University of Tifariti

The University of Tifariti (UTIFARITI; Arabic: جامعة تيفاريتي, Spanish: Universidad de Tifariti) is a university in Tifariti, Western Sahara.

University of Tifariti
جامعة تيفاريتي
Other name
UTIFARITI
TypePublic
Established2013
RectorJatari Hamudi[1]
Location
Tifariti
,
Liberated Territories
,
 Western Sahara
Websiteuniversidadtifariti.org

History

The University of Tifariti is the first Sahrawi university, established in 2013 under Presidential Decree 24/2012 of 23 December 2012. President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic Mohamed Abdelaziz also appointed Khatari Ahmudi Abdallahi as its first president.[2]

International academic collaboration

The idea of founding a university in the Sahrawi liberated territories has existed since at least 2009, with the help of many other universities of the world, including the University of Leeds (United Kingdom), National Autonomous University of Nicaragua (Nicaragua), University of California, Berkeley (United States), University of Pretoria (South Africa), University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain), University of Havana (Cuba), University of Mentouri (Algeria) and a dozen others from Africa, America and Europe.[3][4]

Sahrawi government support

Sahrawi authorities have offered free basic education to children in the Sahrawi refugee camps, enabling them to rise from one of Africa's lowest literacy levels to over 90% literacy.[5] However, prior to the university's founding, students had to travel abroad for higher education.[6]

References
  1. "Gobierno – Universidad de Tifariti". universidadtifariti.org.
  2. "Establishment of first Saharawi University in liberated Tifariti (presidential decree)". SPS. 9 February 2013. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  3. Paul Rigg (7 June 2009). "SAHARA-SPAIN: University of the Desert". University World News. Retrieved 9 September 2013.
  4. A New University in the Sahara Desert HEDDA - Higher Education Development Association, 17 June 2009
  5. Paul Rigg (June 2009). "Absolute friends". New Internationalist. Retrieved 9 September 2013.
  6. "First university for Western Sahara refugees being built". Afrol News. 16 February 2013. Retrieved 9 September 2013.
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