Education and manpower

IDEP/ET/VIII/267

Original: French

UNI TM) NATIONS December 1964

AFRICAN INSTITUT FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING

-DAKAR-

EDUCATION AND MANPOWER

1. THE EDUCATION SYSTEM

AS A SUPPLIER OF SKILLED MANPOWER

by Maurice DARTIGUE

IDEP/ET/VIII/267

v.- ï

THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM AS A SUPPLIER OP SKILLED MANPOWER

BEEPS IN QUALIFIED PERSONNEL FOR ECONOMIC GROWTH

One of the most urgent problems in Africa is the training of qualified personnel at all levels and all grades. The under-developed

countries suffer from a manpower shortage. Most often they lack

qualified personnel to go with increased capital. This was the situa¬

tion referred to by Professor Zimmerman of the Institute of Social

Studies in the Haguç, when he stated that capital shortage was

not

considered by the majority of economists as the main obstacle to the development of low-income countries.* As a general rule, he

maintained,

we may state that the lack of organizational ability and the lack of

skilled labour in the widest sense of the word are frustrating the setting

up and implementation of macro-economic development plans, and indivi- (1 ).

dual projects

(feasibility studies)

much more than the lack of

capital.

Ghana, a country with an expanding education system

and also

an increasing level of professional training and skill, has a supply

of qualified personnel - administrative and sub-professional personnel including skilled craftsmen, estimated at approximately

60.000

persons.

Nevertheless according to a manpower survey covering administrative and sub-professional personnel conducted there in

1960 (2)

^, the needs in

additional personnel are estimated for

1965

i.e. in five years, at

31.051

broken down into following groups!

Teaching

(1)

Louis J. Zimmerman:"Exchange

of/personnel4th annual meeting of

Directors of Training Institutes in the field of economic

Development (Washington

21-24 September

1964).

(2)

Ghana: Survey of High level Manpower in

Ghana, 1960

Ministry of Information, Government printing

Department.

idep/et/viii/267

Page 2

-Managerial and Administrative 1.643

—Professional

(including

secondary school

teachers)

5«063 -Sub-professional technical

(including teachers)

13•172

-Skilled craftsmen and foremen 11.173

A. Concerning the problems of manpower in East Africa in relation

to foreign aid to education, A.R. Jolly observes that there is in that region a plentiful supply of unskilled labour, but, in almost every

sector, there is a severe shortage of the trained personnel needed to organize and guide it in the modern ways of development. Many government departments are under-staffed, commercial enterprises make do with under-

trained

(or

^even

untrained)

personnel and the schools have insufficient qualified teachers, particularly in science. This is especially serious

in the rural districts where, instead of the massive concentration of

technical and professional leadership necessary if African agriculture

is to move forward in force, ^we often find the solitary agricultural (1 )

officer, supported by a few under-trained assistants. '. The problem

is not simply to train sufficient manpower to make the existing economy operate reasonably efficiently. What is needed is manpower in sufficient

numbers to bring the economy up to much higher levels of production»

The stock of high-level manpower in East Africa

(Kenya,

Tanganyika, (2)

Uganda)

has been estimated in a survey by

Hunter^ '

at about

18.000

persons in Category I

(professional

^{men of} graduate or equivalent level,

senior administrators, senior managers in industry and commerce

etc..)

and nearly 50«000 in Category II

(technicians

in industry, executive grades in the civil service, teachers with secondary education

but

without ^a University degree

etc...).

Just over half of this manpower

was in Kenya, just over a quarter in Tanganyika and the remainder in Uganda. The figures quoted indicate that, in the composition of this personnel, there was a heavy reliance on Europeans and Asians.

(1)

^A. R, Jolly s Aid to Education. The Manpower issues in East Africaj

Conference on Public Policy, University of East

Africa, 1963/64 (2)

Guy Hunter ; "Education for a Developing Region. A study in Bast

Africa",

1963

^- quoted by A. R. Jolly.

t"' *

idep/et/viii/267

Page 3

Thuss out of

18.022

persons in category I,

9*348

were Europeans,

• ''"

6.895 Asians, and 1.771 Africans. As to the personnel in Category II,

out of a total of 49*539 there were 13*541 Europeans, 24.103 Asians and 11.895 Africans.

