News Tank’s Africa bureau interviewed Elizabeth Colucci, Director of Education Policy and Programs at the Obreal association, on March 17, 2025.
“We want to convince policymakers and decision-makers that investments in higher education are drivers of sustainable development. We are working on this through capacity building, with universities, university associations, and also ministries of education,” says Elizabeth Colucci.
Obreal brings together universities, associations, regional networks of higher education institutions, and research organizations in Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Its secretariat is hosted by the University of Barcelona (Spain), one of its founding members. In France, its current members are Sciences Po Paris, the University of Bordeaux, and the University of Montpellier.
Initially a platform for dialogue and cooperation between the European Union and Latin America, focused on education and higher education, the association has expanded its projects towards more multilateral cooperation. To address common challenges, such as the Sustainable Development Goals, it emphasizes South-South-North partnerships and not just North-South (or South-North) partnerships.
“In Europe, universities have formed many different networks and alliances. We offer them a common banner to develop cooperation for development, with a priority on South-South-North relations,” says Elizabeth Colucci. A large part of its activity now concerns the African continent, in line with the objectives of the European Union.
“A platform for working with other parts of the world”
What does Obreal offer its European members?
We offer them a platform to work with other parts of the world, especially Africa and Latin America, but also Asia, and to create partnerships and develop collaborations and projects based on the values of sustainable development. In Europe, universities have formed many different networks and alliances. We offer them a common banner to develop cooperation for development, with a priority on South-South-North relations.
How are you funded?
Our members do not pay membership fees. We respond to calls for proposals, primarily from the European Union, but also from the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and other funding agencies. We also receive grants and enter into service contracts. For example, in Africa, we have a major service contract with the European Commission for the coordination of the Harmonisation, Quality Assurance and Accreditation in African Higher Education (HQAA3) program, which is currently in its third phase. This program is part of the Youth Mobility program within the Global Gateway strategy. We are working towards this within a consortium of partners, such as Cames (African and Malagasy Council for Higher Education), or the African Union.
How are Obreal’s actions structured?
The first important area is capacity building. We work extensively with the European Union’s “Capacity Building (Higher Education)” funding instrument, which is part of Erasmus+. We conduct multi-country projects, with consortia, based on the needs expressed by partners in the Global South. In particular, we advocate for these partners to act as project coordinators. For example, we helped the Southern African Universities Association (SARUA), an association of universities in Southern Africa, to develop the EngageSDG project, with universities from Zambia, Mauritius, and South Africa, and half a dozen European universities. The aim is to strengthen the capacity of Southern African universities to contribute to the achievement of the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) in their local contexts using participatory approaches. This project is funded by Erasmus+, coordinated by Sarua, and supported by Obreal. We also helped to mobilize European partners. Another example is the series of workshops we are currently supporting in Burkina Faso, in conjunction with CAMES (African and Malagasy Council for Higher Education) and funded by the European Union delegation in that country, to develop the capacity of teacher-researchers to respond to calls for proposals under the Erasmus+ program. We also have a strategic partnership with the Agence universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF).
You also mentioned South-South-North cooperation. How does this translate into action?
We want to convince policymakers and decision-makers that investments in higher education are drivers of sustainable development. We are working on this through capacity building, with universities, university associations, and also ministries of education. We also support interregional dialogues. A significant example is the series of conferences we launched in 2022 with the African Union Commission and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) on education for development. These conferences bring together stakeholders from different levels—governments, university associations, universities, and academics—for discussions that lead to projects. For example, the first conference, held in Buenos Aires in 2023, identified several priority areas for cooperation in education and research between Latin America and Africa, including biotechnology. Following this, we established an online course dedicated to biotechnology, with an African and Latin American perspective, and we supported several responses to calls for projects in the field, connecting African, Latin American, and European universities and research centers. The second edition took place in 2024 in Addis Ababa, at the headquarters of the African Union. The third will take place in Bogotá, Colombia, in October 2025.
At the end of January 2025, you hosted Mohamed Belhocine, the African Union Commissioner for Education, Science, Technology and Education, in Barcelona. Do you also have a role in connecting political and academic leaders?
He appreciated the first two interregional dialogue conferences, particularly the fact that African and Latin American perspectives on higher education served as the starting point for discussions. He came to Barcelona to discuss this further and explore how Obreal could collaborate even more closely with the African Union. We also facilitated contacts with Catalan university leaders, regional government authorities, and the European Union representative in Barcelona. Because we are not directly funded by any government, we can play a politically neutral intermediary role. Furthermore, our small size allows us to be very responsive in establishing connections between organizations and individuals.
This article produced by Afriscitech was published by NewsTank Academic on March 18, 2025. It is reproduced with the kind permission of NewsTank.
