2020) The program offers three degrees, Master of Business Administration; Master of Science in Global Multimedia Journalism and Communications; and Bachelor of Science in Entrepreneurship, and consists of Morgan State faculty from its Earl Graves School of Business and Management and School of Global Journalism and Communication to teach courses in Ghana throughout the year to incoming cohorts. (MSU News, 2020) The three-degree programs are offered in a hybrid face-to-face and online instruction delivery. (MSU News, 2020)

              During the summer of 2020, African Diaspora Nation (ADN), an international non-government organization based in Atlanta, GA, described itself as “a global borderless nation of people of African descent and lovers of Africa who are about citizen empowerment for African transformation by 2025 within the context of the UN Sustainable Development Goals”, convened leaders from HBCUs, African universities, and social enterprise organizations for HBCU Africa Homecoming. (Primus, 2020) At the virtual conference, participants and leaders from 14 HBCUs, including Morgan State University, Tennessee State University, Fisk University, and Benedict College, collaborated to support ADN’s establishment of an HBCU Africa Education Consortium. The consortium seeks to be the foundation for connections among stakeholders of HBCUs and African diaspora educational programs. (AND, 2020)

The conditions of African universities and the context these institutions are situated are equally important, as globalization has impacted every facet of society, including cities and higher education institutions. Not only have cities worldwide been impacted by technological, communications, and workplace shifts due to our globalized and interconnected society, but colleges have also endured changes, including the transition to the virtual learning environment, increasing fees, declining application and admission rates, and administrative and staff turnover. The following section will discuss the importance of African universities, considering the international context of globalization and urbanization.

African Universities and Urbanization

Social and economic conditions are vastly distinct in ‘developed’ nations such as the U.S., which is a hegemonic global superpower, compared to underdeveloped African states, which are equally as crucial to the global political economy, yet experience international marginalization due to the hierarchical nature of the world economic system. Whereas the phenomenon of urbanization is global in scope, similar to the concept of gentrification, as many areas around the world have established urban centers and such areas constantly attract higher-income residents who displace lower-income residents, in African states, urbanization can be considered rampant.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNPF) notes that by 2030, almost 5 billion people will reside in urban areas, with most of the urbanization taking place in Africa and Asia. (UNPF, 2023) Several studies have assessed the impact of globalization on cities and the concept of urbanization. Studies have shown that urbanized societies with high populations of residents rapidly developed around the world after the 1800s (Davis, 1955); the concept of ‘world cities’ is forming as cities are becoming more influential and rulers of countries (Kara, 2021); and that projections forecast that the global frontier of rising urbanization is in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and South-East Asia, as North America, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and West Asia all have portions of their populations living in urban areas over 68 percent (Henderson & Turner, 2020).

The factors of urbanization in African nations ultimately affect tertiary institutions in Africa. African universities and tertiary education institutions are uniquely positioned as large-scale environments that help improve graduates’ economic mobility and enhance the economic capacity of the localities in which they reside. Nevertheless, the potential of African higher education institutions to positively impact economic development has been historically ignored by development experts who have given much attention to the impact of primary and secondary school (Bloom, Canning, & Chan, 2005).

More recently, researchers have investigated African universities’ impact on economic development. Cloete et al. assessed the relationship between higher education and development in eight African universities, including, the University of Botswana; the University of Ghana; the University of Nairobi (Kenya); the University of Mauritius; Eduardo Mondlane University (Mozambique); Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (South Africa); the University of Dar es Salaam (Tanzania); and the University of Makerere (Uganda). (Cloete, 2011) Seentenah and Teeroovengadum investigated the impact of higher education on economic growth in 18 African nations between 1980-2015, finding that higher education significantly increased the economic growth of the sample of African countries and that tertiary education inspires private and foreign direct investment, which indirectly affects economic growth. (Seentenah & Teeroovengadum, 2019)

