With the enthusiastic participation of delegates from 59 countries ranging from Australia and the Pacific, to the USA, Canada, Europe, the Arabian peninsula and Africa, with captivating speakers and innovative presentations, the Unicaf Dubai Conference 2025 was held on the first day of April at the magnificent Atlantis, The Palm hotel. The theme of the Conference was “Driving Change through Technology and Entrepreneurship”, and the focus on AI and Robotics offered students the opportunity to explore visions of the future.
Dr Nicos Nicolaou, Unicaf Founder and CEO, presented the rapid advancements in AI and Robotics, offering compelling video examples of current innovations in Robotics across industries. Dr Nicolaou engaged the audience in a dynamic exchange of ideas on the wider implications of AI-driven robotics. He reaffirmed Unicaf’s commitment to lead in technological and educational innovation and to prepare students for success in an evolving digital landscape, and concluded: “Robotics, combined with advancements in AI, will fundamentally transform our societies, The way we live, interact, and conduct business will experience profound changes, reshaping our future in extraordinary ways.”
In his keynote speech, titled “AI in Online Learning: Smarter, Faster… but Wiser?”, Dr Kevin Andrews, Federal Vice-Chancellor of Unicaf University, reflected on the long history of knowledge transmission, drawing parallels between Socrates’ scepticism of writing and modern doubts about AI. He challenged delegates to view AI not as an oracle, but as an assistant, reminding them that “education must train the mind to think, not outsource thinking to machines.” Dr Andrews highlighted the global roots of Renaissance learning and urged for greater inclusion of African and Islamic knowledge traditions in shaping AI systems. With humour and philosophical depth, he left the audience with one final challenge: to keep asking good questions.
Representatives of Unicaf’s partner Universities sent videotaped messages to the Conference. Dr Gulnara Stover, Director of the University of East London Global Campus Development, stated that UEL is proud to collaborate with Unicaf in delivering high quality, career focused Master’s programmes to more than 10,000 students in Africa. “This collaboration”, Dr Stover emphasised, “is transforming lives, driving gender equality in education and expanding UEL’s global impact”.
The Pro Vice-Chancellor for External Engagement and Partnerships of Liverpool John Moores University, Dr Aileen Jones, underlined in her message that Unicaf and LJMU share core values in delivering high quality, industry-focused programmes, which address the needs of employers. Dr Jones added: “We teach our students to be resilient and adaptable to ever changing circumstances. We equip them with technical skills and business acumen, combined with effective tools for communication, leadership and teamwork, to succeed in their careers”.
The Director of the Centre of Academic and International Partnerships at the University of Suffolk, Associate Professor Dr Stuart Agnew, said in his message that thanks to the utilisation of cutting edge online learning technologies by Unicaf, in the last six years over 1,700 students have earned academic qualifications from the University of Suffolk. Dr Agnew stated: ‘We believe in the transformative power of education, not only for our graduates, but also for their communities”.
Dr Christine Phiri Mushibwe, Vice Chancellor of Unicaf University in Zambia, said in her message that the University’s MMA, MBA with Finance and DBA are the most popular programmes and stressed: “We are continuously integrating innovative technologies into our curricula to equip our students to become change makers and entrepreneurial leaders in their fields”.
The Vice-Chancellor of Unicaf University in Malawi, Dr Robert Ridley, said that in eight years the University has grown to over 9,000 students, with 2,800 enrolled in French language programmes, and 1,000 pursuing doctoral degrees. Dr Ridley underlined that “Unicaf University in Malawi works closely with the UN and the African Union in the areas of technology, innovation and entrepreneurship, but the University’s most important contributions come from its students and graduates, from their ideas, efforts and research”.
Unicaf’s Senior International Marketing Manager, Ms Ria Argyrides, who served as the Master of Ceremonies for the event, introduced to the audience the guest speaker: Mr Pavlos Chatzidimitriou, Public Sector Lead of Amazon Web Services for Greece, Cyprus and Malta. During his presentation, Mr Chatzidimitriou highlighted the ways in which AI is revolutionising education, making it more personalised and accessible across the globe through technology, diversity, student engagement, flexible learning, new educational pathways, reduced costs, skills assessment and industry-recognised credentials.
Leveraging AI in Education was the topic of a joint presentation by Dr Elena Papadopoulou, Unicaf’s Pro Vice-Chancellor, Teaching and Learning, and Dr Olga Novokhatskaya, Unicaf’s Dean, School of Doctoral Studies. Exploring the transformative potential of AI in enhancing educational experience, they highlighted personalised learning pathways, adaptive learning materials, administrative assistance, immersive simulations through virtual labs, and actionable insights derived from data analytics. They also discussed ethical concerns surrounding AI-generated student work, the risk of algorithmic bias, and the importance of maintaining a human-centred approach in education, emphasising that ‘the future of education is not about replacing teachers with machines, but about empowering them with intelligent tools, creating a learning environment where every student can thrive.”
In the second part of the Conference, Winnie Rachael, Country Manager of Unicaf Kenya led participants through an engaging session of self-discovery, and Unicaf’s Digital Marketing Manager Alex Campbell entertained participants with a trivia quiz game.
The winners of the essay competition ‘How Unicaf has changed my life’ read their personal stories on stage and received prizes, comprised of cash, tablets and commemorative plaquettes. The winners of the competition were Chris Sunday from Kenya, a humanitarian and development worker, pursuing the MSc in International Relations with the University of East London through Unicaf, Cecilia Adzo Kdeh from Ghana, a corporate leader in banking, studying for the Doctorate in Business Administration with Unicaf University, and Ayoub Hassan Abdalla Mohammed from Sudan, a humanitarian worker in refugee camps, studying toward the MSc in Public Health Programme with the University of Suffolk through Unicaf.
Conference participants also watched the winning entries to the video competition “My Journey – a Day in the Life of a Unicaf Student”. Winners Makgano Sarah Bopape, a South African living in China, who is pursuing the MSc in Psychology with Liverpool John Moores University through Unicaf and Hermann Ngoy Wa Ngoy, from the Democratic Republic of Congo, studying for the MBA programme in French with Unicaf University, went on stage to receive their prizes.
One of the best moments of the Conference was the colourful parade of participants from more than 30 countries dressed in their national costumes, depicting the multi-cultural character of Unicaf.
Delegates stated that they were very impressed by the insightful presentations and ensuing discussions throughout the Conference. Before flying back to their countries, they had more time to network while enjoying a full day guided tour of the cosmopolitan city of Dubai.
Written by Eva Koursoumba
