University of Buea (UB) is found in Molyko, Buea, in the southwest region of Cameroon. It was founded as a university centre in 1985 and became a full-fledged university in 1992, following a government decree that re-organized state universities in the country. It is regarded as the best university in Cameroon and is one of two English speaking universities in Cameroon, alongside the University of Bamenda, which follow the British system of education. It serves citizens from both anglophone and francophone regions of Cameroon and from neighboring countries such as Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea.
Location
UB is in the historic town of Buea, former capital of German Kamerun, former capital of British Cameroon, former capital of the federated State of West Cameroon, and now the regional capital of the Southwest Region of Cameroon. Although the university draws its students mainly from the English-speaking part of Cameroon, it also serves the other regions of the country.
Admissions
Admission into the university is not competitive.
Student body and staff
The student population is over 13,000, including 50 who are physically and visually disabled. There are 300 permanent and 200 part-time teaching staff. In addition to teaching, the staff undertake research in fields that are relevant to national development. UB has about 473 support staff.
Faculties and schools
The University of Buea is organized into several faculties, offering undergraduate and graduate programs in various fields of study. The university also has a School of Postgraduate Studies, which offers advanced degrees in various disciplines.
The faculties include: Faculty of Engineering and Technology (FET) Faculty of Arts Faculty of Education Faculty of Health Sciences Faculty of Science Faculty of Social and Management Sciences Faculty of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine Faculty of Laws and Political Science
UB has three schools or colleges: Advanced School of Translators and Interpreters College of Technology (COT) Higher Technical Teachers Training College (in Kumba)
In addition to its academic programs, UB fosters research and innovation through numerous research centers and institutes.
Research
The University of Buea is engaged in diverse research activities and capacity-building projects. One notable research activity is the “Integrating waste-to-resource and renewable energy technologies in resource protection for sustainable development” project. This project, led by Dr. Nkwatoh Athanasius Fuashi Albrecht, is funded by the German Ministry of Education and Research through the University of Technology, Cottbus, Germany. The project aims to integrate waste-to-resource and renewable energy technologies in resource protection for sustainable development.
Another research activity is using geospatial tools to investigate how deforestation affects malaria transmission in birds. This project is led by Dr. Anong Nota and is funded by the National Academy of Sciences. The study aims to understand how deforestation affects malaria transmission in birds.
The university also has research activities in linguistics, including the multimedia documentation of Babanki Ritual Speech and documenting the Royal Honorific Language of Bafut, a Grass fields Bantu Language of North West Cameroon.
The university has several projects in disease control, such as the application of molecular biology techniques to tropical diseases led by Professor Vincent P.K Titanji and the Malaria Pilot Community Research Project led by Professor Theresa Akenji. The university also has projects funded by the World Health Organization, Medicine for Malaria Venture, and Wellcome Trust-Oxford University on malaria control.
In addition, the University of Buea has research activities in environmental studies, such as the “Climate variability and climate change in Northern Cameroon” project led by Dr. Ernest Molua and the “Pressures and impact of climate change in Cameroon on Health, water resources, and agriculture: Consideration for immediate and future adaptation strategies” project led by Prof. Samuel Ndonwi Ayonghe.
The university also has projects funded by international organizations such as the International Foundation for Science, European Union, UNICEF, United Nations Development Programme, and World Bank.
Apart from research activities, the University of Buea has several capacity-building projects in collaboration with international organizations such as the African Economic Research Consortium, VLIR, and British Council. These projects aim to strengthen research capacity in the university and promote knowledge transfer.