Skills for industrialisation in sub-Saharan African countries: why is systemic reform of technical and vocational systems so persistently unsuccessful?

ABSTRACT

This paper examines three interrelated factors outside of formal provision of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) in sub-Saharan Africa that have undermined TVET systems. The first is the process, pace, and levels of industrialisation, which has had a direct effect on TVET provision: low numbers of well-paying jobs requiring technical expertise. This has an indirect effect, which is the second crucial factor: lack of economic development and change in labour markets. There are very few jobs that would be considered ‘middle class’ or ‘mid-level’ in wealthy countries. Most people are in survivalist work. An international consensus since the 2000s on palliative approaches to development which address the effects but not the causes of the lack of economic development in Africa has resulted in mass poor quality provision of education—the third factor. Education systems are rapidly expanding and achievement levels rising, in the context of very little possibility of labour market rewards for most people, and substantial labour market rewards confined mainly to graduates. This reinforces deeply embedded cultural preferences for general education, which originate in the type of education systems established by colonial powers, as well as the relationships between educational credentials and elite jobs.

KEYWORDS:

• TVET
• vocational education
• technical education
• Africa
• industrialisation

Acknowledgments

Thanks to Carmel Marock and Yael Shalem for comments on an earlier draft of this paper. The research reported on this paper was partially supported by the SARCHI Research Chair in Skills Development, and partially supported by the SARCHI Research Chair in South African Research Chair in Industrial Development.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. Many data sources are for all sub-Saharan African countries; unfortunately, the literature aspect of the paper is limited to English literature.

2. See http://www.au.int/en/pressreleases/19702/african-union-heads-state-and-government-adopts-continental-education-strategy (accessed: 20 September 2016).

3. https://unevoc.unesco.org/go.php?q=World+TVET+Database accessed 28 October 2019.

4. In Benin TVET is officially described as an option after year five. In the Gambia, Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, Unesco states that there is both junior and senior secondary level TVET, although the former appears to be low level skills training that does not lead to the latter. In Botswana, Chad, Malawi, Senegal, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, TVET is positioned as senior secondary, although in practice in South Africa the majority of students have completed senior secondary schooling. Chad and Senegal distinguish between technical and vocational certificates at senior secondary level; Cameroon has different configurations in the French and English education systems. h ttps://u nevoc.unesco.org/go.php?q = World+TVET+Database accessed 28 October 2019.

5. Ethiopia was not colonised but is still affected by the colonisation of the continent.

6. Channing Arndt et al point out (4) that by 2007 GDP per capita returned to its 1974 level, and by 2013 GDP per capita in sub-Saharan Africa was only 7.7% higher than in 1974.

7. Forerunners are countries who by 2011 had shown long-term sustained-growth path with an industrialisation level at least twice the African average and an industrial growth performance that is at least 2.5%.

8. ‘Achievers’ had attained a comparatively high industrialisation level in per capita terms but had industrial growth below the 2.5% threshold.

9. Countries ‘catching up’ had a fairly promising path with potential to achieve a higher industrialisation level.

10. ‘Falling behind’ countries had a relatively low industrialisation level and little growth.

11. ‘Infants’ had a very low industrialisation base and very poor industrial growth performance.

12. Only countries listed above are included; the full set can be seen in Figure 1 below.

13. Gross enrolments close to 100% in 2010 and 2013; low out-of-school rates for children of primary school age; primary retention close to 100% in 2013.

14. High gross enrolments by 2010 and 2013, low out-of-school rates but low primary retention.

15. Low gross enrolments in 2010 but high by 2013; high out-of-school primary rates; low primary retention rates.

16. Low gross enrolments in 2010 and 2013; high out-of-school rates; low primary retention rates.

17. h ttps://u nevoc.unesco.org/go.php?q = World+TVET+Database accessed 28 October 2019.

18. For example, Oliver, Yu, and Buchanan (2019, 127) discuss how in some wealthy countries the same firm will recruit graduates from vocational education in one country but university graduates in another.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation South Africa [Sarchi Chair in Skills Development; Sarchi Chair in South African Research Chair in Industrial Development].