Marcellus Mbah

The University of Manchester · School of Education

Over the past couple of decades, African universities have been considered to possess the capacity needed to enhance the development of the continent and its residential communities. In spite of this consideration, Africa as a continent still lags behind the rest of the world in terms of the quality of its institutions and its ability to meet the n...

The context of the work of universities in Sub-Saharan Africa is one of high levels of poverty, scarcities and fragile economies. Even though historically, African universities have been very useful in providing the human resources needed to serve in public and private sectors, the rising trend in graduate unemployment is a call for concern. Whilst...

Universities have long been considered to possess the capacity that can foster local community development in a developing context such as in sub-Saharan Africa. Yet, it is not clear what disposition the university should adopt, given the complexity surrounding its mission in a changing landscape. Drawing on the meaning of community development and...

This paper reports the results of a case study investigating the importance and awareness of national student survey (NSS) improvement initiatives in one department at a university in the South-West of England. The paper is motivated by the observation that despite many initiatives that the Department put in place since 2011 in response to poor NSS...

Against the backdrop of Africa's quest for development, there have been emerging demands for its universities to do more in contributing to development drives beyond their immediate sphere of operation. Drawing on an instrumental case study within an African community, this article heartens a reconsideration of African universities' community engag...

Research has oftentimes been carried out in Indigenous communities for the sole benefit of the western researcher. As a result, feelings of distrust toward researchers and research institutions have become prevalent among Indigenous peoples. However, this distrust can be resolved through the use of research approaches and methods that reflect Indig...

Indigenous and local knowledge (ILK) is age-old and has been successfully deployed in a variety of occasions. The combination of well-tested practices, which have been improved over very long periods of time, and knowledge of the connections between nature and man-made practices, has led to improved connections and interactions between mankind and...

South Asia is one of the most vulnerable regions to the impacts of climate change. While it has contributed the least to global greenhouse gas emissions, the people in the region face imminent threats to their health and well-being due to extreme weather events and a range of other climate-induced challenges, such as biodiversity loss and monsoon f...

Contributions from every segment of the global community, including Indigenous peoples are essential to achieving the United Nations (UN) sustainable development goals. Yet, research projects in Indigenous communities have largely been developed within a dominant Western research paradigm that values the researchers as knowledge holders and the com...

This chapter interrogates epistemic injustice in public health education; with a focus on indigenous systems in Africa; and calls for the prompt address of the persistent injustices associated with knowledge development, validation, and application. The forms of epistemic injustices including interpretive marginalisation and credibility deficit are...

There have been many efforts globally toward fighting climate change; including international agreements, conferences, research, policies, forums, etc. In addition to these efforts, climate change education has recently emerged as an essential capacity-building tool to curb the climate crisis. However, development practitioners from the Global Sout...

Within dominant Western research frameworks, researchers hold the power to disseminate information that can be used for or against the interests of the researched. Historically, this is evidenced by the repeated study of indigenous peoples, territories, and natural resources with little regard to the impact such research has on indigenous peoples’...

Whilst academic research has long been grounded on the idea of western or scientific epistemologies, this often does not capture the uniqueness of Indigenous contexts, and particularly as it relates to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs were announced in 2015, accompanied by 17 goals and 169 targets...

Extended abstract of 600 words for chapters is requested, exploring the different practices, perceptions and/or prospects of climate change education and how these considerations can drive sustainable development in Africa. There is no restriction to theoretical lenses, methodological approaches, geographies, and communities as long as the paper ha...

Nation building in Africa requires a rethink and interrogation of different forms of indigenous and modern education within a framework of engaged learning. This chapter unpicks the instrumentality of a university outward-facing learning approach, in partnership with community stakeholders to foster social development. The conceptual ideas of engag...

While the possibility of a university fostering sustainable development is present in the extant literature and policy documents, the idea still warrants further consideration. Therefore, this paper aims to identify the nature and outcomes of the university’s engagement with Indigenous communities and perceptions of Indigenous knowledge systems in...

Despite being critical responders in humanitarian crises, local youths are continually left out of the humanitarian action agenda. This paper used a qualitative methodology to investigate local youths’ role in humanitarian response and their impacts and assessed how humanitarian actors influence the effectiveness of youth engagement. The data was c...

This paper considered the changes in education that are needed in response to the rapidly deteriorating state of the Earth's environment. We argued that such changes should be focussed on developing an effective education that equips inhabitants of the Earth to understand their environment towards contributing to its conservation, especially with r...

