Monrovia, Liberia – The University of Liberia and Sharda University of Greater Noida, India, are preparing to launch a joint Center of Excellence that could significantly reshape research, academic exchange, professional training and innovation opportunities for students and scholars in both countries.
The research-based Center, expected to be formally launched in September 2026, is being established as a central platform for advanced research, policy studies, technology, innovation and skills development.
Rather than limiting its activities to the University of Liberia and Sharda University, the Center is envisioned as a broader academic resource that could serve public and private higher education institutions, researchers and other stakeholders across Liberia.
The initiative comes through the continued academic relationship between the two institutions and is designed to give practical meaning to their existing Memorandum of Understanding.
The Center’s development is particularly significant because it seeks to move international academic cooperation beyond ceremonial agreements and toward joint research, professional training, publications, faculty exchanges and the development of solutions to real societal problems.
According to the framework governing the initiative, the primary purpose of the Center is to conduct impactful research while facilitating collaboration, training and capacity development within the academic community.
Its priority areas will include police studies, interdisciplinary research, innovation, public policy and professional skills development.
The Center will also explore emerging fields such as artificial intelligence and cybersecurity while supporting social and pure sciences research, medical research, thesis and dissertation development and other areas considered critical to modern higher education.
As part of the planned collaboration, Sharda University is expected to provide two professors with expertise in these fields to work with the Center’s team and assist in strengthening the knowledge and research capacity of University of Liberia faculty members.
The initiative is being developed at a time when universities worldwide are under growing pressure to ensure that academic programs respond to changing labor markets, technological advancement and complex social challenges.
The Center’s founders appear to be responding directly to that challenge by seeking to connect classroom learning with research, innovation and practical professional competencies.
The initiative’s organizers believe that a university’s contribution to national development cannot be measured only by the number of graduates it produces. They argue that higher education must also generate new knowledge, influence public policy, develop practical solutions and prepare graduates to operate successfully in an increasingly technology-driven economy.
The Center is designed around that philosophy.
It will initially be housed at the University of Liberia’s Fendall Campus, specifically on the ground floor of the Academic Complex within the Amos C. Sawyer College of Social Sciences and Humanities.
The facility has already been allocated for the Center’s operations, providing a physical base from which the joint Liberia-India programs can be coordinated.
University of Liberia President Prof. Dr. Layli Maparyan recently visited the Center’s office during a visit to the Fendall Campus, where she also toured the recently updated office of the Dean and staff of the Sawyer College.
At the center of the management structure is Associate Professor Dr. Josephus M. Gray, Dean of the Amos C. Sawyer College and a senior academic leader at the University of Liberia.
Dr. Gray has been selected to head the Center’s management team after his appointment was approved by President Maparyan and Dr. Ashok Daryani.
Gray brings to the initiative experience from both institutions. In addition to his responsibilities at the University of Liberia, he serves as a Sharda University Ambassador to Liberia and as a visiting professor at the Indian institution.
He said he was deeply honored to have been selected to lead the collaborative initiative.
“I’m truly honored to be selected from among three thousand educational leaders, professors, scholars, and academics from University of Liberia and Sharda University to lead this collaborative Center of Excellence,” Gray said.
He described the Center as an opportunity to build a research-focused platform capable of bringing academics together to develop practical responses to challenges affecting Liberian and Indian societies.
Dr. Gray is expected to lead a specialized management team responsible for coordinating the Center’s programs and building partnerships with universities, colleges, research institutions and other organizations.
The Center’s leadership will also be expected to pursue grant funding and other external support to finance research, training, academic exchanges and innovation programs.
Among the proposed activities are multidisciplinary research projects that bring scholars from different academic backgrounds together to examine issues that cannot be effectively addressed through a single discipline.
The Center will also organize conferences, seminars and policy dialogues and facilitate joint research and publications on social, political, economic, technological and institutional challenges.
Another major function will be the production of journals, policy briefs and working papers designed to ensure that research generated through the Center reaches policymakers, educators, professionals and the wider public.
The Center is also expected to host visiting scholars, academics and researchers for varying periods, creating opportunities for international knowledge exchange.
Its innovation agenda will include the development of entrepreneurship incubation programs intended to help students and researchers move ideas from the academic environment toward practical applications.
Plans also call for the development of digital research databases and the pursuit of scholarships and fellowships in research-based disciplines.
