African Railway Center of Excellence (ARCE) Key Developments, Issues and Challenges Daniel Tilahun Redda (PhD) Director, African Railway Center of Excellence Email-tdaniel412@yahoo.com May 09, 2018 Lusaka, Zambia

Background Key Developments Issues and Challenge Way forward Outline

1. Background Year Activities 2012 3 MSc programs in the Railway Engineering were started in collaboration with Ethiopian Railways Corporation >160 students were admitted (first batch) 9 professors and 15 lecturers were trained abroad 2013 10 regional students (Djiboutian) were accepted in the programs (130 students were admitted second batch) 2014 Railway Engineering Center was established to lead the Railway Engineering Programs First batch graduated 2015-2016 Preparation of proposal to the World Bank The Railway Engineering Center was selected 2017-2018 Revision of 3 MSc Curricula and Development of 4 PhD Curricula Launching of the MSc and PhD programs >80 Students are accepted from Eastern and Southern African countries

2. ARCE Organizational Structure 2. Key Developments 2.1 ARCE Organizational Structure 2. ARCE Organizational Structure ACE as hosted within the host university, with organizational chart showing overall university structure and the ACE, and relationship with relevant faculties) ACE internal project structure (within ACE, an organizational structure indicating the functions and personnel) Indicate if there is any regular mechanism, such as project steering committee that monitors ACE progress within the university

2.2. Students Attraction and Admission ARCE have enrolled 81 students for 2017/2018 academic year 40% of students admitted are regional students which is above the target 27% of students admitted are female students 17 MSc students are sponsored by DAAD Scholarship (stipend and tuition) All regional students stay at the university accommodation Country No. of students in the MSc and PhD Programs MSc PhD Total Ethiopia 33 15 48 Uganda 20 - Kenya 2 Rwanda 7 1 8 Malawi Somalia Eritrea 65 16 81

Currently, the first semester is successfully completed 2nd round call for DAAD scholarship (>300 applications have been received) 1 expatriate staff from Rwanda 4 visiting professors (Norway, China and Korea) Educational visits were organized at the railway industry

2.3. Partnership with Institutions and Railway Industry ARCE has 5 national, 4 regional and 5 international partners ERC (Ethiopian Railways Corporation) one of the major partner from the railway industry International partners:- Southwest Jiaotong University, China (MoU and Partnership Agreement) Central South University, China (MoU) Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) Korean Railway Research Institute (KRRI), Korea Korean Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM), Korea Sophia University, Japan (in progress)

Partnership Agreement SWJTU and AAU/ARCE Partnership Agreement Signing Ceremony

No Areas of Partnership Expected Outcomes Summary of Partnership Agreement between SWJTU and AAU/ARCE No Areas of Partnership Expected Outcomes 1 Staff and Student Exchange 20 courses to be delivered through staff exchange 40 staff will involve in jointly delivered courses 10 PhD students for research stay 2 Academic and Policy Research and Publication 2 joint researches 10 number of publication 2 number of policy briefs (regional conference) 3 Sectorial Capacity Building 2 consultancy projects 2 Standards Development

East Africa Skills for Transformation and Regional Integration Project (EASTRIP) 16-TVET Center of Excellences (Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania) TVET-Railway Center of Excellences (Dire Dawa College and Railway Academy) ARCE and Southwest Jiaotong University ,China provide technical support to the TVET-Railway Center of Excellences Strategic Investment Plan (SIP) preparation

3. Challenges Regional and International accreditation Lack of core staff (local and expatriate staff ) in the field of railway engineering in the market Lack of industry partnership in the region Less number of PhD students from the region Lack of space for laboratory The financial process is lengthy to utilize our resource

4. Way forward Procurement of teaching and research laboratory equipments Internship placement for MSc students (2017/18 A.Y Entrants) in the railway industries Preparation to receive new students (2018/19 A.Y) Strengthen partnership with national, regional and international partners Short term training Host the 2nd African Railway Conference in collaboration with partners

Thank You for Your Attention! Encircling Railway Technology ! ARCE Encircling Railway Technology !