The Association of African Universities (AAU) and digital television operator StarTimes media have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that will see the two organizations partner towards growing access to University education.

The cooperation seeks to ensure University students have greater access to relevant higher education materials where Association of African Universities will provide educational videos focused on diverse disciplines which will be accessible on the StarTimes ON streaming application at no cost thereby enabling students to grow their knowledge and skills as well as tap into the research outcomes emanating from the continent’s higher education institutions.

AAU, established in 1967 is the apex higher education organization in Africa with a current membership of over 400 institutions of higher learning across all the linguistic and geographic divides in Africa. It established the AAU Television (“AAU TV”) to promote African scholarship and inter-university collaboration through information exchange and promotion of higher education-related issues.

The Secretary-General of the Association of African Universities (AAU), Prof. Etienne Ehouan Ehile said, “The partnership with StarTimes comes at an opportune time when access to educational content is in high demand as most educational activities have moved online as a result of the outbreak of COVID-19 and its unprecedented outcomes. AAU is open to partnerships with institutions whose core mandates align with our aspirations.”

StarTimes Vice-President Luis Lu said, “We are honored to launch this partnership with the AAU. Our intention is to leverage on this modern platform to expand access to knowledge via AAU approved content where we will be able to air relevant educational materials by distinguished scholars. This is a milestone for StarTimes and a step forward toward ensuring equal access to all levels of education.”

Since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), StarTimes has launched several initiatives to support access to education for students forced to stay at home through partnerships with Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) and other Kenyan platforms to avail educational content through its mobile platform with a dedicated tab offering hundreds of learning materials for students of all ages.

Through its TV platform, AAU in its capacity as the continental apex of higher education, will promote the quality and relevance of higher education as well as showcase and strengthen the contributions of higher education to the development of the continent.