From conversations about artificial intelligence (AI) in Ethiopia to discussions on research partnerships in Tanzania, a recent Brock University delegation expanded opportunities for collaboration across East Africa.

Led by Provost and Vice-President, Academic Arja Vainio-Mattila, the group visited Ethiopia, Tanzania and Kenya in September. She was joined by Anteneh Ayanso, Professor of Information Systems in the Goodman School of Business; Anna Guo, Director, International Student Recruitment; and Akindele Oyewuwo, Brock’s Regional Recruitment Representative in Africa.

For Vainio-Mattila, whose academic background in development studies has created long-standing connections with East Africa, the trip was an opportunity to return to a region she knows well — this time exploring what Brock could build there.

“Meaningful internationalization begins with relationships — listening, learning and identifying where our strengths and aspirations intersect,” she said. “Throughout the visit, we saw exciting opportunities to connect Brock faculty and students with institutions doing important work across the region.”

At the Ethiopian Artificial Intelligence Institute, the delegation learned about the country’s rapidly developing AI ecosystem and the Institute’s work to introduce hundreds of high school students to AI.

“There is tremendous energy around technology and innovation in the region,” said Ayanso. “What was particularly exciting was seeing the potential to connect research and faculty expertise with education and opportunities for the next generation of students.”

At Addis Ababa University, meetings with senior leadership explored potential faculty and research connections, student mobility and broader academic collaboration.

The delegation also met with Canadian Ambassador to Ethiopia Nicolas Simard, Trade Commissioners and representatives from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada at the Canadian Embassy in Addis Ababa to discuss Ethiopia’s evolving education landscape, opportunities for academic engagement between the two countries and the realities facing students seeking to study in Canada.

In Tanzania, the delegation met with senior leaders at the University of Dar es Salaam to explore shared interests in research, graduate education and student mobility.

The visit also took the delegation beyond traditional academic settings. At the Bank of Tanzania, conversations offered insight into the country’s economic and financial landscape and created another avenue for considering how university expertise, research and education can connect with regional priorities.

A luncheon hosted by Canada’s High Commissioner in Tanzania brought the Brock delegation together with representatives from several Tanzanian universities to discuss research priorities, internationalization and opportunities for connecting Canadian and Tanzanian institutions

Alongside meetings with universities and government representatives, the delegation spent time with students, school counsellors and education partners across Ethiopia, Tanzania and Kenya, including visits to Neway Challenge Academy in Addis Ababa, UWC East Africa in Moshi and Brookhouse International School in Nairobi.

Two encounters made those connections particularly meaningful.

In Tanzania, the delegation met the mother of current science student Justin Mafie, while in Nairobi, Political Science graduate Tiffany Muhindi (BA ’26) joined a reception for education partners to share her Brock experience. Both students helped co-found Brock’s East African Student Community.

For Oyewuwo, who works closely with students and education partners across the region, the trip demonstrated the importance of being present and building relationships over time.

“East Africa is a region where relationships matter deeply,” he said. “When Brock comes here to listen to universities, schools, families and students, we build trust and a better understanding of what they are looking for. The opportunities we identified during this visit are the result of relationships that we can continue to strengthen in the years ahead.”

Connections established during the visit are now being explored for potential faculty-to-faculty collaboration, research, graduate education, student mobility and future student pathways.

“The most valuable outcome of a visit like this is not the number of meetings we held, but what grows from them,” Vainio-Mattila said. “We came back with new relationships, new ideas and opportunities to connect colleagues at Brock with partners who are equally interested in building something meaningful together.”