a lot more than simply access to new student pools. It provides an opportunity to participate in regions where economic transformation, regulatory evolution and societal change are unfolding simultaneously; conditions that are invaluable for teaching, research and executive learning. The rise of business schools in Africa inevitably raises questions for the rest of the global industry. For established institutions, the question is no longer whether African institutions matter, but how best to engage with them. Should they view them as competitors for the region’s most talented students and faculty? Or as partners capable of expanding global reach, impact and access to new talent pools? In truth, framing this as a binary choice risks oversimplifying the reality. This is because Africa’s rise introduces dynamics that are both competitive and collaborative, much as the rise of business schools in Asia did in the previous decades. Competition for top faculty, doctoral candidates and high-potential students is already increasing, particularly within Africa itself. This is a sign of market maturation rather than threat. At the same time, the partnership opportunities are substantial. For global schools, collaboration with African institutions can serve as a lever to extend student and alumni pipelines through strategic, win-win partnerships. It can provide access to unique research fields, including sustainability, entrepreneurship, demographic change and intercultural leadership. It also enables the co-design of programmes with meaningful local and global impact, particularly in executive education and applied learning. Taken this way, Africa’s growing business education market is less a zero-sum game and more an expansion of the global ecosystem and one that will reward institutions willing to engage early and strategically. A window into the future Perhaps most importantly, developments in Africa are increasingly enabling its institutions to function as a laboratory for rethinking management education itself. After all, economic and social realities across the continent challenge traditional, siloed business school models and require more interdisciplinary approaches that blend management with public policy, technology, sustainability and social innovation.
launched in conjunction with IÉSEG School of Management in France and HEC Montréal in Canada, enabling students to earn three degrees across three continents. This model reflects a shift away from one-way student mobility and towards genuinely integrated academic collaboration. The school has also built a highly international faculty that represents more than 20 nationalities and produces research with growing academic and societal impact. Crucially, internationalisation has not come at the expense of local relevance. On the contrary, it has strengthened the school’s engagement with economic ecosystems in Morocco and across Africa, reinforcing the idea that global standards and regional anchoring are not mutually exclusive. Morocco – and Rabat Business School in particular – is increasingly seeking to become an interface between Africa, Europe and the Arab world. This is a geostrategic positioning that echoes the role played by emerging academic hubs in Asia some 15 to 20 years ago, when platforms for international collaboration were formed by leveraging geography, culture and economic connectivity. A bridging role creates fertile ground for partnerships across multiple dimensions: double and joint degrees, two-way mobility for faculty and students, applied research projects and executive education initiatives. Given their relevance to both emerging and developed markets, finance, supply chain management, agribusiness, sustainability and public-private partnerships are among the most suitable subject areas for cross‑regional collaboration. Engaging with institutions in Morocco and across Africa can therefore offer global business schools
14 Business Impact • ISSUE 2 • 2026
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