It has "been estimated, that, if there is rapid economic growth,

the needs for personnel in category I would amount to 39*000 in 1971

and 79*000 in 1981. ^For Category II, the figures for the same years would

"be 87.000 and 260.000 respectively.

The manpower problem in these countries presents a two-fold aspect.

The question is not only to train sufficient numbers of local personnel

for present needs and for. the requirements of economic growth and social development, but also to provide for the training of local personnel for

the gradual replacement of non-local personnel. In this connexion, it

should be pointed out that in order to introduce economic development

programmes and to train local technical personnel, it will be necessary to call upon specialists who are not available locally but will have to

come from abroad, this means that during the first ten years of the development _programme, the number of foreign personnel will! increase

instead of diminishing. This applies to alnost all sectors of social

and economic life but particularly to the sector of education and training, especially at secondary and higher level. Besides the projections aiming

to establish in quantitative terms the personnel requirements of this region for the years 1961 to

1981,

and following the rate of economic growth during that period, attempts have been made to estimate approxima¬

tely the quantity of qualified manpower which might be available in

each five-year period between 1961 and 1981. As a result of these esti¬

mates, taking various factors into account - as for instance the number of secondary school graduates and the departures of foreign personnel ^-

it _appears likely that the supply of ^manpower will not be able to meet the demands. This will of course not mean that all newly created jobs

will remain vacant because of lack of adequately qualified personnel.

A large number of these jobs will be staffed by under-qualified

personnel or by way of unjustified promotions. As a result, efficiency

of production will decrease, and it may not bo possible to reach the development targets.

idep/et/viii/267

Page 4

»

THE EDUCATICEAL SYSTEM AS A SOURCE OR QUALIFIED I-IANPÛÏÏEH

Apart from foreign sources of recruiting qualified personne].;

what is the source of local personnel sufficiently qualified to meet ^ * the various levels required? The source is obviously the whole system

of education of a particular country, and the quantity as well as the quality of the manpower trained at all levels, depends on the level

of development of the education system, its value and its efficiency.

In the above mentioned context, the term of educational system

is taken in the wider sense, and covers not only all the schools and organized teaching centres but also ^manpower training by way of appren¬

ticeship and other forms of on-the-job training provided by private enterprises and various technical government services.

Some people consider technical and vocational schools at all

levels to be the only contribution of the school system to manpower

training

(as

opposed to the various types of on-the-job training given by public and private

enterprises).

They do not realize that it is

the whole system of education, at all levels, which together supplies public administration and all sectors of economic and social life with

the manpower required for developmentg in fact, technical education

at post-elementary, secondary, post-secondary and university level,

presupposes a certain educational background varying with the level

of technical or vocational training desired. In the field of manpower and educational planning, in relation to development, a distinction

may be made between manpower with an elementary or secondary education

and therefore capable of receiving a more or less specialized training

in a particular field, and on the other hand, skilled manpower i.e.

which has received this specialized training. Those with sufficient general education may be directly employed in certain industries because they can be trained on the job and become qualified in certain skills.

The level of education required of the manpower employed depends upon * * the level of development and the economic structure of a given

country. (

As the structure of the economy evolves and the production pro¬

cesses become more complex and advanced with technological progress,

-«

idep/et/viii/267

Page 5

the level of general education and professional skill of the labour force increases.

