Unleashing Zanzibar’s vision as an international study hub

Visiting Zanzibar earlier this month for the inauguration of IIT Zanzibar was like embarking on a magical voyage. I have cherished Zanzibar since my first visit in 2007.

If its stunning beaches don’t get you, then its diverse marine life and its rich cultural heritage will. So, when I received an invitation to visit Zanzibar for the IIT launch, I knew I was in for a treat.

This time around, though, Zanzibar wasn’t the sunlit island people dream about. It was raining heavily: I arrived on Sunday morning, but the rain didn’t let up until nightfall.

I forced myself to visit Forodhani Gardens in the evening and it turned out to be a complete disappointment – without the people and foods that give Forodhani its characteristic ambience, the gardens simply looked creepy and sad.

The rain persisted the following morning as I was heading to the IIT’s temporary campus at Bweleo, about 20km from my hotel. Having rarely ventured more than 5km from Stone Town before, this journey offered a unique opportunity to explore the broader expanse of the island.

Stripped of the beaches, tourists, and hotels, I observed a less glamorous side of Zanzibar – this was the part of Zanzibar that was African, very African. Not surprising for an island whose per capita GDP stands below $1,500.

Earlier this year, I wrote enthusiastically about the coming of IIT to Tanzania, viewing it as a potential remedy for the perceived inadequacies in my academic journey.

So, when the Indian High Commission in Dar es Salaam was kind enough to arrange a meeting with three professors from IIT, I got ready to soak in all the wisdom about building a world-class institution.

In my exuberance, the danger was to create an ideal that wouldn’t match reality. Probably that’s why I was more interested in touring the facility than not – direct observation usually tells you a lot about the thinking of the people involved. But, on that day, the heavens conspired against that, it was raining so heavily that I had to stay put and listen to the speeches.

I am not good with political speeches. Sometimes, they make you feel like ramming a pen into your skull and swirling the brain so hard to escape the numbness they induce.

Politicians may be competing among themselves to determine whether it is possible to bore people to death or not.

Thankfully, though, President Hussein Ali Mwinyi didn’t take that approach. Mwinyi went straight to the matter at hand: he explained why IIT is a highlight of his presidential career, and he announced his vision to attract at least five international universities to set up camp in Zanzibar to make the island a hub of international studies in the region.

Zanzibar as a centre for international studies? That’s a visionary idea. Indeed, nestled at the crossroads of Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, Zanzibar offers a unique blend of cultures, thus offering a global perspective among potential students.

With the number of tourists exploding, reaching 1 million for the first time this year, Zanzibar’s future as an international destination is guaranteed.

That implies an unparalleled journey of learning and exploration, where a wide spectrum of fields such as hotel management, blue economy, management, and IT can be on offer.

As tantalising as the idea is, Zanzibar will not be alone in trying to woo international students to its silvery shores.

Mauritius has been pursuing that goal for a decade now and has managed to attract universities from the United Kingdom, France, India, and China to extend their academic reach to the island.

Today, Mauritius hosts over 10,000 international students and has its sights set on 100,000 students.

In the economics of making it big on an island, Mauritius has a lot to teach Zanzibaris.

While having similar profiles shaped by geography and history, Mauritius boasts a more developed economy, with a per capita GDP in the north of $10,000.

Zanzibar has a lot of catching up to do. Thankfully, it looks like Zanzibar is becoming aware of that reality: the fact that it took IIT Zanzibar only four months to move from being an MoU to reality is a case in point.

Indeed, Zanzibar has significant catching up to do, but the IIT launch signals a new era for Zanzibar as a destination for tourists, international businesses, and students.

For my last evening in Zanzibar, I had yet another opportunity to visit Forodhani. It wasn’t at its exciting best still. Thankfully, a local friend took me around while sharing valuable anecdotes about the island.

‘Salma and I run this city you know’, she declared, her face beaming. We finally ended at Livingstone’s. I had a Virgin Cuba Libre. I have had better. But the night ended on a high.

I will be going to Zanzibar again. Hopefully to witness more international universities launching.

God knows that it is not just foreigners that need them. We need them even more.