African Universities, the Private Sector, and Civil Society: Keynote address by Dr. K. Y. Amoako, UN under-secretary-general and executive secretary of ECA

Abstract

Higher education has almost entirely been a creature of the State in Africa. By many measures, the State has done reasonably well as the custodian of higher education. From six universities in sub-Saharan African in 1960 we now have 120 universities, with a number more in formation. Our growth rate for enrollment in higher education has led every other region by a wide margin. Our data needs updating, but higher education enrollment in Africa has gone from 1.5 million students in 1980 to 3.8 million in 1995. However, that tertiary enrollment ratios in Africa remain the lowest among regions, with demand for more spaces considerably exceeding supply. And, in the past years of persistent budget crisis, university budgets have been cut probably more than any other region. This was probably a necessary phase in our development, but the rapid spread of the private sector, civil society, knowledge, information, communications and peer learning from elsewhere, have led most national authorities to believe that the State is no longer able to be the one-stop shopping center for all public service needs.