UNIMA Selected as Continental Pilot for PG Data Science Programmes

The University of Malawi (UNIMA) has been officially selected as one of six pilot universities in Africa to host new postgraduate programmes in Data Science at both Master’s and Doctoral levels (MSc and PhD) under an initiative coordinated by the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM). This landmark development underscores the growing continental confidence in UNIMA’s academic capacity, infrastructure and research leadership.

UNIMA’s selection follows thorough due diligence performed by RUFORUM to assess institutional readiness and capacity for advanced Data Science training. A key milestone in this process was the official visit by the RUFORUM Executive Secretary, Patrick Okori, on 10th May 2025, to UNIMA, during which the University’s academic systems, research environment and ICT infrastructure were assessed.

RUFORUM announced this much-awaited good news during a high-level consultative meeting held from 27th to 28th November, 2025 in Gaborone, convened as part of the pre-conference activities of the RUFORUM 21st Annual General Meeting (AGM). The AGM was held at Gaborone International Convention Centre (GICC) from 1st to 5th December, 2025.

Reacting to the development, UNIMA Vice-Chancellor, Professor Samson Sajidu, could not hide his excitement.

“This recognition by RUFORUM as a pilot university for postgraduate Data Science training is a powerful endorsement of UNIMA’s capacity, credibility, and strategic direction. It positions the University of Malawi at the heart of Africa’s digital and data-driven transformation agenda,” he said.

The introduction of the full MSc and PhD programmes in Data Science has been driven by strong feedback from participants who previously benefited from RUFORUM-supported short courses in Data Science. Stakeholders consistently underscored the urgent need for structured postgraduate training to build sustainable, high-level data science expertise across the continent.

The programmes place strong emphasis on the central role of data in planning, innovation, service delivery, and long-term sustainability, particularly through Artificial intelligence (AI), Machine learning, Cloud computing, Automation and Geospatial intelligence. These competencies are regarded as critical drivers of accelerated socio-economic development regionally and globally.

The proposed Data Science programmes are designed to be international and multidisciplinary, focusing on the analysis of large and complex datasets to support decision-making across priority development sectors like education, energy, agriculture, finance and trade, economics, climate and environment, law and human and behavioural sciences.

The successful delivery of the programmes will depend heavily on access to High Performance Computing (HPC) facilities. While such infrastructure remains limited across many African institutions, UNIMA has access to HPC resources through Malawi Research and Education Network (MAREN), a strategic advantage that places the University in a strong position for programme implementation.