In the span of one week, the Aga Khan University (AKU) hosted graduation ceremonies across Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya, sending 375 newly qualified doctors, nurses, educators, and media professionals into the continent's workforce. Princess Zahra Aga Khan—newly installed as AKU’s Pro-Chancellor—presided over each of the ceremonies.

On 7 February, the University marked a historic milestone with the first-ever convocation at its new campus in Kampala, Uganda. The site had been officially inaugurated just months earlier, in September 2025, by AKU’s Chancellor, His Highness the Aga Khan, alongside Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni. On convocation day, 108 graduates—nurses, teachers, media professionals, and physicians—became the first class to receive their degrees there.

“Graduating from AKU Uganda is a dream come true,” said valedictorian Sarah Naluyima, who earned a Bachelor of Science in Midwifery. “The mentorship, practical experience, and values we have gained here have prepared us to serve our communities with skill, compassion, and integrity.”

The campus is set to grow quickly. A new undergraduate nursing programme admitted its first cohort in September 2025, and expanded offerings in journalism, communications, and medicine are planned. Most significantly, AKU’s Hospital in Kampala is currently under construction and expected to open in 2028, bringing international-quality care to Uganda.

Three days later, 133 students received their degrees in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The occasion carried special weight: it marked the graduation of AKU Tanzania’s first-ever cohort in the Bachelor of Science in Midwifery, a postgraduate diploma in Paediatrics and Child Health, and a part-time Master of Education.

“Atakae cha uvunguni sharti ainame,” said valedictorian Hellen Wimile, quoting a Swahili proverb meaning that one must humble oneself to achieve something of great value. “We are here because we made sacrifices, endured long study nights, self-doubts, hard clinical hours, heated debates, and research deadlines.”

AKU’s Tanzanian programmes are specially designed to plug gaps in the national workforce in alignment with the government’s Education Sector Development Plan 2030.

The week concluded in Nairobi, Kenya, on 14 February, with the conferral of degrees to 134 graduates in medicine, nursing, midwifery, journalism, and media leadership. The ceremony also welcomed Prince Amyn Aga Khan to the Nairobi campus.

Kenyan valedictorian Doreen Wainaina’s message to fellow graduates looked to the future: “The true measure of opportunity is not what it gives us, but what we choose to give back as a result of it,” she said.

In a video message to graduates across all AKU campuses, His Highness the Aga Khan urged the Class of 2025 to harness tools ranging from artificial intelligence to climate science in service of humanity.

“When we educate an individual, we do not merely confer a personal asset that can never be taken away; we set in motion a powerful ripple effect that extends to families and communities,” he stated.

The ceremonies collectively reflect an institution with considerable momentum. AKU secured more than US$100 million in research funding in 2025 alone, and 27 of its faculty members have been ranked among the top 2 percent of scientists globally. In Kenya, five faculty members hold that distinction, with some leading one of the largest studies of ageing in sub-Saharan Africa and working across more than two dozen public hospitals to improve neonatal care.

AKU President Dr Sulaiman Shahabuddin, who addressed graduates in all three countries, struck a consistent note of purpose: “[The] future will not be shaped by policies and capital alone,” he said. “It will be shaped by professionals like you—the Class of 2025—who embody integrity, competence, and humility in the vital work of serving the public good.”

Together, the three ceremonies marked the passage of 375 individuals into their careers, and underscored the continued expansion of a university staking a growing claim as one of Africa’s foremost institutions for health, education, and public service.