B. In Japan a survey of the distribution of produetive-age popula¬

tion

(15-54

^years of age in 1905 and 15-59 in

1960)

by level of educa- (1 )

tion completed, gave the following résultât

!Year ! Productive-! Not atten- ! Completed !Completed!Completed

, age

popula- J tion

!

ded school ! elementary

! education

! only

(IN THOUSANDS)

Secondary

education

higher

education

1905;

24.370

1960; 56.990

13.960

{ 10.150

310

; 36.390

210 17.130

50 3-160

An Italian study

v

' of manpower requirements projected over a

period of fifteen years

(1960-75)

^was concerned to relate the needs of.

growing economy and the education system, in terms of the quantity

and quality of trained manpower likely to be required.

The basic assumption adopted and the calculations made, such as the preparation of projections of likely changes in the structure of in¬

dustry which would involve ^a transformation of the occupational composi¬

tion of the labour force in the next few _{years -} provided an indication

of the needs of the economy in terms of various kinds of skilled manpower.

A breakdown of the educational levels of the labour force of that country in 1959? suggested that 9*5 millions had elementary education,

1.600.000 had lower

(or

^first

stage)

secondary education, and 500.000

had university education. In the projections for 1 975» - was estimated

that the group consisting of unskilled labour would be reduced to about 4.4oo.OOO , while skilled workers including supervisory grades would

increase to 11 millions, the intermediate levels to 4»500.000 and the managerial and higher levels to 1.000.000.

(1)

Japan's Growth and Education! Ministry of Education

(2)

John Vaizey : Economics of Education, Faber and

Faber,

24,

Russel Square? London.

IJEP/ET/VIII/267

Pago 6

The educational implications of the expected changes

and

the projections made were, first, the setting up

of

an

education system

for all children between the age of 6 and 15, and

secondly,

a considerable expansion of education for young

people between the

age of 15 and 19.

In terms of _years of schooling the comparison between

1959

and 1975 would be as follows:

Number of _years of school

1959

per cent

(labour force)

1975

per cent

(labour-forae)

5 85 ^-

8 10 25

10 ^- 48

13 ^{3 16}

16

;

⁶

19 1 2 ⁵

Mention should be made here of another - less direct but

first as important - contribution

of education to the training of edu¬

cated and qualified manpower. In order to

promote the economic deve¬

lopment of under-developed

countries certain attitudes have to be chan¬

ged and certain

intellectual and moral qualities developed i.e.

initiative and the spirit of innovations

to

secure a

workable efficien¬

cy of acquired techniques ,-

all these things being preconditions

to economic and social development. As an

example of certain attitu¬

des which form a psychological obstacle to

economic development and

hence, frustrate economic

pLanning and initiative, there is the fact

that generally, in under-developed

countries, members of the elite,

as well as those aspiring to belong to the

elite,

are

reluctant to

take part or to associate themselves too

closely with manual

or

tech¬

nical work. Work that makes your hands dirty

and makes

you

perspire

is considered an inferior activity. The mere fact

of being associa¬

ted with it even indirectly is embarrassing.

The fact that manual

work and certain technical jobs do not enjoy

social prestige and do

Page 7

not offer to those who take it up a remuneration equal to that purely academically, trained white-collar workers, results in discouraging young

people from technical education..

THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM AS A USER OF M1TP0UER

While the educations system is the supplier of skilled manpower

(at

all

levels)

it is at the same time one of the main users of manpower, the difference being that it has to supply itself with its own manpower.

The educational system has to train its teachers, its instructors, its lecturers, its inspectors, its specialists and technicians, its research

staff etc.. It is a phenomenon of auto-generation. Because of this dual role, education occupies a pre-eminent place in the social and

economic development of _every human community.

