South Africa is also in tenth place with the University of KwaZulu-Natal, a new establishment.

Somalia joins the top 10 with SIMAD University in seventh place. Rwanda boasts being the best newcomer with the University of Rwanda going straight into the top 10 at sixth place. The highest ranked Rwandan institution is UGHE – University of Global Health Equity, which moves from eighth to fourth place.

Ghana has two universities in the top 10: the University of Ghana, which moves from 17th to 5th place, and Ashesi University, which is in 9th place (no change). Uganda also holds a place in the top 10, with Makerere University in eighth place, up from five.

Five new countries have joined the ranking: Namibia, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Cape Verde and Eswatini. Namibia leads the newcomers with the University of Namibia in 13th place. Ivory Coast is represented by four institutions, while each of the other starting countries has one ranked institution.

Nigeria impresses with its representation and its presence in the top 50 of the elite

Nigeria stands out in terms of representation, with 41 universities ranked, up from 37 last year. This is more than double what we find in other sub-Saharan African countries. The highest ranked university in Nigeria is the American University of Nigeria, which ranks 12th. Kenya has 15 ranked institutions and Ghana follows with 11. Somalia and South Africa each have 10 universities in the table.

Nigeria is the most represented country at the top of the table with 13 universities in the top 50, followed by South Africa with eight and Ghana with seven. In total, 15 of the sub-Saharan African countries ranked have at least one establishment in the top 50.

Nigeria is the country with the highest number of newly classified establishments, with 15 new entrants, followed by Kenya with 10 new entrants.

South Africa, Rwanda, Nigeria and Mozambique all excel in different areas

THE SSA University Rankings 2024 is calculated on the basis of five pillars, each of which consists of several parameters with variable weighting. These pillars are: resources and finances; access and equity; student engagement; ethical leadership; and impact on Africa.

South Africa comes first for the “resources and finance” and “access and equity” pillars. The University of Pretoria leads for resources and finance with a score of 86.4, while the University of South Africa comes first for access and equity with a score of 84.

When it comes to student engagement, Rwanda comes out on top with UGHE – University of Global Health Equity, scoring 97.4. For the ethical leadership pillar, Landmark University in Nigeria came out on top with a score of 96.8. Finally, when it comes to impact on Africa, Mozambique takes first place with Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, which scores 81.8.

Addressing the challenges of higher education in sub-Saharan Africa through methodology

The sub-Saharan African university rankings were developed specifically to address the challenges facing higher education institutions in sub-Saharan Africa, as part of a project initiated by a consortium of education organizations and companies African and international higher education institutions. The 2024 ranking is the second edition of the SSA ranking.

In November 2023, we announced improvements to the methodology. New measures on leadership, ethics and African heritage have been added and, to take them into account, the general structure of the methodology has been modified. These are substantial changes which mean that the results of the 2024 ranking cannot be directly compared to those of the 2023 edition.

Phil Baty, Head of International Affairs at THE, said: “The Sub-Saharan Africa University Rankings are different from other international rankings because they focus not on parameters developed according to major institutions and university priorities. northern hemisphere, but on parameters that matter most for the development of nations south of the Sahara, including access and inclusion, economic growth, sustainability and impact on Africa.

“Times Higher Education is proud to have developed this ranking in close partnership with African institutions and organizations themselves, to provide a set of benchmarks with real and targeted impact.