Professor Madougou Saidou Appointed Director of AU’s Education, Science, Technology and Innovation Department
Professor Madougou Saidou has been appointed the Director of the African Union Department of Education, Science, Technology, and Innovation (ESTI). In his new role, Professor Madougou will lead efforts to advance research and publication in science and technology, foster cooperation among member states in education and training, and promote youth participation in the continent’s integration.
His responsibilities also include implementing key initiatives of Agenda 2063, such as the African Virtual and E-University and the Africa Outer Space Strategy. Professor Madougou will oversee the implementation of continental educational policies and strategies, including the Continental Education Strategy for Africa (CESA), the Science, Technology, and Innovation Strategy for Africa (STISA), the TVET Continental Strategy, and the AU School Feeding initiative.
About Professor Madougou Saidou
Professor Madougou is an esteemed physicist at Abdou Moumouni University in Niamey, Niger, with nearly twenty years of experience in higher education, research, and academic management. He holds a PhD in Physics from the University of Toulouse III, a Master’s degree in Education Sciences from the University of Strasbourg 1, and a postgraduate doctorate from Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar, Senegal.
During his six and a half years as Director of the École Normale Supérieure (ENS) at Abdou Moumouni University, following a three-year tenure as Deputy Director, he implemented the Programme Régional d’Appui à la Qualité de l’Education en Afrique de l’Ouest (PRAQUE-AO) to support quality education at the institution. He established the Center for Innovative African Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching and Learning for Sub-Saharan Africa (CEA/IEA-MS4SSA). He also reformed the Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programmes and chaired the Scientific and Teaching Council of the École Supérieure de Communication Électronique et de la Poste.
Other Achievements
Professor Madougou’s international engagement includes participating in the Specialised Technical Committee (STC) of Mathematics-Physics-Chemistry at the African and Malagasy Council for Higher Education (CAMES) and serving as the general rapporteur from 2021 to 2023. Since 2014, he has been running the Laboratory of Energetics, Electronics, Electrical Engineering, Automation and Industrial Computing at Abdou Moumouni University.
The new Director has published more than fifty (50) scientific articles in physics and education sciences in peer-reviewed and/or international abstract-indexed journals. He has participated in over forty (40) international scientific conferences, symposia and workshops. He is the author and co-author of two books.
Furthermore, Professor Madougou has supervised several PhD theses in Physics at Abdou Moumouni University and has chaired or participated in more than 30 PhD theses’ juries in Benin, Burkina Faso, Niger and Senegal. In addition, he is an Officer of the Order of Academic Palms of Niger and a Knight of the International Order of Academic Palms of CAMES (OIPA/CAMES).