In 2015, the United Nations committed to 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to drive global development policy and practice. Six years into the implementation of the 15-year agenda, the SDGs are subject to extensive monitoring and research at the national, regional, and global levels using quantitative data sets. In contrast, this scoping revi...

The most recent incarnation of development goals, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), call for a more intentional integration of higher education in development. Research can provide an avenue by which this done, developing relevant solutions to social problems. But who benefits from research, and whose knowledge counts in this process? Formal...

This article serves as the introduction to the Special Issue on "Exploring the Role of Indigenous Knowledge in Postsecondary Policies and Practices Toward Sustainable Development." We begin by outlining sustainable development and the role of higher education in addressing sustainable development goals. We critique the epistemological assumptions t...

The current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led Cameroon’s government to implement public health measures aimed at preventing its spread. This paper investigates how community health education on the virus was being carried out, what gaps exist and what further action could be taken. A survey instrument was used to gather data amon...

Universities are often seen as drivers of change in their regions of operation through research, teaching, engagement and enterprise activities. This is significant in Africa where several universities are state owned, rely on government subsidies, and possess a mission to promote the sustainable development of the nation. Whilest the UN sustainabl...

Climate change education (CCE) is an essential response to the global threat of an average temperature rise beyond 1.5 degrees C (IPCC 2018). The most recent Global Education Monitoring Report by UNESCO in 2020 emphasizes the impact education has on climate change mitigation and adaptation, yet many countries neither recognize the importance of CCE...

Purpose This paper aims to explore the responses of households in the informal economic sector to the Cameroon Government strategy against Covid-19 in Yaounde, Cameroon between March and May 2020. Design/methodology/approach Given the recency of Covid-19, the exploratory design was used to collect and analyse information for the study. Empirical d...

Extended abstracts of 500 words for chapters are requested, exploring different methodological considerations applicable to Indigenous settings and how these considerations can drive sustainable development, particularly within the lens of the SDGs. There is no restriction to subject areas, SDGs, theoretical lenses, methodological approaches, geogr...

Purpose This study aims to explore how cultural beliefs and traditions are integral to understanding indigenous mental health conditions (MHCs) and traditional healing (TH). However, Nigerian cultural beliefs about MHCs and TH are under-researched. Design/methodology/approach This study adopted a qualitative design using critical realist and socia...

It is undoubtedly clear that climate change is happening, and its adverse impacts could reverse the progress made toward meeting sustainable development goals. The global crisis poses one of the most severe challenges to reducing poverty and existing inequalities, especially in developing countries that are projected to be highly vulnerable to clim...

Amidst shrinking budgets for community development in most of sub-Saharan Africa, the social solidarity economy is touted as a model in local development. This article situates solidarity initiatives and capability-focused outcomes that deliver enhanced livelihoods, social security and community development. The conceptual framing of social theory,...

Countries in the developing world are increasingly vulnerable to climate change effects and have a lesser capacity to adapt. Consideration can be given to their indigenous knowledge systems for an integrated approach to education, one which is more holistic and applicable to their context. This paper presents a systematic review of the indigenous k...

Universities have an integral role in the development of communities. This is underpinned by the notion that universities possess a social responsibility to be agents of change in relation to society's socioeconomic , political, and environmental issues. In Africa, the quest for sustainable development necessarily engages a consideration of the dif...

This article examines Cameroon’s health service resilience in the first five months (March-July 2020) of the COVID-19 outbreak. The motive is to diagnose sub-optimal performance in sustaining health care services during the pandemic in order to identify areas for improvement as well as draw lessons for the future. This is principally qualitative, e...

Higher education continues to play an integral role in fostering regional development and this is underpinned by the concept that universities possess a social responsibility as proponents of progress in relation to society’s socio-economic, political and environmental challenges. Different approaches have been articulated but none seems to provide...

The context of this paper is Africa, where communities have historically looked up to universities within their locality to maximize their intellectual capital and knowledge creation to foster regional development. How well these universities are actively responding to the demands of economic and social development require attention. This paper rep...

Bursary support in higher education (HE) helps to enable students from widening participation (WP) backgrounds to more fully engage with their university experiences on an equal basis to their peers. But while such support is intended to enhance access to HE, aid retention and increase academic success (which can be monitored using existing institu...

This article reports the findings from an institutional case study into the work placement experience of undergraduate international students studying at a UK-based university. Given the centrality and importance of the employability and internationalisation agendas in higher education, little published literature considers both and how they impact...

Given the need for development in most African communities, the United Nation Development Programme (UNDP) asserts that the challenge is to establish institutions and processes that are more responsive to the needs of the poor and ordinary people, and that can promote development. Whilst African universities have increasingly been considered to car...