Higher education in Africa is under-developed and has been a low priority for the past two decades. Access to higher education for the relevant age group remains at 5%, the lowest regional average in the world, just one-fifth of the global average of about 25%. Women are underrepresented in higher education, in particular in the science and technology fields. In regards to quality, not a single Western and Central African university features in the rankings of the world’s best 500 academic institutions. These challenges can be attributed to a multiplicity of factors. According to this paper funding the funding is at the centre of all these challenges.