To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to provide assistance to expand, improve, support, and promote higher education in the countries of sub-Saharan Africa.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``African Higher Education Expansion 
and Improvement Act of 2009''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The demand for higher education in Africa has been 
        increasing at very high rates and is rapidly overtaking the 
        capacity of current infrastructure and staffing capability.
            (2) Africa's challenges in higher education are substantial 
        and have important social, economic, and stability dimensions.
            (3) Despite increasing enrollments, sub-Saharan Africa's 
        gross enrollment ration is just 5 percent as compared to 11 
        percent in India, 20 percent in China, and 70 percent in high 
        income countries.
            (4) On average, institutions of higher education in Africa 
        have only about 70 percent of the staff required by their 
        programs; staff development, nurturing and retention are 
        important elements of higher education programming.
            (5) In 2005, only 28 percent of African University 
        graduates completed their degrees in science and technology 
        (STEM) fields--agriculture, engineering, health sciences, 
        general sciences.
            (6) African higher education institutions have addressed 
        many critical development challenges in collaboration with 
        regional and international counterparts, such as the United 
        Nations, the International Agricultural Research Centres, and 
        bilateral and regional assistance agencies.
            (7) Higher education has expanded to provide more 
        opportunities for advanced education to graduates of the 
        secondary school systems and it has sought new ways to achieve 
        university collaboration across national and regional 
        boundaries.
            (8) Africa has made important strides as public 
        universities have doubled from roughly 100 to 200 from 1990 to 
        2007 and private tertiary institutions have increased from 
        around 24 to an estimated 468 during this same period.
            (9) Historically, sub-Saharan Africa was marked by several 
        centers of excellence in higher education. Linked to former 
        European sponsors, institutions such as Makerere University in 
        Uganda, Kenyatta University in Kenya, Cheik Anta Diop 
        University, Senegal, and the University of Ibadan in Nigeria 
        graduated scholars and professionals that were highly prized 
        around the globe and that served the interests of their 
        respective nations well.
            (10) These universities serve as ``centres of excellence'' 
        that also have major positive impacts on other universities in 
        their respective regions, and are currently making substantial 
        progress in regaining their national and international 
        prominence.
            (11) Increasing rates of higher education in developing 
        countries is a critical component to long-term economic growth 
        and stability and poverty reduction.
            (12) Estimates indicate that a 1-year increase in tertiary 
        education stock would raise steady-state levels of African 
        Gross Domestic Product per capita by 12.2 percent due to factor 
        inputs, potentially boosting incomes by 3 percent after 5 
        years.
            (13) Studies of 17 countries found that individuals with 
        higher education levels were more likely to engage in 
        entrepreneurial activity, and more educated entrepreneurs 
        created larger numbers of jobs than less educated 
        entrepreneurs.
            (14) Research has found a positive and statistically 
        significant correlation between higher education enrollment 
        rates and governance indicators, including absence of 
        corruption, higher stands of rule of law, absence of ethnic 
        tensions, increased bureaucratic quality, low risk of 
        repudiation of contracts by governments, and low risk of 
        appropriation abuse.
            (15) A cadre of skilled, educated Africans is a necessary 
        component to addressing every sector of development, whether it 
        be poverty alleviation and economic growth, combating disease, 
        improving governance, or rule of law and human rights, but such 
        a cadre does not currently exist in large enough numbers to 
        truly effect a sea-change in these areas in most of the 
        countries in the region.
            (16) Exchange programs which bring Africans to developed 
        countries for training, while an essential component of 
        building intellectual capacity in Africa, will not by 
        themselves reach enough students and scholars to have a 
        transformational effect on African institutions of higher 
        education.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) support for primary and secondary education is vitally 
        important to development in sub-Saharan Africa and such support 
        should be increased;
            (2) the United States and other donors must respond to the 
        increased need for qualified teachers and demand for access to 
        higher education created by expanded access to primary and 
        secondary education on the continent by providing commensurate 
        assistance to colleges and universities in sub-Saharan Africa;
            (3) partnerships between United States colleges and 
        universities and colleges and universities in sub-Saharan 
        Africa represent an important means through which access to 
        quality tertiary education;
            (4) members of the African Diaspora have a crucial role to 
        play in improving the capacity of African colleges and 
        universities;
            (5) the international donor community must help build 
        indigenous intellectual capacity in sub-Saharan Africa in order 
        to expand and enhance the ability of Africans to achieve 
        economic growth, improve social and political stability, and to 
        address such challenges as the HIV/AIDS pandemic, climate 
        change, conflict and governance; and
            (6) the United States must commit to providing long-term 
        assistance to build the capacity of higher education 
        institutions in sub-Saharan Africa aimed at improving 
        administrative capacity, physical infrastructure and curriculum 
        to provide high quality education in fields such as the social, 
        natural, biological, agricultural, life, computer and health 
        sciences; technology; business; engineering; mathematics; 
        economics; and education; and improve the ability of 
        institutions in sub-Saharan Africa to support and produce 
        effective research, as well as higher numbers of better trained 
        undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate students and 
        professionals to respond to the many challenges facing the 
        region.

SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

     It is the policy of the United States to provide long-term 
assistance to expand, improve, support, and promote higher education in 
Africa by building the capacity of African colleges and universities, 
through partnerships with colleges and universities in the United 
States to expand opportunities for students to obtain high quality 
undergraduate- and graduate-level degrees, as well as post-graduate 
training, at African colleges and universities.

SEC. 5. ASSISTANCE TO EXPAND AND IMPROVE HIGHER EDUCATION IN SUB-
              SAHARAN AFRICA.

    Chapter 1 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 
U.S.C. 2151 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 105 the 
following new section:

``SEC. 105A. ASSISTANCE TO EXPAND AND IMPROVE HIGHER EDUCATION IN SUB-
              SAHARAN AFRICA.

    ``(a) Authorization.--The President, acting through the Director, 
is authorized to provide long-term assistance to expand, improve, 
support, and promote higher education in sub-Saharan Africa.
    ``(b) Activities Supported.--Assistance provided under subsection 
(a) shall, to the maximum extent practicable, be used to--
            ``(1) build the capacity of sub-Saharan African colleges 
        and universities in the areas of--
                    ``(A) professional and academic training and 
                faculty development and technical expertise with 
                particular emphasis on mentoring and retention of young 
                and new faculty;
                    ``(B) development and strengthening of educational 
                administrative capacity;
                    ``(C) undergraduate, graduate, and graduate 
                curricula development;
                    ``(D) improving infrastructure of academic 
                facilities; and
                    ``(E) technical capacity, especially in the areas 
                of research and institutional development;
            ``(2) establish, expand, and promote linkages and 
        partnerships between African colleges and universities and 
        United States colleges and universities, with special attention 
        to the inclusion of historically Black colleges and 
        universities in the United States;
            ``(3) assist with efforts to recruit and retain women as 
        students, faculty, and administrators at African colleges and 
        universities; and
            ``(4) establish an American University in West Africa.
    ``(c) Director of Assistance To Support and Promote Higher 
Education in Sub-Saharan Africa.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 60 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this section, the Administrator shall 
        designate a Director of Assistance to Support and Promote 
        Higher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa, who shall report 
        directly to the Administrator, and who shall to carry out the 
        responsibilities described in paragraph (2).
            ``(2) Responsibilities.--The responsibilities referred to 
        in paragraph (1) include--
                    ``(A) ongoing consultations with African 
                governments, particularly ministries of education, 
                regional organizations, and relevant educational 
                institutions, teachers unions, and education and 
                educators' organizations with respect to carrying out 
                the activities described in subsection (b);
                    ``(B) providing long-term assistance under 
                subsection (a) to administer and support the activities 
                described in subsection (b); and
                    ``(C) coordinating with other bureaus with in the 
                Agency, with other relevant United States Government 
                agencies, with the United States and African private 
                sectors, with the higher education community in the 
                United States, and with other bilateral and 
                multilateral donors to maximize the gains and impact of 
                activities carried out under subsection (b)(1).
            ``(3) Plan.--No later than one year after the enactment of 
        this section, the Director shall submit to the Administrator a 
        plan to establish an American University in West Africa. In 
        developing the plan, the Director shall--
                    ``(A) review existing international American 
                University models in other countries, such as the 
                American University in Cairo, the American University 
                in Beruit, the American University in Nigeria, and 
                others;
                    ``(B) consult relevant local African 
                nongovernmental organizations, political and civic 
                leaders, private and higher education sectors, and 
                other stakeholders;
                    ``(C) identify potential sources for sustainable 
                funding including foundations, the private sector, and 
                other local, national, and multilateral donors;
                    ``(D) identify key principles and features that 
                would distinguish the American University in West 
                Africa from existing institutions in the region for 
                transforming the region's social and economic 
                development through institutional and capacity 
                building;
                    ``(E) develop a process and criteria for site 
                selection, including an assessment of national legal 
                framework for new universities, whereupon the 
                institution shall be known as the American university 
                in country name; and
                    ``(F) outline a process for implementation.
    ``(d) Sub-Saharan African Higher Education Advisory Board.--
            ``(1) Establishment.--There is hereby established within 
        the Agency a Sub-Saharan African Higher Education Advisory 
        Board.
            ``(2) Membership.--
                    ``(A) Number and appointment.--The Board shall be 
                composed of members appointed by the Administrator in 
                consultation with the Speaker and the minority leader 
                of the House of Representatives and the majority and 
                minority leaders of the Senate.
                    ``(B) Qualifications.--The members of the Board 
                shall be individuals from the private sector, three of 