C. - This use of _{manpower on a} large scale stems from the fact that education is a large enterprise. It is an economic activity which is

financed by a large volume of public and private funds. It can be assi¬

milated to a big business concern both from the point of view of the number of its finished and unfinished products, i.e. the large number

of children, adolescents, and adults who pass through the school system, and from the point of view of the large amount of public and private money invested in it. The number of countries which receive

in their educational institutions, a quarter of their total population

is growing steadily. At present, civilized societies devote to education

at the minimum about 1

%

^and at the maximum nearly

6 %

of their gross

(1 )

national product '. Between these two percentages, huge resources

are involved. To give an iuea of the size of the school population in

the large advanced countries, we may cite the cases of the USA and the

USSR. In I960 there were in the United States 30.350.000 pupils in primary schools, IO.25o.OOO in general and technical secondary schools,

and 3-224.000 in universities. During the same period, the figures for

the USSR were: 30.000,000 in primary schools, 3*300.000 in secondary schools, 1.905'000 in technical schools and 1.696.000 in institutions

(1)

UNESCO: Education and Development, by H. M. Phillips,

UNESCO/ad/HS/6

January 1

964.

idep/et/viii/267

Pago 8

of higher education^(1 ). The school population of those two countries

was almost equal to tho total population of Prance, Spain and Switzer¬

land put together.

The education of such a large portion of a country's total

population requires a whole army of primary and secondary school teache

not to mention administrators, inspectors, specialists, office staff

etc. ^« But, with only one exception none of the African countries that

are members of the OAU has a sufficient number of qualified personnel

in any of the above-mentioned categories. They all suffer from a

shortage of qualified manpower, competent to run their systems of

education with reasonable efficiency at the present stage of developmen"

This reveals as a consequence, the magnitude of the problem of training primary and secondary school teachers. It is a factor in the planned development of education which directly affects all the components

of this development and is in its turn affected by nearly all the mea¬

sures adopted for this purpose.

The estimates in the report of the Conference of Ministers of

Education,

held in Addis Ababa

(1961)

concerning the probable need

for primary and secondary school teachers in Africa- assuming a certain

rate of expansion of education in the countries concerned reveal in a striking way the magnitude and seriousness of the problem facing 36 African countries. If, according to the report in question, the

number of pupils in elementary schools in thèse 36 countries were to increase from 11.187.000 in 196O ^- 61 to 32.818.000 in 198O-8I , the

number of primary school teachers required would be 937-400 in

1980-81

^-

as compared to 280.000 in 1960-61. In secondary education, the number

of teachers required for general and vocational education would have to increase from 49-500 in 1960-61 to 310.800 in

1980—81^^.

At the university level, it was estimated, that

enrolment

jr.

centres of higher education in 'Middle' Africa would have to increase

(ï)

Pedro Bosselloî The interdépendance of educational development

and economic development.

(2)

^{Unesco: Conference of African States on the} Development of education in Africa, Addis Ababa, May 15-25, 1961.

IDE?/ ET/VIU/ 2 67

Page 9

from 25-000 in 1960-61 to 328.000 in 1980—81. The latter figure was revised in 1962 at the Tananarive Conference on higher education in

Africa and reduced to 274-000, which would require approximately 21.000

additional teachers.

THE ROLE OF GMEEAL EDUCATION IN THE TRAINING OF MANPOWER FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Mot so long ago, general secondary education was regarded almost exclusively as an intermediate stage between elementary education and higher education. A further role attributed to it was that of raising

the general cultural level of the countries where it was developed- But recent studies of the human factor in production and general economic development show clearly that secondary education occupies a strategic position in the economic ^as well as the educational development of any

community. The expansion of primary and higher education as well as of secondary education itself, depends on the degree of development of sedondary education. Primary schools cannot be run without teachers\

and it is secondary education which provides, both for the lower

and the higher level

(according

^{to the} degree of cultural development

of the country

concerned)

^{the candidates for} primary teacher-training colleges, and for technical and vocational schools. Again, the higher grades of secondary schools supply the students for universities and other higher education establishments which train the highly qualified personnel for the needs of industry, commerce, agriculture, political

and administrative management and secondary and higher education.

Further more, a background of secondary education, whether complete or not, is a prerequisite for holding competently certain posts in commerce, government services and other occupations . Even

in a programme of rural development, a secondary education is necessary for assuming certain responsibilities such as secretary, treasurer of

a cooperatives society or multipurpose community development officers-

eoCo «

idep/et/viII/267

_Av

Page 10

But in nearly all the African countries, at the present rate of expansion of activities, the increasing need for central and local administrative Staff, for middle grade technical Staff, for skilled workers and for students qualified for admission to higher education, greatly exceeds the output of general and technical secondary schools.

