UNESCO Chair Lifelong Learning, Youth and Work

The UNESCO Chair on Lifelong Learning, youth and work contributes to UNESCO’s efforts to promote lifelong learning in all its forms. It offers lifelong learning opportunities for young people to support them in building a livelihood in Uganda, but also in other African countries and in Europe. It facilitates research and academic events for actors in vocational education and higher education in the context of transition challenges and opportunities in both global North and South.

In 2016, Professor Jacques Zeelen, professor in Lifelong Learning and Social Intervention at the University of Groningen, was appointed as the first UNESCO chair holder on Lifelong Learning, youth and work. Together with Professor George Openjuru, Vice Chancellor of Gulu University, they established a network of individuals, vocational education institutions and universities in Uganda.  After a positive evaluation, the chair was transferred to Dr Josje van der Linden in 2021 and afterwards renewed with a third term of four years starting from December 2024 with Dr Robert Jjuuko, lecturer at Gulu University, as co-chair holder.

Its home is in the Open and Distance Electronic Lifelong Learning (ODELL) department at Gulu University (GU) in Gulu, northern Uganda. See flyer Thriving in a flourishing ODELL for more information. The strong links with the University of Groningen (UG) date from the first decade of the 21st century when Gulu University was established. Several lecturers from Gulu University hold a PhD from the University of Groningen, students from Groningen conducted research for their master thesis in Gulu and joint publications were written. In September 2025, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the two universities consolidating the cooperation. 

The objectives of the chair are:

• strengthen the capacity of academic staff at the university and its partners to conduct quality teaching, research and community-university engagement;

• support capacity-building of professionals in formal and informal BTVET and NGO sector;

• foster the establishment of networks and sustainable partnerships between higher education, the BTVET sector, government etc;

• strengthen academic lifelong learning and adult education networks;

• develop new ways of working with students in community-oriented programmes and analyse how these ways can be integrated in the regular university programme;
• cooperate closely with UNESCO on relevant programmes and activities, as well as with relevant UNESCO Chairs.

Apart from cooperating with the University of Groningen, the chair cooperates with other (Ugandan) universities and organisations in research projects, educational and training programmes and capacity building activities related to its mandate. Based on the needs of the people in northern Uganda, which is a (post-)conflict area, an application for a new chair on Trauma therapy, psychosocial support and social work has been submitted to UNESCO. Also, this chair which will hopefully be operational soon, will be a cooperation between Gulu University and the University of Groningen. Similar and complementary to the existing chair the focus will be on cooperating with the Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences as the themes of the chairs and the faculty are close to each other.