Non-formal education and economic growth in Nigeria: The need for a system-wide programme development framework

Author(s):  
Dorida Nneka Oyigbo ◽  
Patrick N. C. Ngwu ◽  
Ruphina U. Nwachukwu
2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 1557-1562
Author(s):  
Visar Ademi

In today’s global competitive arena the term “knowledge economy” is no mere slogan. It points to the very real fact that economic activities are increasingly knowledge intensive and that in this globalized world, success will come to those that are able to generate and harness knowledge in order to stay ahead of the pack. Research shows that in economies that do not have sufficient infrastructure, natural resources or may be designed as high cost base locations, comparative advantage has shifted to knowledge-based activities that cannot be transferred around the world without a significant cost. High knowledge and skills based economies will most likely be able to attract and retain investments in industries with a strong future. It is no secret that good education lies at the heart of economic growth and development. At the same time, improving the quality and relevance of education is enormously difficult not least because there is no one single policy measure that will do so effectively.Macedonia is not exclusion to this fact. The Macedonia’s employers and employees face a huge talent management dilemma. Analyses by all relevant institutions (World Bank, NGOs) and interviews with multiple representatives from the private sector companies indicate that while the labor pool is growing (supply side), it does not provide the skills needed by employers (demand side) so, that they could be competitive and further grow in today’s market. Employers are nearly unified in their criticism of an education system that produces graduates with limited practical experience and no soft skills transferable to the workplace. This is largely due to a lack of experiential education, competency based curricula, pragmatic guidance, which fails to meet the needs of the business community. The burden falls most often on employers to provide practical training, usually on the job. While in-company training is good practice, the scale of the skill gap requires a cost and internal training capability that many enterprises cannot afford, creating a disincentive for businesses to hire new employees.The dilemma has impacted job seekers (official unemployment in Macedonia is around 28% as of December 2017) and contributes to lower overall economic growth. It is especially problematic for micro and small enterprises (MSEs), which make up a large proportion of employment in Macedonia. MSE size and limited capacity makes their employees skills, experience and multitasking capabilities that much more critical for growth. Additionally, MSEs often lack the resources necessary to effectively train and maximize the productivity of their staff. As a result, sustained employment growth within Macedonia must include the development of a pipeline of skilled employees for microenterprises, including bolstering the capacity of small businesses to organize and train their workers. On the other side, the formal education institution dislike they way the private sector manages their employees. According to many of them, this is due to the fact that companies believe that their performance in the market is not directly linked with the human capital performance. In addition, education holds to the belief that private sector companies are not engaged enough in creating the next pool of talents in Macedonia. When they are invited to participate in the classrooms as expert of guest speaker, hire or engage students they show little interest. To conclude, the education institution believes that private sector companies in Macedonia consider the investment in human capital as a cost and not an investment.


Author(s):  
Durga D Poudel

Sustainable conservation, development, and utilization of natural and human resources is necessary for accelerated economic growth and fast-paced socio-economic transformation of Nepal. Asta-Ja Framework, which is a theoretically grounded grassroots based peaceful and self-reliant planning and development approach, offers practical strategies for sustainable conservation and development of natural and human resources enhancing food, water, climate, and environmental security, accelerated economic growth, and socio-economic transformation of Nepal. Asta-Ja includes interconnected eight resources in Nepali letter, Ja, – Jal (water), Jamin (land), Jungle (forest), Jadibuti (medicinal and aromatic plants), Janashakti (manpower), Janawar (animal), Jarajuri (crop plants) and Jalabayu (climate). Asta-Ja Framework is a unifying framework for planning and resources development and has a strong footing on science, business, and eastern philosophy. While providing practical guidelines for achieving food, water, climate and environmental security, this article presents Nepal Vision 2040, which is developed considering challenges that Nepal is currently facing and its available Asta-Ja resources, envisioning that Nepal’s economic development reaching at the par of developed nations by 2040. Key strategic sectors identified in Nepal Vision 2040 include smallholder mixed-farming system, agro-jadibuti industrialization, protection of drinking water sources, climate change adaptation, environmental pollution control, conservation of natural resources, infrastructure, tourism, renewable energy, alleviation of inequalities, and good governance. This article demonstrates strategies for addressing social discrimination and inequalities through the process of Asta-Ja community capacity-building and self-reliant development. Ecological balance of Asta-Ja resources is necessary for sustainable natural resources, economic development, and community resiliency. The Government of Nepal is suggested to adopt Asta-Ja Framework as its national planning and development framework for sustainable economic growth and fast-paced socio-economic transformation of the country.


