EDUCATION AND TRANING AS NECESSARY TOOLS FOR ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT IN AFRICA Professor Nicholas Biekpe

1. EDUCATION AND TRANING AS NECESSARY TOOLS FOR ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT IN AFRICA Professor Nicholas Biekpe Director: Africa Centre for Investment Analysis, University of Stellenbosch Business School

2. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER- Still true? • ..Ignorance is very expensive; • …Little knowledge is dangerous; • …Businesses can’t survive without the appropriate skills; • Efficient governments rely on “good knowledge” and information…. • All of the above rely on good education and training!

3. History of Education in Africa: Pre-independent Africa • African Empires and Education • Ghana Empire • Mali Empire • Songhai Empire • The Great Zimbabwe • Post Empire Education- European education; E.g. British, French, Belgian & German • Post Independent Education- Case of Ghana and Zimbabwe

4. Link between Education and Economic Development: Post Independent Africa • Cases: • Ghana during Dr. Kwame Nkrumah • Mauritius- Education as top priority; • Zimbabwe- from 1981-1990 • Current investment on education by Botswana

5. Links between Education and Economic Development: Other Countries • South Korea; • Malaysia- Empowerment of the Malays; • Hong Kong- British Approach to empowering Hong Kong Chinese • Singapore- Compulsory education system

6. Education and national capacity to deliver Smart economy as a function of education & training

7. Economic burden of illiteracy • Increase welfare cost; • Link between illiteracy and crime; • Link between education and industrial capacity and growth; • Link between education and health; • Link between education and tax burden;

8. Globalisation and need for global education and training • Global competition requires regular “educational and training upgrades”; • Increasingly standardised global standard education- e.g. • Business ethics; • Corporate governance; • Science and technology • Economic and political systems • Link between FDI flow and skill-base

9. Dual Economies: A result of lack of education?; • The economies of Sandton versus Alexandra Township; • Tax implication of dual economies; • Crime implication of dual economies; • Output implication of dual economies; • Overall cost implication of dual economies • Overall tax burden on the rich; • Other welfare cost • Dilution of wealth in the Sandton-Alexandra area

10. A case of South Africa • Cost of not empowering the historically disadvantaged; • Increase in crime; • Dilution of wealth of the wealthy; • Health issues- HIV/AID and poverty related diseases; • Gradual decline in economic output growth; • Further reduction in FDI flow; • Under-utilisation of both natural and human resources • Need to provide proper education and training women and the youth ;

11. A case of the African Union and NEPAD • Capacity to implement the NEPAD initiatives depends on proper education and training; • Meeting the goals of the millennium Development Goals will depend on the level of education and training of Africans; • To tackle youth unemployment in Africa will require the provision of relevant education and training; • To address gender inequality will require innovative education and training models that “actually helps empower” women. • Africa need projects similar to the South African SETAs

12. Some recommendations • Free education for all children in Africa; • Relevant adult education programs aimed at empowering Africans; • Standardising of the education system in Africa; • Significant percentage (at least 40%) of national budgets should go into education; • Establishment of an African fund for education. Money from the fund can be used to train Africans in areas ; • Africa-wide SETA for the Continent

13. Empowerment for the less empowered should be a process of continuous education through knowledge transfer and should have the ability to help ensure self-reliance