Who We Are
"…Unlocking Employability and Entrepreneurial Opportunity For African Youths"
6 Sept 2018
University of Lagos
Centres of Excellence
ARUA Centre of Excellence for Unemployment & Skills Development
"To re-orientate the youth towards self-independency and confidence to create jobs and become employers of labour rather than seeking unavailable employment from sparsely available employers of labour."
The ARUA Centre of Excellence for Unemployment and Skills Development (ARUA-USD, CoE) is hosted at the University of Lagos, making UNILAG the Leader and Hub in Africa for research in Skills Development and Sustainable Entrepreneurship to combat the menace of youth unemployment in Africa.
We develop a comprehensive international stakeholder partnership for the advancement of a holistic strategy to tackle the crisis of youth unemployment in African countries through entrepreneurship and skills development. We employ sustainable networking of multinational stakeholders and experts from ARUA member countries as well as international partnering countries and universities.
From Proposal to Pan-African Impact
Partnership, Research & Capacity Building for Youth Unemployment Solutions in Africa
- ✓Multi-university collaborative research project tackling youth unemployment across Africa
- ✓Baseline assessment surveys conducted across Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, and South Africa
- ✓Doctoral and postdoctoral capacity building at ARUA member universities
- ✓Annual international conferences, webinars and stakeholder workshops
- ✓WRITE-SHOP methodology for cross-institutional research collaboration
- ✓Remarkable impact in creating sustainable solutions to unemployment in Africa
Presented at the 1st ARUA CoE-USD International Conference 2020
Specific Objectives of ARUA-USD, CoE
African Research Universities Alliance
The African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA) was inaugurated in Dakar in March 2015, bringing together sixteen of the region's leading universities. It is a network of universities from different countries and different historical backgrounds, but with a common vision: expanding and enhancing significantly the quality of research done in Africa by African researchers.
Like the Russell Group in the United Kingdom — which brings together 24 leading UK universities — ARUA plays a key role in the intellectual life of African countries, be it social, economic or cultural. ARUA is intended to develop local research excellence through collaboration to find solutions to the development problems of Africa.
"This initiative recognizes the fact that partnerships and networking have become essential arrangements for universities throughout the world to leverage their resources for greater impact."
Partner Institution Spoke Leaders
Our CoE operates as a Hub-and-Spoke model. University of Lagos is the Hub; each partner institution contributes a Spoke Leader who drives research and capacity building in their country.
PhD in Entrepreneurship & Strategic Management. Founder Director, Mombasa Campus. Research focus: firm-level dynamics, institutional influence on performance.
Associate Professor, Construction Economics & Management. C2 NRF Rated Researcher. Also Spoke for Urbanization and Habitable Cities CoE.
Senior Lecturer, Economics. PhD from University of Nottingham, UK. Research: education & labour markets, gender, inequality, international trade. 20+ publications.
Senior Lecturer, School of Economics. Expert in impact evaluations. PhD from Bonn University (ZEF). GDN First Prize 2011. Africa Science Week Outstanding Scientist 2018.
Distinguished professor and former Permanent Secretary, ICT, Kenya. Africa's foremost voice on digital economy and entrepreneurship.
Vice Chancellor, University of Nairobi, Kenya, was a key collaborator at the 3rd ARUA Conference 2022. Expert in technology entrepreneurship and startup ecosystems.
Ready to Collaborate or Submit Your Research?
Whether you are an academic, policy-maker, entrepreneur, or development partner — there is a place for you in the ARUA-USD, CoE network.