The Mastercard Foundation has officially launched the Africa Higher Education for Transformation (AHEFT) Prize, establishing a groundbreaking annual recognition backed by a USD 500 million commitment over its first decade. Designed to honor higher education institutions across the continent that are actively driving sustained, systemic transformation, the award aims to expand critical economic and educational opportunities for young people.
For its inaugural 2026 cycle, five distinguished universities have been named Prize laureates; Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia, the International Institute for Water and Environmental Engineering (2iE) in Burkina Faso, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Ghana, Muni University in Uganda, and the University of Rwanda. Each recipient institution will receive USD 3 million to scale their transformative initiatives.
Over the next ten years, the AHEFT Award is expected to recognize at least 150 institutions across Africa.
Sewit Ahderom, President and CEO of the Mastercard Foundation, emphasized the long-term vision behind the initiative. “For twenty years we have seen African institutions rethink what higher education can deliver. The AHEFT Award turns that proof into momentum: we are backing homegrown excellence with a decade-long commitment, so that universities across the continent become engines of opportunity for millions of young people,” Sewit stated.
The inaugural laureates represent excellence across diverse thematic categories and priority sectors, including research and innovation, teaching and learning, transitions to employment, and healthcare. The winning institutions will be formally honored at the Higher Education Transformation Convening, scheduled for September 22, 2026, in Accra, Ghana.