D. In an article on "Priorities for educational expansion", the

economist Professor Arthur Lewis made the following comments in this connexion: "The products of secondary schools are the officers and non¬

commissioned officers of an economic and social system... Absence of secondary schools is an enormous handicap. These schools supply the

persons who with one or two more years of training

(in

institutions,

or on the

job)

become technologists, secretaries, nurses, school

teachers,

bookkeepers,

clerks, civil servants, agricultural assistants

and supervisory workers of various kinds. The middle and _upper ranks of business consist almost entirely of secondary school products, and

these products are also the backbone of public administration. To have to import large numbers of people at this level, paying them in salaries

and allowances two to three times what they could get in rich countries,

is a blow to most development schemes. In industry it makes production

costs absurdly high. In public administration it puts many desirable

schemes - such as agricultural extension or nursing services ^- beyond

the _range of taxable capacity.... When one compares the countries which have become independent since the Second World War, there is a clear

difference between those whose business and public affairs are still

run mainly by expatriates, under Ministers of the country, and those

which are really competent to run their affairs at all levels, because

their secondary schools have supplied streams of people for intermediate (1 )

and higher posts in business and administration"^ .

Educators and economists _agree that, in order to

maintain/present

the rate of development without relying too much on imported personnel,

the developing countries will have to enrol at least 5

f°

°f "th-e

adolescents of secondary school.age. With the exception of the United Arab Republic and perhaps two or three other countries including Ghana,

(ï)

OECD: Policy Conference on economic growth and investment in

education - III. The challenge of Aid to Newly Developing Countries.

IDEP/ET/VIII/267

Page 11

this percentage of secondary school enrolment does not yet seem to have been reached in Africa.

WR:

Nevertheless9 considerable progress has been achieved in most of these countries since the end of the second world war and especially

since

19483

although the pace of development has not been the same every¬

where. Most of these countries are in general agreement, especially

since the Conference of Addis Ababa, to give secondary education

priority withinthen? educational expansion programmes. We may cite two examples . The target of the Senegalese four year plan

1961-1964?

^was

a 69 % increase in the number of students in _grammar schools, colleges, ordinary and complementary courses. During the first three plan years the overall results obtained in secondary education have exceeded expectations especially as far as the first grades are concerned. On the other

hand,

wastage

(drop-outs

and class

repeating)

affecting effi¬

ciency, had been under-estimated especially for the first grades.

According to the Ghanean seven year plan,

(1963-64/1969-70)

the total

number of secondary school students in 1970 will be more than twice the figure for 1964 - i.e. the total number will increase from 35-000

+0 78.OOO,

VOCATIONAL AID TECHNICAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING Short _survey of technical and vocational education

The system of technical and vocation education and training

covers types of specialised training ranging from the higher elementary

or post elementary up to the university level. It also includes

training outside the school system i.e. the limited and elementary train¬

ing of illiterate adults, non-regulated apprenticeship of young people

undex* the guidance of skilled workers as apprentice

assistants,organized

apprenticeship in a firm under which operational work under the super¬

vision and guidance of skilled workers, is supplemented by practical,

or both theoretical and practical lessons within the factory or workshop-, Occasionaly apprentices attend evening classes at nearby vocational

schools or else are released for a certain number of days per month,

to attend theoretical courses in vocational schools,

IDEP/líT/VIIl/267

Page 12

A number of large enterprises arrange actual training courses

or even training schools in which the teaching of theory is closely

linked, with practice and. where pupil-apprentices areI taught from the

very "beginning to work under the real conditions of ^a factory or

workshop. In order to offer their pupils a realistic and practical training and to initiate them in the working conditions of the enter¬

prises, certain vocational schools arrange"sandwich courses" in which pupils spend half of their time at school, the other half at the factory, where they are supervised by their teachers.