The academic partnership will extend to faculty and student mobility.
Proposed areas of collaboration include visiting professorships, faculty sabbaticals, student-faculty exchanges, academic credit exchanges, joint publications, faculty and staff development and quality assurance.
Such programs could expose Liberian students and academics to new research environments while allowing Indian scholars and students to gain greater understanding of Liberia and the wider African academic and social context.
The Center’s research agenda is equally broad.
Among the issues identified for comparative study are institutional resilience, electoral integrity, public trust, sustaining peace, judicial strengthening and civic education following significant political and institutional transitions.
These themes are expected to provide opportunities for scholars from Liberia and India to compare experiences, identify common challenges and develop evidence-based recommendations.
The Center also aims to help close the gap between academic offerings and workforce requirements by promoting standardized processes, advanced research skills and interdisciplinary innovation.
Through training and professional development, students are expected to acquire practical competencies that complement their academic qualifications and improve their readiness for employment and entrepreneurship.
The Center’s creators believe such an approach could strengthen the University of Liberia’s role in national development by ensuring that research produced at the institution is connected to real policy and societal needs.
The framework was developed through the contributions of academics and professionals associated with the University of Liberia, Sharda University and institutions abroad.
Key contributors include Prof. Dr. Ashok Daryani, President of International Relations at Sharda Group of Companies and Sharda University; Prof. Dr. Syrulwa Somah, former President of Margibi University; Prof. Dr. Aveit Gupta, Dean of Sharda University’s School of Humanities and Social Sciences; and Mr. Bartue C. Gray of Arizona State University.
Other contributors include Rev. Allen Paye, Deputy Director of Social Science Research at UL; Mr. Sachin Saini of Sharda University’s International Division; Mr. Andrew Sieh Nyenswa of the Department of Political Science at Sawyer College; Mr. William H.S. Doe, a 2026 Sharda University alumnus; Mr. Bill Jarkloh, an adjunct faculty member at Sawyer College; and Dr. Josephus M. Gray.
The initiative was first proposed by Dr. Ashok Daryani and subsequently developed into a formal framework through collaboration between academics associated with both institutions.
The framework has received approval from the leadership of the University of Liberia and Sharda University and endorsement from the Chair of the University of Liberia Board of Trustees.
The Center is also expected to operate as a joint platform rather than an exclusively University of Liberia project.
Its management structure will draw on specialized personnel from both universities, while partnerships with additional institutions and organizations are expected to broaden its reach.
The anticipated participation of external partners could also allow the Center to pursue larger research grants and collaborative projects capable of generating new knowledge on issues affecting Liberia, India and other developing societies.
The September launch is expected to bring together an unusually broad cross-section of Liberia’s academic and diplomatic community.
Among those expected are the presidents of the University of Liberia and Sharda University, senior Liberian government officials, members of the UL Board of Trustees, the Indian Ambassador to Liberia, diplomatic representatives, university and college administrators, faculty members, student leaders and alumni.
The event is also expected to recognize those who contributed to developing the Center’s framework and formally unveil the management team responsible for taking the initiative forward.
For the University of Liberia, the project offers a potential mechanism for strengthening research and expanding international academic partnerships.
For students, it could create opportunities for specialized training, exchanges, scholarships, research collaborations and exposure to emerging technologies.
For faculty members, the Center could provide access to international research networks, visiting professorships, joint publications, professional development and advanced research methodologies.
For Liberia more broadly, the Center’s focus on research and policy engagement could help strengthen the connection between academic institutions and national development priorities.
Its broader ambition is to position the University of Liberia as a stronger center for knowledge generation, innovation and transformative problem-solving while deepening India’s educational engagement with Liberia.
The initiative’s architects acknowledge that building such a center will require sustained resources, effective management and long-term commitment.
But with its emphasis on research, technology, innovation, policy and practical skills, the Center of Excellence represents a potentially important new chapter in Liberia-India academic relations.
If successfully implemented, the partnership could demonstrate how universities in developing countries can leverage international cooperation not simply to exchange knowledge, but to jointly produce research, develop solutions and prepare a new generation of professionals capable of responding to increasingly complex challenges.
The planned September launch will therefore mark the beginning of what organizers hope will become a durable academic bridge between Liberia and India—one built not only on institutional agreements, but on research, innovation, people-to-people exchanges and measurable contributions to society.
