A top Namibian academic has encouraged African Higher Education institutions to invest more in research and innovation to improve education and quality assurance of African goods and services. The University of Namibia’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Lazarus Hangula, made the plea in Windhoek on Tuesday at the opening of the Eighth International Conference on Quality Assurance in Higher Education in Africa. Professor Hangula said currently, only 2% of global scholarly research was from African universities, with 18% of higher education research being used to start businesses. He said this could not continue if the continent was to derive benefits from its natural resources and be competitive on the global market. Experts in higher education from over 230 countries are attending the conference. It is aimed at providing a platform for the launch of various key initiatives under the Africa-European Union partnership for harmonisation, quality assurance and accreditation initiatives. Other initiatives include the Virtual Institute for Higher Education in Africa, and Quality Assurance for Higher Education Leaders and Personnel. The five-day conference is being hosted under the theme – Multi-Dimensions of Innovation in Higher Education in Africa, Towards Enhancing Quality and Accelerating Regional Harmonisation.