In Sierra Leone the two major industrial firms have set up, at high cost, apprentice-training centres on a considerable scale.

Several other firms cooperate with technical instituts in carrying

out their apprentice programmes.

In Ghana, it has been decided to set up, in cooperation with

the major industrial plants, a number of specialized centres for

vocational training where future workers spend a fow months before entering the factories.

As was mentioned at "the beginning, the system of vocational

and technical education and. training whether in schools or outside schools, covers all types of specialized training in the va.rious

fields of industrial, agricultural, commercial and other activity;

hence it comprises the training of nurses, laboratory technicians, public works foremen, fishermen, seamen, customs officers, etc...

.X

At university level, it includes the training of

high-level/doctors;

dentists, architects, engineers, agricultural engineers, veterinary

surgeons, statisticians, secondary schoo."1 teachers and university lecturers, etc...

In Africa, technical education is not limited to schools established by the Ministry of Education. In the majority of cases, other government departments

(agriculture,

public health, public

works,

etc..)

provide vocational education. As has already been coin—

ted out, private industry, particularly the mining industry, and cer¬

tain industrial enterprises often provide vocational training for

their employees. In a number of African countries, missions have

jX i professional personnel;

IDÉP/ËT/VIII/267

«

Page 13

set up vocational schools or training courses in craftsmanship. Private schools offer training for employment, in commercial enterprises, for example.

While general secondary education is insufficiently developed

in African countries except for the UAR, technical education and

training are even less developed. In most of these countries there is

no system of technical training either in schools or outside schools,

which oven though insufficiently developed, might constitute a more

or less consistent and interlocking pyramid.

The available statistics for 1959 0r 1960 revealed in most cases - even in the less underdeveloped countries, a small proportion of students

enrolled in vocational and technical schools as compared to the number attending middle and secondary schools of general education.

Yet, efforts are being made in several countries to develop a coherent system of vocational end technical education. The seven-year

plan of Ghana

(1963/64

^-

1969/70)

provides for an increased number of

schools and training courses as well as for a considerable growth in

the number of pupils entering these schools and graduating from them.

It is estimated that by the end of the plan period, 4*000 apprentice

workers will have been trained in the most elementary vocational schools

and 9*000 craftsmen and skilled workers will have been produced in both

levels of technical institutes.

In Senegal, the four-year plan

(1961—64)

provided for the training

of 65O skilled workers holding the certificate of technical proficiency

(CAP),

500 workers with industrial and commercial certificates, and

20

cadres and engineers.

In Ghana, the pyramid of vocational and technical education which

is being set up comprises, at the base, 'Junior Instituts' giving a

"junior course" and ^a "senior craft course". The "senior

craft course"

may be followed by an "advanced craft course" given at ^a

Technical

Institute, which also provides for a "senior

technical course" accepting

students with secondary school leaving certificates or students having successfully passed an examination at the end of their 'Junior

Institute'

course. The "Senior technical course" of the technical Institutes

IDEP/ET/VIII/267

Page 14

gives access to the "advanced technical course" which prepares for

the examinations of the higher institutes- %

In connexion with the insufficient expansion of technical

training in Africa, it should he mentioned that owing to its

vocational

and specific character and hence its limited objectives, this training

cannot reach as wide a "clientèle" as general middle and secondary education, which not only occupies a strategic position within the

educational framework, but also ^pursues various

fundamental aims of

an economic, cultural, social, civic and

political nature. The

expan¬

sion and the nature of technical ana vocational training for industry

and commerce in a given country depends, however, to a

large extent

on the economic structure of that country, its present

and expected

stage of development and therefore on employment opportunities

at

pre¬

sent and in the near future- This expansion has therefore to be

based

on surveys of the ^manpower situation and the establishment

of projec¬

tions of future needs.

Pestrie ting factors;

The situation prevailing in these countries in

relation to the

stage of development of vocational

and technical training is closely

linked with the hitherto predominantely agricultural

character of

their economy and the very nature of their

agricultural

economy.

