Breaking the Campus Barrier: How Malawian Students and Researchers Are Accessing Knowledge Anywhere

For years, access to global academic resources in many Malawian universities came with clear limitations. Students and lecturers could only access online research platforms such as Emerald Insight, the American Physical Society, or Research4Life while on campus. Any attempt to log in to these research platforms beyond campus, would be blocked. Additionally, institutions relied on shared usernames and passwords issued by content providers. While functional, the approach was fragile. A single incorrect login attempt could lock out an entire institution, cutting off hundreds or even thousands of users from critical academic resources.

This was inconvenient, time-consuming, and often frustrating. However, the picture is now changing.

The Malawi Research and Education Network (MAREN) is piloting an identity federation service that integrates institutional user identities with global research platforms, enabling every student, lecturer, and researcher to use their own secure login. Through this service, a single username and password provide access to journals and education resources such as the American Physical Society, Emerald Insight, Okeanos, Plasma Science Lab and Research4Life, even outside campus. The service enhances security, simplifies the administration of user identities within institutions, and improves user accountability

Institutions such as the University of Malawi, Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences, Malawi College of Accountancy (Mzuzu Campus), Mzuzu University, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Mzuzu Technical College, the University of Livingstonia, and St. John’s Institute for Health are among the pilot institutions to utilize the new system.

“This initiative is about making digital access simple and secure for everyone in the education sector,” said Jones Kumwenda, one of MAREN’s Systems Engineers. “We wanted to remove the burden of shared credentials and make sure that every user has their own safe, flexible way to connect to learning and research tools.”

The development reflects a growing shift in Malawi’s research and education sectors, where technology is no longer just an administrative tool but a bridge connecting students and researchers to the world’s knowledge.

As MAREN plans to extend the service to more institutions, education institutions are encouraged to participate in and utilise the identity federation to improve secure access to digital learning and research resources. The goal is clear: to make digital learning resources accessible anywhere and anytime.