                whom shall have demonstrable knowledge of Africa, the 
                field of higher education or higher education in 
                Africa, three of whom shall be from higher education 
                institutions from Africa from a list submitted by the 
                Association of African Universities, and one of whom 
                shall be a president of an historically Black college 
                or university in the United States.
            ``(3) Duties.--The Board shall--
                    ``(A) advise and assist the Director in carrying 
                out the responsibilities described in this section;
                    ``(B) not less than twice a year, meet with senior 
                officials of the Agency in order to fulfill the duty 
                described in subparagraph (A); and
                    ``(C) once a year, submit to the Director and 
                Administrator a report, which shall be made publicly 
                available, which--
                            ``(i) describes and evaluates the 
                        implementation of this section for the 
                        preceding year; and
                            ``(ii) evaluates the implementation of this 
                        section for the preceding year, including the 
                        extent to which--
                                    ``(I) the requirement of subsection 
                                (b)(2) with respect to participation of 
                                historically Black colleges and 
                                universities in the United States was 
                                met; and
                                    ``(II) the requirement of 
                                subsection (b)(3) was met.
    ``(e) Public Private Partnerships.--The Director and the Board 
shall make every effort to leverage resources from the private sector 
in carrying out the responsibilities described in this section.
    ``(f) Reports to Congress.--
            ``(1) Initial report.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
        of the enactment of this section, the President shall transmit 
        to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
        Senate a report that contains--
                    ``(A) benchmarks for measuring the long-term impact 
                of activities carried out under this section;
                    ``(B) a proposal for enhancing opportunities for 
                the African Diaspora to engage in activities to improve 
                the capacity, on either an on-going or short-term 
                basis, of colleges and universities in their country of 
                origin; and
                    ``(C) plans for specific interventions to support 
                the recruitment and retention of young and new 
                professors, scholars, and researchers at African 
                colleges and universities that identifies barriers to 
                their recruitment and retention and details 
                programmatic interventions undertaken to overcome such 
                barriers.
            ``(2) Annual report.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
        of transmission of the initial report under paragraph (1), and 
        every year thereafter through fiscal year 2014, the President 
        shall transmit to the congressional committees specified in 
        paragraph (1) a report that contains a description of the 
        activities carried out under this section for the preceding 
        fiscal year and the progress made toward achieving the 
        benchmarks outlined in the initial report, and any program 
        adjustments undertaken to improve efforts to achieve those 
        benchmarks.
    ``(g) Definitions.--In this section--
            ``(1) the term `Administrator' means the Administrator of 
        the Agency;
            ``(2) the term `Agency' means the United States Agency for 
        International Development;
            ``(3) the term `Board' means the Sub-Saharan African Higher 
        Education Advisory Board established pursuant to subsection 
        (d);
            ``(4) the term `Director' means the Director of Assistance 
        to Support and Promote Higher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa 
        designated pursuant to subsection (c); and
            ``(5) the term `higher education' means post-secondary 
        undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate academic training.
    ``(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this section, 
there are authorized to be appropriated to the President such sums as 
may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2010 through 2014. Of the 
amount appropriated pursuant to the authorization of appropriations 
under this subsection for a fiscal year, such sums as may be necessary 
are authorized to be provided for planning the Africa University in 
West Africa and such sums as may be necessary for initial start up of 
the University.''.

Summary: African Higher Education Expansion and Improvement Act of 2009 - Expresses the sense of Congress regarding the importance to the development of sub-Saharan Africa of support for the improvement of primary, secondary, and higher education in that region.

States that it is this country's policy to provide Africa with long-term assistance to improve the capacity of its institutions of higher education (IHEs) through partnerships with our IHEs.

Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the President to provide long-term assistance to sub-Saharan Africa that improves higher education by: (1) building the capacity of IHEs in sub-Saharan Africa; (2) building linkages and partnerships between sub-Saharan IHEs and our IHEs; (3) assisting efforts to recruit and retain women as students, faculty, and administrators; and (4) establishing an American University in West Africa.

Requires the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to designate a Director of Assistance to Support and Promote Higher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa, who is to carry out such activities.

Establishes a Sub-Saharan African Higher Education Advisory Board within USAID, which is appointed by the Administrator and composed of individuals from the private sector who have the requisite experience with Africa and higher education to assist the Director.

Urges the Director and the Board to make every effort to leverage resources from the private sector in carrying out their responsibilities.