With

few exceptions, industrial development

is only just beginning.

Besides this, there are

social and psychological factors which

have hampered and some of which still hamper

the

progress

of technical

education and training. Until recently and this may

still to

^a

certain

extent apply to some countries - Africans

had little

or no access

to

senior or even sub-professional jobs in industry

and business, which

were largely or even wholly

controled

by

foreign interests. It is

true that at that time only ^very few Africans had

had

^{a seconua.ry}

school education and even fewer any technical training.

But there

was also a total lack of the necessary motivation

and incentive to

direct young Africans towards manual trades

and technical occupations.

This however, covers only one aspect

of the problem.

IDEP/ET/VIII/267

k J> Page 15

Apart from the fact that there is in some countries an insuffi¬

cient number of pupils graduating from the top classes of elementary

schools and lower

sflpondary

schools, there is ^a, general disinclination for manual occupations and technical activities in Africa, ^{and parents}

1 _„ tend to guide their children.towards ^a classical education and the liberal professions. Vacancies in technical and vocational training

"*

^

^centres

are

not infrequent. Lack

of vocational guidance in schools and outside schools, and the abstract and unsuitable school curricula at

elementary,

intermediate and secondary level also affect this situation.

Elementary,

intermediate and secondary school pupils are not brought at all ^- or insufficiently into contact with science and manual and technical activities,

Although in Senegal the needs for

(the

^{four year} plan period

I96I-I964)

had been estimated at ^j 3*500 skilled workers, 1,500 foremen

and 1,000 ^technical supervisors and engineers, the plan target itself

was only : 650 graduates with the Certificate of Technical Proficiency

(CAP),

^5OO foremen with industrial and business training certificates and 20 engineers, nevertheless 1963 revealed a deficit in the output

of the two first groups. In the absence of detailed statistical data and precise information, it is difficult to determine what factors have

hampered the full realisation of the plan targets. As a shortage of teaching staff or financial considerations do not seem to bo responsi¬

ble for this failure, the question arises whether the cause may not be the disinclination of students for this type of education,

It is not the purpose of this lecture to list all the factors

favouring and discouraging the expansion and success of technical

and vocational education in Africa5 but it may be appropriate to mention

that, because of the historical background of education and wage—earning employment in Africa, white-collar work enjoys a higher social prestige

and is in most cases better paid, ^even where the training was equivalent.

Although the need for technical personnel is felt at all levels in Africa, the actual shortage is particularly serious at the middle and upper middle level;; in fact _every engineer requires the assistance of approximately four technicians with less advanced training than his.

J

IBEP/ïiT/VIIl/267

X » •

Pago

16

Yet, the diploma of an engineer seems more attractive than the certi¬

ficate of an engineering-technician or of a lover level of technicians,

as higher prestige is attached to a diploma in

engineering

and, in the

minds of _many young people, an engineer is not supposed to take a hand in the work, his place is behind a desk.

Apart from these psychological

obstacles,

the high costs of this type of education also hamper its expansion. For this reason and for

^

reasons of efficiency, ^a number of educational economists recommend transferring as much responsibility as possible for the training of technical personnel to large enterprises, employing a vast amount of manpower. The question, however, remains how far such measures are

applicable everywhere and in all situations.

Other problems of a technical, pedagogic and administrative ^na¬

ture arise in the organization and expansion of technical and vocational

training in Africa, but they do not fall within the frame of this lecture,

THF PHCGLEM OF AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION Iff THE CONTEXT OF UNDER-DEVELOPMMT

General remarks;

We have been dealing up to now with the problem of manpower training

in craftsmanship, industry, business and personnel services. The field of agriculture, with its particular caracteristics and problems in _every country and especially in under-developed countries, is to be dealt with separately.

