On the discussion of Ubuntu, Assié-Lumumba (2007) proffers that HE in Africa has ignored the controversial issues: such as women’s access, gender, and the production of knowledge. Rather, the emphasis should be on the problem of creating a space for women’s access and inclusion in HE by reclaiming human rights, and providing a source for informed participation in social processes. Central to this argument are issues concerning the basic fundamental rights of women
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in HE. Assié-Lumumba (2007: 471) acknowledges the importance of women’s access to HE and knowledge production as a way of breaking the cycle of poverty and human misery in African societies. The inclusion and participation of women as students and professionals in HE processes will enable them to speak and act more confidently and assertively in order to contribute meaningfully to the production of knowledge.
The point is that, since modern African societies are confronted by various predicaments and new challenges, such as HIV and AIDS, inadequate healthcare and poverty, there is a deep need for access to education by all at all levels in order for human development to take place (Assié-Lumumba, 2007: 472-473). To address the crisis, Assié-Lumumba states that it is necessary to break the imbalance in formal education that limits women’s acquisition of knowledge, their ability for self-realisation and their contribution as agents in the process of socio-economic development in Africa. The understanding is that, without women’s inclusion and the appropriate acquisition of knowledge through education, it would be difficult to tackle the societal problems facing African societies today and to ensure that the continent’s economic development flourishes. In addition, the issue of unequal access by women to formal education, in particular HE, may lead to the limited representation of women in critical positions in the fields of education, politics and economy, and in knowledge production (Teferra & Altbach, 2004: 22). Consequently, the poor distribution of education constitutes an objective barrier to development.
Furthermore, poor access to education limits women’s participation in decision-making processes and the planning of issues affecting their day-to-day lives. This restriction does not only miss the benefit of women’s insights, but excludes and overlooks their concerns, viewpoints and input, which constitutes an infringement of their rights to exercise their abilities. Apart from the low number of women at all levels in the formal education sector, especially in HE, there is a concern for the nature and type of education obtained by those who go through it. Hence, unequal gender distribution in education, both in quantity and type, is a major characteristic of many educational institutions. Assié-Lumumba (2007: 473-474) also notes that, although several policies have been adopted that are aimed at increasing enrolment and redressing inequalities, African nation-states have failed to maintain the pace of closing the gap, particularly in HE, where the imbalance is dominant. She also shows that the foundation of social progress and development, which includes the political, social and economic levels, needs to be valued, developed and utilised to enhance the quality of life for the general population. It is irrelevant to continue to address the issues of imposed or imported formal education and African indigenous education in dichotomous and mutually exclusive terms. In other words, it is a requisite to integrate formal education into the African social reality.
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Consequently, Assié-Lumumba (2007: 474-476) advocates for the consideration of an indigenous knowledge system, particularly the notion of human dignity, which is constituted in Ubuntu. She explains that, although the illiteracy rate among African women is high when compared to that among European women, African women have been involved in every aspect of society on a basis that allowed different but equally worthy participation by both women and men in education, and in the production and utilisation of knowledge. They have also acquired other forms of literacy, such as the ability to read the world around them, to identify means and strategies for survival, and to promote human dignity (Ubuntu). Since African women constitute the majority of marginalised people, the focus on their full inclusion and gender equality would be a demonstration of a genuine effort to improve people’s lives through an integrated development policy that allows human capabilities and their knowledge and skills to be harnessed for the benefit of all people in both local and global communities. The point is that an African indigenous approach to the acquisition of knowledge needs to be reinforced formally and further developed in response to new and modern challenges, including the lack of inclusion. Here, the inference is that African Ubuntu possesses the quality that could be used to include all people.
However, the interesting question is why AHE still excludes women and treats them differently from men. My contention is that Ubuntu needs to be examined further to create conditions for the inclusion of women in HE. In addition, for African people to realise their aspirations and achieve a good quality of life in which their human needs are satisfied in dignity, it is necessary to formulate long-term plans founded on sustainability. This simply means that there is a great need to break the barriers to allow access of women to schooling and HE. In this case, each learner or individual, whether male or female, must be given the opportunity to reach his or her full potential (Assié-Lumumba, 2007: 473). Sharing the same sentiment, Teferra and Altbach (2003: 4) posit that the influence of colonialism on AHE has contributed to restricting students’ access, undermining the teaching of students in indigenous languages, limiting academic freedom and, constraining the Africanisation of the curriculum.
Waghid asserts that university education on the African continent is limping, especially with its focus on "performativity" and "meritocracy", which lead to the production of “technicians” of learning rather than critical thinkers (2012: 5). Likewise, Assié-Lumumba concedes that, since schools and higher education institutions play a major role as central educational institutions, they must also organise activities that can contribute to the promotion of people’s well-being in all areas of expertise in which women are shown to be powerful and positive, and in which they are acknowledged for their potential contributions to teaching, research and policy formulation. This implies that AHE should educate and consider the expertise, knowledge and experiences of African women in all spheres of learning, and empower them by encouraging their participation in all deliberations concerning their welfare and that of the community at large.
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In this regard, Assié-Lumumba (2007: 477-479) avers that efforts should be made to provide learning opportunities that would bridge the gap in gender inequality. For African states and their institutions to break away from inequality, HE ought to offer girls and women equitable access to education at all levels and of all types. Women will regain access to their social space, which will enable them to play their full roles as equal members of communities and nation-states, as indispensable agents and as driving forces for change, as well as becoming beneficiaries of social progress. Such participation and involvement of all members of society in economic and cultural production, as well as in political participation and decision-making processes at various levels of society, are necessary conditions for the well-being of all. In view of this, there is a great need for women, as constitutive of the marginalised, to gain access to quality education at all levels, not only at the elementary or literacy (informal education) level, but at the HE level as well. However, if women are still gravely excluded from AHE, the idea of human dignity as constitutive of Ubuntu seems to be undermined, despite advocacy for African girls to gain access to education, thus ensuring their inclusion. However, women still experience exclusion, which calls into question whether Ubuntu has in fact been realised in higher institutional practices. The point I am making is that Ubuntu as an African worldview of inclusion has not manifested itself in institutional practices in AHE, which is why women have been and still are excluded.