The Ministry of Higher Education, Training and Innovation says the African continent is not creating sufficient jobs.
Executive director Alfred van Kent says Africa only generates approximately three million jobs annually, against a demand of up to 15 million.
He was speaking at the closing ceremony of the Second Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture Triennial Conference on Friday.
“These meetings are pertinent, given the high rate of unemployment on our continent… Unemployment is also rife in our country with many young people disenfranchised.”
The conference brought together forum member universities in Namibia and aimed to transform agriculture in Africa through innovative scientific research, educational and training approaches.
The conference was hosted under the theme: ‘Operationalising Higher Agriculture Education and Research Ecosystems for Innovation, Industrialisation and Economic Development in Africa: A Call for Action’, from 12 to 16 August.
According to Van Kent, education systems must enhance work transitions, create innovations and enhance entrepreneurship to reverse this trend.
Speaking at the same event, Namibia University of Science and Technology acting deputy vice chancellor for research, innovation and development partnerships Onesmus Shuungula said the theme is a suitable one.
He described it as a “noble” call for action to institutions of higher learning, governments, development partners and all stakeholders.
He said the conference provided a continental platform for academic leaders to come together.
“Our collective dedication to respond to this call has been demonstrated in no uncertain terms right from the beginning as we started preparing for this conference. This was followed by the pre-conference events that were mounted and carefully delivered to disseminate in-depth knowledge and skills to our young scientists, entrepreneurs and leaders,” Shuungula said.
Shuungula spotlighted the Namibia High Education Day (NaHED) hosted prior to the conference on 8 August.
At the event, higher education minister Itah Kandjii-Murangi said higher education in Africa in 2020 comprised 15 million of 236 million enrolments globally. This was according to the Unesco Institute for Statistics.
The minister further highlighted Africa’s performance and contributions when it comes to global research and development.
“Africa generates less than 1% of global research and invests 0,6% of gross domestic product in research and development compared to the global average of 1,79%,” Kandjii-Murangi said.
NaHED was hosted under the theme: ‘Improving the Role, Relevance and Impact of Higher Education in Meeting Namibia’s Current and Future Human Capital, Science, Technology and Innovation Needs’.
NaHED brought together various stakeholders from academia, the government, civil society, the private sector and the general public.
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