In Africa, just as in other under-developed regions, agriculture

is the occupation of the majority of the population

(75

"to 90

%),

which is almost totally illiterate. This agriculture mostly consists

in subsistence agriculture coexisting in some countries with a market economy, i.e. with some large plantations which usually belong to foreigners or to people living in towns, except for ^a small, limited agrarian bourgeoisie in some countries, particularly West Africa. In

these countries, agricultural development is conditioned by the solu¬

tion of numerous problems , technical, cultural, psychological, social

and material

(not

to be further discussed

here),the

existence of

IDËP/ET/VIII/267

' *J Page 17

which means that rural and agricultural education. more than any other type of education, is entirely hound up with the social and cultural

background of each

^untry, and that the human factor is of vital importan¬

ce in solving the problem of development. It follows, that the orga¬

nization and planned development of agricultural education has to be

based _upon the real situation as it is taking into account social con—

editions and traditions which should be changed, but cannot be ignored.

Vocational agricultural education should of course, be built

upon the basis of general education and cannot progress more rapidly

than general education. But as we cannot wait until education is fully developed, we have to proceed

simultaneously, whenever possible, with

both types of education. This means, however, that a sensible choice

has to be made of methods and approachos appropriate to the level of

cultural and economic development of a given region.

It _may be advisable for ^a better understanding of the question,

to define the content of agricultural education, which has an inter¬

disciplinary scope and is divided into different branches of speciali¬

zation.

(1 ) Agricultural education comprises the

following fieldsv

^s

(q)

^the plant

fields:(food,

pasture,

industrial

crops,

forests,

plant protection,

etc...)

(b)

the animal fields:

(animal

production and health,

fisheries)

(c)

the soils and waters:

(soils and soil conservation, water

ressources

and irrigation, agricultural

engineering)

(d)

the processing of primary products :

(food technology and industries,

fish industries, forest industries,

other processing of farm

pro¬

ducts)

(e)

the economics of

agriculture including aspects of production,

distribution and consumption, management of farms,

forests and

fishery enterprises,

marketing, credit and cooperatives etc..

(f)

the structural, social and

cultural aspects (agrarian ^structure,

rural sociology, rural education,

etc...)

(g)

other aspects

(agricultural

aspects

of human nutrition, home economies)

(1) FA©

:

Study of Agricultural Education, Research and Extension

in latin America, Rome

1964

5 Quoted by A.

Chaparro,

IDEP/ET/VIII/267

Page

18

*• • •

In order to understand the issues highlighted "by this lecture,

it is important to consider the scope and content of agricutural education

not only from the viewpoint of fields of study, hut

étko

in terms of

the functions to he fulfilled hy those who have heen trained and the level of training they should receive. This level generally corres¬

ponds to the functions to he fulfilled, although it varies according

to the stage of cultural and technological development of the country (¹ )

concerned. Alvarro Chaparrov gives a very general and simplified

indication of relationship between levels of training and different categories of personnel:

Levels of Training Categories of Personnel

a)

Agriculture, colleges and

a)

Directive and high level categories faculties of universitmeo.

(managers,

administrators, specialists,

planners, professors, high level

technicians and

supervisors) h)

Intermediate level schools

(post-primary,

secondary and

post-seconda,ry) h)

Technical assistants in public

and private services.

c)

Practical schools, farm

c)

Better farmers, farm managers training centres and skilled labourers.

Some controversial concepts in connexion with agricultural education In the field of agricultural education, some concepts or prac¬

tices are controversial or are based on mistaken ideas.

First, there is the concept of utilizing the rural school for teaching 6 to 12 year old children new agricultural methods and techni¬

ques so that they can spread them among their respective communities,

and at the same time are included to stay in the rural area. This is

a mistake which we shall _go back to when examining a number of basic problems of education in Africa in the context of economic development.

(ï)

Needs and Problems of education in Africa. Part IV. Planning

Education and Training in Food and Agriculture, by A. Chaparro

(FAO):

IDEP Specialized Course on Manpower and Educational Planning

in relation with Economic Development

(Cairo

18 Feb. - 15 May

1964).