Author(s):  
Mohsen Mehrara ◽  
Maysam Musai

This paper investigates the causal relationship between education and GDP in 40 Asian countries by using panel unit root tests and panel cointegration analysis for the period 1970-2010. A three-variable model is formulated with capital formation as the third variable. The results show a strong causality from investment and economic growth to education in these countries. Yet, education does not have any significant effects on GDP and investment in short- and long-run. It means that it is the capital formation and GDP that drives education in mentioned countries, not vice versa. So the findings of this paper support the point of view that it is higher economic growth that leads to higher education proxy. It seems that as the number of enrollments raise, the quality of the education declines. Moreover, the formal education systems are not market oriented in these countries. This may be the reason why huge educational investments in these developing countries fail to generate higher growth. By promoting practice-oriented training for students particularly in technical disciplines and matching education system to the needs of the labor market, it will help create long-term jobs and improve the country’s future prospects.


2010 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tariq Mahmood

This paper highlights the role of higher education for the economic growth inPakistan. We explore the impact of increase in enrolment at tertiary level on thegrowth rate of income per worker. Estimating a growth model developed byMankiv et. al. (1992), using the annual data of Pakistan, we find a robustrelationship between higher education and economic growth in the long run. Themodel has also shown that investment in fixed capital has positive impact oneconomic uplift. Applying Johansen’s cointegration test, we show that the longrun elasticity of income with respect to capital stock is different from its share inGDP, and increase in the enrolment per unit of effective worker helps inbolstering economic growth. But, like earlier literature we also find statisticallyinsignificant relationship between higher education and GDP per worker. Thereare some fundamental reasons concerning to the ambiguous impact of investingin human capital on economic growth, particularly in the short run in case ofPakistan. First, the sharp increase in enrollment, recently, has been damaging thequality of education. Second, the unequal distribution of educational services hasheld back the efficiency of public expenditures, particularly before the reformsundertaken by higher education commission. Third, the low private return ofeducation has limited the demand for higher education in Pakistan for almost fiftyyears.


Author(s):  
David E. Bloom ◽  
David Canning ◽  
Kevin Chan ◽  
Dara Lee Luca

Enrollment rates for higher education in Sub-Saharan Africa are by far the lowest in the world at 6%. Yet because of conventional beliefs that tertiary education is less important for poverty reduction, the international development community has encouraged African governments’ relative neglect of higher education. This article challenges beliefs that tertiary education has little role in promoting economic growth and alleviating poverty. First, we review recent evidence that higher education can produce significant public and private benefits. Next, we analyze the relationship between tertiary education and economic growth. We find evidence that tertiary education improves technological catch-up and, in doing so, may help to maximize Africa’s potential to achieve more rapid economic growth given current constraints. Investing in tertiary education in Africa may accelerate technological diffusion, which would in turn decrease knowledge gaps and help reduce poverty in the region. We also review new developments and trends in the higher education scene in Africa. Le taux d’inscription dans l’enseignement supérieur en Afrique sub-saharienne est de loin le plus faible du monde, atteignant seulement 6%. Pourtant, parce que l’enseignement supérieur est perçu comme moins important que les enseignements primaire et secondaire pour lutter contre la pauvreté, la communauté internationale a encouragé les gouvernements africains à moins y prêter attention. Cet article conteste l’idée que l’enseignement supérieur joue un rôle peu important dans le développement économique et la lutte contre la pauvreté. Tout d’abord, nous nous intéressons à de récents résultats qui montrent que l’enseignement supérieur crée des bénéfices publics et privés. Ensuite, nous analysons la relation entre l’enseignement supérieur et la croissance économique. Nous montrons que l’enseignement supérieur permet de rattraper le retard technologique et, ce faisant, pourrait aider l’Afrique à maximiser sa capacité à accélérer sa croissance économique dans les conditions actuelles. Investir dans l’enseignement supérieur en Afrique pourrait permettre une diffusion plus rapide des avancées technologiques, qui pourrait à son tour réduire la disparité de savoir et participer à la réduction de la pauvreté dans la région. Nous passons aussi en revue les nouveautés et tendances dans l’enseignement supérieur africain.


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