Alexander von Humboldt Foundation held its 3rd Kolleg/Conference under the theme “Emerging Technologies for Enhancing Development in Africa” at Hawassa Haile Resort Hotel, Ethiopia, from 28 October to 30, 2026.
The conference took of with a minute of silence to honor the late Professor Tenalem Ayenew, a scholar, a mentor, a practitioner, Humboldtian and above all, a dear colleague and friend to many of the conference participants who passed away recently.
Welcome speeches were delivered by Dr. Binyam T. Hailu, President of AEH, and D/r Fisiha Getachew, Vice President and President’s delegate of Hawassa University. The two speakers highlighted the significance of the conference theme as Ethiopia and the rest of the world are facing both challenges and opportunities in the education system and beyond at this digital era and the role of AI. Dr. Fisiha also mentioned the longstanding academic and cultural collaboration between the government of Germany and Hawassa University demonstrated by the large number of "Humboldtians" involved in the conference, and appreciated the generous support of Ethiopian overall development over the years which is still growing.
Her Excellency Ms. Sophia Stephan, Head of Cultural section at Embassy of Germany to Ethiopia, delivered an opening speech followed by Dr. Habtamu Abera, from EPRDF’s Ministry of Innovation and Technology.
Ms. Stephan said that, “Alumni are living bridges that connect institutions and professions, not merely a collection of people”. She underscored the fact that institutions matter, and people matter as much. She appreciated the role of Alexander von Humboldt Foundation (AHF) for strengthening the networks created through the longstanding cultural and academic exchanges between Germany and Ethiopia in addition to the collaborations in research and innovation. She stressed her government’s wish to continue talent exchange and scientific growth in the future as well.
Prof. Aberra Melesse, Ambassador Scientist of AvH, presented a short introduction of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, moderated by Prof. Yalemtsehay Mekonnen. He stated that the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is a German research funding organization that promotes international academic cooperation and cultural exchange between scientists and scholars from Germany and several foreign countries. Prof. Aberra also mentioned that the term, "Humboldtians" refers to a lifelong global network of scholarship recipients comprising tens of thousands of researchers across more than 140 countries, including dozens of Nobel Prize laureates. He also added that the foundation operates as an intermediary organization for German foreign cultural and educational policy, funded primarily by German federal ministries, and it maintains long-term support for its alumni through various alumni programs.
A keynote speech on Ethiopia’s AI journey by Mr. Samuel Rahimeto from Ethiopian Artificial Intelligence Institute followed the plenary session in the morning of the conference opening.
Prof. Masresha Fetene also presented research findings on “External research funding and research outputs in Ethiopian universities” implying a change of focus and approaches to scientific researches to align them with solving real problems in a holistic approach instead of the serious gaps observed across Ethiopian universities included in the study.
The three days long conference included presentations of more than 70 research papers followed by plenary discussions and questions and answers bringing together researchers, academics, policy makers and implementers.
