The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Zululand (UNIZULU) has reached a significant milestone in regional academic cooperation following an official visit to the University of Eswatini (UNESWA) on 23 – 24 April 2026. The visit culminated in the formal signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), establishing a strategic framework for long-term collaboration.
A Symbolic and Strategic Alignment
The UNIZULU delegation was led by the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Professor Allucia Nkosi-Shokane, accompanied by various Heads of Departments. The mission received the full endorsement of Vice-Chancellor Prof Nokuthula Kunene. In a touch of institutional synergy, Prof Kunene is an alumna of UNESWA lending a profound symbolic dimension to the formalisation of these bilateral ties.
This visit represents the successful conclusion of structured dialogues that began in 2025. What started as informal, individual scholarly collaborations has now been elevated into a robust institutional partnership designed to facilitate shared growth and intellectual exchange.
Centring African Epistemologies
At the heart of this partnership is a shared commitment to advancing African-centred knowledge systems. Both institutions engaged in high-level discussions regarding the necessity of positioning African epistemologies at the forefront of teaching, research, and curriculum design.
The collaboration seeks to integrate African thought across diverse disciplines, specifically exploring interdisciplinary linkages between the Humanities and the Sciences. Key focus areas include:
Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS)
Land reform and heritage
Environmental sustainability and regional resilience
Key Areas of Collaboration
The signed MoU outlines a comprehensive roadmap for immediate implementation. The partnership will focus on several critical pillars of higher education, including:
Innovative Pedagogy: Development of Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) initiatives.
Academic Exchange: Facilitating guest lectures, joint teaching programmes, and staff/student exchange opportunities.
Research & Grants: Collaborative applications for international research funding and the co-hosting of symposia and conferences.
Capacity Building: Shared knowledge platforms for postgraduate supervision and research methodology.
Institutional Promotion: Cross-institutional support for academic initiatives and community engagement.
From Policy to Practice
Moving beyond the formal signing, the visit saw immediate action at the departmental level. Heads of Departments from both universities held discipline-specific breakout sessions to identify at least one concrete, measurable project per academic field.
Prof Shokane emphasised that the true success of the MoU lies in its implementation. By driving engagement at the departmental level, both universities aim to ensure that the partnership yields practical outcomes that benefit students, staff, and the broader Southern African community.
This engagement marks a transformative step in fostering regional cooperation and advancing academic excellence, ensuring that Southern African institutions remain at the vanguard of solving continental challenges through collaborative research and indigenous innovation.
– Precious Shamase
