Building Knowledge and Competences Together With African Partners
At HAMK we currently have several ongoing projects in different parts of Africa. We have a strong research development collaboration in the higher education and vocational teacher training as well as developing education in the natural resources sector.
As part of our Africa Action Plan, we want to enhance our strategic internationalisation actions by building knowledge and competence together with African universities and partners.
In August we had the pleasure of hosting experts from Ghana, Cameroon, Kenya, Tanzania, Netherlands, and Denmark related to three different capacity building and research projects.
Developing a nationwide platform for open and distance learning in Kenya
In Kenya, we are developing a nationwide platform for open and distance learning. The aim is to provide students, working life professionals and any citizens the competencies needed in the world of work. Subsequently this will contribute to sustainable growth and job creation in Kenya.
Our workshop “What Is Open Education” in Finland focused on sharing experiences among participating institutions from Kenya, Finland and the Netherlands. Our goal was to document practices that may be contextualized to the Kenyan context.
During the visit, our experts shared their experiences as contributors and users of the recently launched Opin.fi, an Open Education platform for higher education studies in Finland. They presented a concrete example of how it offers both credited and non-credited courses to learners through its open education platform.
In our capacity as experts offering accessible and competence-based education, we visited the HAMK Mustiala Campus. There theory meets practice and learning supports everyday problem solving. Interaction with students and staff on practical, hands-on teaching and dynamic assessment methods provided great insights to all the partners.
Supporting higher education institutions in Cameroon and Ghana
In Ghana and Cameroon, we are working to support national development by enhancing social development and increasing the employability and entrepreneurial mindset of graduates. Through AgrBIZZ project, we focus on modernising higher education institutions (HEIs) to better meet societal and workforce needs. This includes for example updating curricula to be more relevant and responsive to work-life demands and improving teachers’ pedagogical skills.
Our workshop was about supporting a high-quality Problem Based Learning (PBL) & CSA -entrepreneurship integration into curricula planning and implementation. PBL is a student-centered approach to learning that involves groups of students working to solve a real-world problem.
Experts from different institutions shared their knowledge and best practices on how to support graduate employability through teaching.
Research on teachers’ well-being in Kenya, Tanzania and South Sudan
Together with our partners we are examining teachers’ well-being, professional agency, retention, and working conditions in Tanzania, Kenya and South Sudan. Our colleagues from Tanzania and Kenya joined us in the European Conference on Educational Research (ECER 2026) conference in Tampere in August. The theme of the conference was Knowing and Acting: The changing conditions and potentials of education research.
The preliminary findings of the study we have conducted were presented during the conference. Teachers reported relatively high levels of professional agency and work engagement, and relatively low levels of burnout, with only minor differences between the countries. A main result indicated that teachers’ strong professional agency is directly associated with their well-being (higher engagement and lower burnout). This functions as a mediating mechanism between the work community (supervisory support and collegial relations) and well-being. These results provide insights into teacher professional agency research and implications for well-being supportive policies and leadership practices.
AgriOPEN
Open Campus for Access to Quality Education in Kenya for agri-sector sustainability and jobs.
- Partners: University of Nairobi (lead partner), Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Kenya National Qualifications Authority, Egerton University, Laikipia University, Southeastern Kenya University, NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences
- Duration: 1.10.2025-30.9.2029
- Funder: Erasmus+ CBHE programme
AgrBIZZ
Climate-smart Agropreneurship Education for Jobs and Sustainability in Western Africa.
- Partners: University of Bamenda, University of Buea, University of Cape Coast, University for Development Studies, Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM), University of Copenhagen
- Duration: 1.11.2024-31.10.2027
- Funder: Erasmus+ CBHE programme
STEP-EA
Supporting Teacher Education, Well-being, and Retention to Inform Feasible Policies and Incentives in Africa.
- Partners: University of Nairobi, Egerton University, Dar es Salaam University College of Education, Mkwawa University College of Education, The University of Juba
- Duration: 15.5.2025-14.11.2026
- Funder: The European Commission under the Regional Teachers Initiative for Africa
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