Africa's universities are surging in the world rankings

Ten years ago, the then head of the University of Cape Town, Max Price, made a powerful case for Africa to compete against the best in the world in the global university rankings.

“There are good reasons why the production of new knowledge should not be the preserve of the rich and powerful countries in the world,” he wrote in Times Higher Education (THE) in 2012. While many in Africa were sceptical about the importance of the US-dominated global university rankings in the developing world, Price argued: “The question of North-South inequality is not just an ideological matter nor an issue of national pride – as perhaps the Olympic medals tables might be. Rather, it is about economic development as developing countries transform into high-tech knowledge economies.

“This is not about being merely consumers of others’ innovation and ideas, but about being explorers and shapers of the future,” he said.

A decade later, Price can feel vindicated. At the time of his article, there were only four African universities in THE World University Rankings: his own university, Cape Town, two others from South Africa, and one university from Egypt. Today, there are 97, up from 71 in 2022 and just 27 five years ago. The transformation has been remarkable.