Bioethics across Africa and its Implications for its Situation in African Higher Education

• In Event: Examining the 'fit' of world culture theory to comparative education research

Abstract

Scientific and technological advances are occurring rapidly, with consequential impacts far beyond their origins. Often the research and experimentation preceding the breakthroughs has global reaches as well. With advancement in these fields and the prescription of science and technology for many societal ills, the call for bioethics education has grown concomitantly. This increasing interest and growth has occurred on the international level, with attention from actors such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), as well as on the national level, with countries organizing committees, producing journals, adopting curriculum materials, and considering instructional approaches for bioethics. Though the topic is being addressed unevenly across the continent, many countries are addressing national and regional needs in the field, organizing, producing, adopting, and considering in a similar manner, often through partnerships with other actors. This organization is occurring despite much discussion in the literature about defining the field of bioethics across Africa and the education that accompanies it. Despite many bioethical ideas being universally defined, their applications and situations are often deeply contextualized. Through a research synthesis, this research aims to discover the approaches being taken to build bioethics capacity in Africa, the location and vehicle used for its delivery, and the themes of improvements recommended for African bioethics education in higher education institutions.

Author

• Elizabeth Bruce, Lehigh University, USA