Mrs. Dominica J.E.K. Anumu, Assistant Registrar in the Office of International Programmes, was part of 24 early-career managers in higher education from 16 countries who were selected to participate in the advanced training programme UNILEAD (University Leadership and Management Training) 2022. The training was offered by the Center for Life Long Learning (C3L), University of Oldenburg, Germany. Mrs. Anumu was the only participant from Ghana. The other participants were from Nigeria, Egypt, South Africa, Kenya, Namibia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Ecuador, Argentina, Guatemala, Vietnam, Iran, Jordan, Mexico and Columbia.
The nine-month advanced training programme, which was funded by the German Academic Exchange Service, Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD), supports junior university managers from developing and emerging countries in working on specific projects related to their home institution.
The online phase of the programme started on February 25, 2022 and lasted for six months. During that period, participants were taken through modules such as Project Management, Strategic Management and Academic Leadership, and Digital Transformation in Higher Education. In September 2022, the contact phase of the training was held in the University of Oldenburg, Germany. Participants received further inputs during this phase of the training, on Project Management, Digital Transformation in Higher Education and lessons on the final module of the programme, which was Human Resource Management.
The UNILEAD Programme is one of the few globally recognized leadership programmes dedicated to early-middle career managers in higher education in developing countries. It was an honour for the participants to interact with the course convenors face-to-face and fellow ‘UNILEADERS’ from many parts of the world. It was also a great opportunity for the participants to acquire new insights on reimagining higher education management in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. During this phase, participants also had the chance to share their cultures and learn about different cultures around the world.
These days, academic institutions require young leaders with the ambition to think, cooperate and decide in a new manner. The UNILEAD programme therefore made this happen for the 24 managers who participated in the 2022 edition through a multicultural environment; and for this opportunity, participants indicated they were grateful to DAAD, DIES, HRK German Rectors’ Conference, Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, University of Oldenburg, and the Centre for Lifelong Learning.
