Francisco Mendes-Palma represents Transform4Europe in the Africa Universities Summit 2026

Transform4Europe attended the Africa Universities Summit 2026, organised by Times Higher Education, which took place in Nairobi, Kenya, on 30 and 31 March 2026. The summit is one of the flagship events for the exchange of ideas and projects in higher education and for cooperation between African institutions and the rest of the world.

Francisco Mendes-Palma, Institutional Coordinator for Transform4Europe (T4EU) at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa and Outreach Leader for the alliance, was part of the panel ‘Global partnerships to support institutional impact and competitive edge’, moderated by Samia Chasi, from the University of the Witwatersrand, and featured Thokozani Majozi, from the University of Cape Town, and Eduard Mühle, from the European University Viadrina.

Francisco Mendes-Palma focused his talk on the role of strategic global alliances, built on scientific diplomacy and the promotion of interdisciplinarity as a driver for attracting and developing talent.

The presence at the event fulfilled the key strategic objectives of positioning T4EU as a key stakeholder in the dialogue on university internationalisation, enhancing the alliance’s visibility, and exploring opportunities for cooperation.

The event brought together over 400 university leaders from 50 countries, establishing itself as the leading platform for discussion on the future of higher education in Africa.

For T4EU, this presence and participation represent a concrete step in the expansion of its network of strategic partners beyond Europe, strengthening the alliance’s global dimension and paving the way for future international collaborations.

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