Academic Diplomacy: HBCUs and African University Partnerships

While universities across Africa have been noted for their economic contribution to societies on the continent there are several challenges in higher education institutions in Africa. (Chipperfield, 2016) In addition to the significant academic staff shortages in universities across the continent, the recruitment, training, and retention of academic staff is also a significant issue. (Coquery-Vidrovitch, 1991; Touré, 1989) In addition to development experts’ historical neglect of the economic impact of tertiary education in Africa, higher education enrollment rates in Sub-Saharan Africa are the lowest in the world. (World Bank, 2021) In African states, members of society also endure the negative impact of “post-colonial” higher education systems that have remnants of colonial-era social practices, such as discrimination based on anti-African, anti-Black, and other racist and xenophobic sentiments. Such sentiments were embedded in African nations and the U.S. educational systems. These high youth unemployment rates in African states are another issue, as African youth would benefit from professional, academic, technical, and entrepreneurial programs offered in higher education institutions. For young adults interested in attending a university in Africa, the ability to pay school fees is an issue of primary concern as schools continue to increase their admission costs.

To circumvent the myriad issues created by urbanization, globalization, and the nonsymmetrical international economic order, which has been known to prioritize the needs of the Global North over the needs of the Global South, this paper suggests investing in relationships that are mutually beneficial for populations and institutions in both economic spheres. Through intercontinental partnerships between HBCUs and African universities, such institutions would expand their capacity and increase the resources available to fulfill their missions as they could pool human capital and technology together. In addition, students, alums, faculty, staff, and parents across Africa and the U.S. would benefit from such a network, especially people of African descent. Scholars have demonstrated the importance of Africa to U.S. cities (Devermont, 2020). This notion can be extended to include the importance of African cities to the U.S., given the globalized economy and the economic capacity of universities, which benefit the cities where they reside. This paper proposes academic diplomacy programs or initiatives that are products of institutional partnerships between African universities and HBCUs in the U.S. Cooperative public-private or city partnerships can facilitate the economic development of the cities in which these institutions reside. Moreover, such partnerships can improve the economic mobility of marginalized populations, which African universities and HBCUs have historically served.

Academic diplomacy initiatives, such as the historical examples mentioned above, and new innovative partnerships that include municipal leadership can increase the flow of students, migrants, technocrats, experts, visitors, and tourists in both U.S. and African cities, as universities act as microcosm cities. In addition to boosting local economies, such partnerships would lead to innovation and labor surpluses in cities as international migrants bring new skills, technological abilities, and labor. These higher education institutions are also well-positioned to host inter-diaspora exchanges as they serve populations of African descent. Whereas African universities and HBCUs lead in innovation worldwide, establishing intercontinental partnerships would provide a development, economic, and educational solution to the challenge of the growing youth population in Africa. This growing youth population is entitled to educational opportunities despite any economic inequality the international economic order produces. Academic diplomacy programs and mutual exchanges among students, faculty, and alums can leverage tertiary education’s economic and human development potential.

Conclusion

Intercontinental partnerships among HBCUs and universities in Africa would benefit cities and their local economies, universities, participating students and faculty, and the global economy, as youth in underdeveloped and marginalized communities would benefit from educational, social, and professional development.   Furthermore, as our global, interdependent, and interconnected society continues to evolve, and technological advancements continue to present new opportunities for members of the international community to engage, learn, trade, consume, and travel, both the HBCU community and African universities will remain relevant in the 21^st century. Furthermore, considering societal developments that the COVID-19 pandemic has catalyzed, and the ongoing 4^th industrial revolution affecting developed and underdeveloped nations in varying ways, the future will also present opportunities for HBCUs, African universities, and public, private, and multinational organizations to collaborate.

              Historically, Christian organizations, government agencies, foundations, and philanthropists have facilitated historical ties between HBCUs and Africa. In contemporary society, HBCUs have continued to work with government agencies, foreign educational institutions based in African states, and public and private organizations interested in increasing engagement between African societies and HBCUs. There is a need for more investigation on the topic of HBCUs and African relations, considering the lack of formal African studies programs at HBCUs, the lack of engagement between African-Americans and members of African societies, and the rapid increase of HBCU interest in partnerships and programs on the African continent, which is primarily due to the number of African faculty members and students based at HBCUs. Considering African nations’ youth population and future projections, HBCUs are viable partners for African governments, universities, businesses, and institutions.

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