Namibia making good progress on basic education

AFRICA needs to recruit four million new teachers and provide continuous training to about 16 million existing teachers in the next 10 years to keep up with the positive trends in education on the continent, while the recent debt relief granted by the G8 countries should be spent on this sector as a priority.

Teachers, too, are an essential factor for success and need to take part in designing and implementing education policies. These are among the recommendations made at a recent conference on the state of education in Africa as the continent strives to achieve Education For All by 2015.Following the World Education Forum in Dakar, Senegal, in 2000, around 200 participants from 40 countries and 30 organisations met in Dakar from June 13 to 15 to review progress made, examine policies, practices and ideas that work.A 300-page study by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation’s Regional Office for Education in Africa found there has been considerable acceleration in access to education.Nine out of 10 children start primary school, with 18 per cent more entering high school compared to 10 years ago.A major problem, though, is that four out of 10 do not complete primary school.If current trends are maintained, 31 of the 53 African countries will not achieve the objectives set in Dakar in 2000.In fact, 25 will have less than 75 per cent of children completing primary school.There are 10 countries, Namibia included, that have enrolment rates of 90 per cent and either have met or are close to meeting the 2015 target of children completing their primary education.The others are Cape Verde, Libya, Mauritius, Seychelles, Algeria, South Africa, Botswana, Egypt, and Tunisia.The report also found that while good progress is being made on parity in education, with close to nine girls enrolling in school for every 10 boys, geographic and economic factors prevent girls from receiving equal quality education.One example highlighted during the discussions was that boys had brick classrooms and girls grass huts, which fell apart as soon the rains starting falling and the girls had nowhere to attend school.So they left.Where quality is concerned, the conference recommended focusing on the professional motivation of teachers, how school time is spent and monitoring school activities.Providing free books is another key recommendation.With non-formal education a fundamental factor for social and economic development, governments need to target sufficient funds at this area.This could be done through regular budgets and by the creation of an independent national fund to which state and private partners could contribute.Africa remains the region most severely affected by HIV-AIDS and this has a considerable impact on education.The conference recommended that the effects of the pandemic on education systems be taken into account.Also, issues about HIV-AIDS should be introduced or, where present, reinforced in the curricula.Countries were also asked to consider developing national information and communication technology (ICT) strategies that fit in with local requirements and to train a critical mass of ICT specialists to work in the sector.Namibia was among a group of countries that presented best practices in various areas, and introduced how ICT is being used in education.There is a spirit of optimism amongst aid workers that has not been seen on the continent since the 1960s, according to the World Bank’s senior education advisor, Birger Frederiksen.The conference, he said, had been organised during a period of remarkable growth in enrolment in schools.There were many encouraging trends in the international debate about increased aid to Africa, including debt relief.”But ultimately, the level of development assistance is not determined by us but by the parliaments and political leadership in the rich countries,” he stressed, adding that the most important lesson from successful countries is that reaching EFA requires strong government commitment.These are among the recommendations made at a recent conference on the state of education in Africa as the continent strives to achieve Education For All by 2015.Following the World Education Forum in Dakar, Senegal, in 2000, around 200 participants from 40 countries and 30 organisations met in Dakar from June 13 to 15 to review progress made, examine policies, practices and ideas that work.A 300-page study by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation’s Regional Office for Education in Africa found there has been considerable acceleration in access to education.Nine out of 10 children start primary school, with 18 per cent more entering high school compared to 10 years ago.A major problem, though, is that four out of 10 do not complete primary school.If current trends are maintained, 31 of the 53 African countries will not achieve the objectives set in Dakar in 2000.In fact, 25 will have less than 75 per cent of children completing primary school.There are 10 countries, Namibia included, that have enrolment rates of 90 per cent and either have met or are close to meeting the 2015 target of children completing their primary education.The others are Cape Verde, Libya, Mauritius, Seychelles, Algeria, South Africa, Botswana, Egypt, and Tunisia.The report also found that while good progress is being made on parity in education, with close to nine girls enrolling in school for every 10 boys, geographic and economic factors prevent girls from receiving equal quality education.One example highlighted during the discussions was that boys had brick classrooms and girls grass huts, which fell apart as soon the rains starting falling and the girls had nowhere to attend school.So they left.Where quality is concerned, the conference recommended focusing on the professional motivation of teachers, how school time is spent and monitoring school activities.Providing free books is another key recommendation.With non-formal education a fundamental factor for social and economic development, governments need to target sufficient funds at this area.This could be done through regular budgets and by the creation of an independent national fund to which state and private partners could contribute.Africa remains the region most severely affected by HIV-AIDS and this has a considerable impact on education.The conference recommended that the effects of the pandemic on education systems be taken into account.Also, issues about HIV-AIDS should be introduced or, where present, reinforced in the curricula.Countries were also asked to consider developing national information and communication technology (ICT) strategies that fit in with local requirements and to train a critical mass of ICT specialists to work in the sector.Namibia was among a group of countries that presented best practices in various areas, and introduced how ICT is being used in education.There is a spirit of optimism amongst aid workers that has not been seen on the continent since the 1960s, according to the World Bank’s senior education advisor, Birger Frederiksen.The conference, he said, had been organised during a period of remarkable growth in enrolment in schools.There were many encouraging trends in the international debate about increased aid to Africa, including debt relief.”But ultimately, the level of development assistance is not determined by us but by the parliaments and political leadership in the rich countries,” he stressed, adding that the most important lesson from successful countries is that reaching EFA requires strong government commitment.