The first Francophone class of the Executive Master’s in Management of African Cities (MEMVA) graduated on Saturday, January 27, 2024, from Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, Morocco. The ceremony was organised by the United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLG Africa), through its African Local Governments Academy (ALGA), and Al Akhawayn University of Ifrane (AUI), with the participation of all their partners.
Held in the pure tradition of American universities, this first class from 18 French-speaking countries has been dubbed the “Alioune Badiane Class”. The Secretary General of UCLG Africa, Mr. Jean Pierre Elong Mbassi, outlined the career of this great champion of the cause of African cities and communities.
He said: “Alioune Badiane was the number 3 of UN-Habitat. UN-Habitat is the United Nations Organisation for the promotion of cities and habitat. Alioune Badiane was a Senegalese citizen; he was director of planning for the city of Dakar. He was at our side as a high-level professional. He trained in Dakar, then in Laval, then in Colombia. Alioune Badiane was a professional steeped in the conviction that it is in Africa that Africans will find their solutions, but by borrowing from the enormous pool of international knowledge. Alioune Badiane was someone who connected all parts of the world.
“For example, he initiated relations with China. He was the creator of the World Urban Forum. Alioune Badiane helped UCLG Africa organise the Africities Summits, the largest platform for dialogue on local governance in Africa. Alioune Badiane has built partnerships, including within the framework of the African Support Fund for International Decentralised Cooperation (FACDI), between the city of Rabat (Morocco) and the city of Dakar (Senegal). Alioune Badiane deserves to have the first Francophone class of the Executive Master’s in Management of African Cities (MEMVA) bear his name,” concluded Mr. Mbassi.
Eighteen graduates (six women and 12 men) from eight French-speaking countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger and Senegal) benefited from this City Management Training Programme, from 2022 to 2023. The Training Programme was delivered online due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
It offered scholarships under the African Support Fund for International Decentralized Cooperation (FACDI), set up in 2020 by the Kingdom of Morocco through the Ministry of the Interior, Directorate General of Territorial Collectivities (DGCT).
The FACDI funded 60% of the scholarships, with three Moroccan Regions – Fès-Meknès Region, Rabat-Salé-Kénitra Region and Souss-Massa Region – sponsoring 30% of the scholarship and the Class’s original cities 10%. Three other local authorities, from Morocco (Ifrane), Niger (Niamey) and Senegal (Dakar), mobilised four Territorial Managers and sponsored their training.
The graduation ceremony was punctuated by speeches from Dr. Christopher Taylor, Vice-President for Academic Affairs at Al Akhawayn University, and Mr. Jean Pierre Elong Mbassi, Secretary General of UCLG Africa.
Mr. Moussaid Hajaj, Representative of the City of Benguerir, drew the image of an African city that is facing all kinds of challenges, but is trying to overcome them through transformational leadership, participation, inclusion, effective governance, strategic planning, digital transformation, mobilisation of partnerships, etc.
Prior to the Graduation Ceremony, the Class enjoyed a Study Tour of Morocco from January 22 to 26, 2024 in the three regions that had sponsored them. The class was divided into three groups, and each group visited one of the three Regions (Rabat-Salé-Kénitra ; Souss-Massa and Fès-Meknès) to discover and be inspired by the Moroccan model of Decentralisation, Advanced Regionalisation, Local Governance and Territorial Development, including the ecosystem of this model.
The Executive Master’s Programme in Management of African Cities (MEMVA) is part of the support for the realisation of the Sustainable Development Agenda (The World We Want), the African Union’s Agenda 2063 (The Africa We Want), in particular Aspiration 1: “A prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and Sustainable Development” and Pillar 2 of UCLG Africa’s Strategic Plan (2021-2030) (known as the Governance Programme, Advocacy, for Decentralised Development in Africa, or GADDEPA 2.0) focusing on investment in Human Capital and Capacity Building for Local Authorities and their National Associations.
A second MEMVA programme targeting English-speaking countries will be launched starting in the 1st semester of 2024, in partnership with Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, for the benefit of 27 FACDI scholars, while a third French-speaking class will be mobilised under the 4th FACDI call for projects.
