Securitization of Higher Education Expansion in Authoritarian States: Uzbekistan’s Seemingly “Elite” Tertiary System

ABSTRACT

While many states move from elite to mass higher education (HE) systems, little is known as to why some authoritarian developing states resist this transition. In post-Soviet Uzbekistan the tertiary system was consciously restricted to cover roughly 10% of the population; a situation that continued for more than two decades. This paper argues that it is the securitization of the role of HE growth that confronts the transition of HE from elite to mass systems. To support this argument, the paper analyses Uzbekistan’s HE policy and the notorious 1992 student protests that legitimized the securitization of HE expansion in the country.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. For a role and value of obtaining HE in other post-Soviet states, see (Smolentseva 2012).

2. Martin Trow (1973) explains that countries with 15% to 50% of HE coverage of the 19–24 age group are the ones that have mass HE systems. The countries with less than 15% coverage are the ones that have elite HE systems and the nations with more than 50% of HE have universal HE systems. For further details on this see (Trow 1973).

3. For 2002–2016 data see data at (UNESCO 2020) and for 1991–2001 HE coverage see (Huisman, Smolentseva, and Froumin 2018, 478).

4. Many scholars who did research in Uzbekistan went to the country as a lecturer or a teacher and gathered data from the community while being known as teachers to local people. See, for example, works of Megoran (1997) and Rasanayagam (2010).

5. Trow’s (1973) findings identified the issues associated with HE financing and governance, recruitment and selection of students, curriculum and training, increase in student and staff numbers as HE expands in its transition from elite to mass. According to him, the growth in HE may mean increase in student numbers in HE, it also manifests as “absolute size of both systems and individual institutions” and, finally, growth is reflected in the “proportion of relevant age grade” admitted to HE institutions (Trow 1973, 2).

6. It is said that prominent critique of CS Bill McSweeney had named a group of above IR theorists as “Copenhagen School”. For further details, see (Bill 1996).

7. See the first official statement by the deputy prime minister on giving autonomy to HE institutions: (Gazeta.uz 2018).

8. The academic results of a student at the end of each semester had a direct impact on the amount of the stipend the student received. If a student had excellent academic performance from all subjects in a given semester, he/she would get 100% of the stipend, a student with good marks from all subjects would get 75% and a student with satisfactory academic result would get 50% of the stipend.

9. For further information on HECS see (Chapman and Ryan 2005).

10. Data collated by the author from official news websites and UNESCO Institute for Statistics website.

11. During the Uzbek Parliament (Oliy Kengash) sessions in 1991, several key Members of Parliament openly criticized President Karimov’s policies. Though they were later either sentenced or sent to exile by Karimov, the climate was not as harsh as it became in the subsequent years not to allow them to exercise any freedom of speech as MPs. See statements of Jahongir Muhammad, the then Member of Parliament, delivered at the 7th session of Uzbek Oliy Kengash: (Mamatov 1991).

12. Vuzgorodok is Tashkent’s university town where several number of universities and student accommodations are located.

13. Referred to as “Jannatdan xabarlar” (News from Paradise), the state-controlled Uzbek media became known under such metaphor for showing all the foreign countries, their education and policies as disastrous and unsafe, while broadcasting prosperous and perfect life type news for Uzbekistan. See (Malik Mansur 2011).

14. For Karimov’s statements on national model of education and on Kadrlar Tayyorlash Milliy Dasturi, see (Karimov 1999b, 1998b).

15. “Great Future” (Buyuk Kelajak) of Uzbekistan and what takes people of Uzbekistan there has been a theme of many speeches and books of the President Karimov. See (Karimov 1998a).

16. The Uzbek government adopted a new law “On Education” on September 24, 2020 that invalidated the law on education of 1997.

17. For a debate on the development of an audience in securitization theory, see (Christou 2013).

18. See statements and interviews of former MP of Uzbekistan Oliy Kengash, Mr Jahongir Muhammad in Jahonnoma, (Muhammad 2019).

19. Prior to 2018 students could apply only to one program in one university in a given academic year.