AVU's Experience in Increasing Access to Quality Higher Education through e-Learning in Sub-Saharan Africa

2010 ◽  
pp. 165-179
Author(s):  
Bakary Diallo ◽  
Sidiki Traoré ◽  
Therrezinha Fernandes
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Developing Nations ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Governmental Organization ◽  
Tertiary Institutions ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Open Education Resources

Universities and other tertiary institutions in developing nations around the world are facing major challenges in meeting the demand for increasing access to higher education (HE): limitations imposed by inadequate funding, poor infrastructure and sometimes lack of political vision, added to the demographic explosion, make it almost impossible for some of these developing nations to ensure access to all to higher education solely through the conventional face-to-face mode. In this context, the Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are providing an alternative to face-to-face education. Moreover, they have the potential to significantly increase access to quality higher education, improve management of tertiary institutions, increase access to educational resources through digital libraries and open education resources, foster collaboration and networking between universities, foster collaboration between the private sector and tertiary institutions, enhance sub-regional and regional integration and facilitate the mobility of teachers and graduates. In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), the African Virtual University (AVU), a Pan African Inter-Governmental Organization initially launched in Washington in 1997 as a World Bank project, works with a number of countries toward reaching the goal of increasing access to quality higher education and training programmes through the use of ICTs. The AVU has been the first-of-itskind in this regard to serve the Sub-Saharan African countries. In this chapter, the AVU’s twelve years experience in delivering and improving access to quality higher distance education throughout Africa will be discussed. The AVU has trained more than 40,000 students since its inception; this is the proof that it is possible to achieve democratization of tertiary education in Africa despite many challenges.

scholarly journals Higher Education and Economic Growth in Africa

2014 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
David E. Bloom ◽  
David Canning ◽  
Kevin Chan ◽  
Dara Lee Luca
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Economic Growth ◽  
International Development ◽  
Poverty Reduction ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Développement Économique ◽  
Education And Economic Growth

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.

Improving Electronic Information Literacy in West African Higher Education

2011 ◽  
pp. 2121-2129
Author(s):  
Ibrahima Poda ◽  
William F. Brescia
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Information Society ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Electronic Information ◽  
Knowledge Based ◽  
Knowledge Based Economy ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Sub Saharan

Electronic information literacy has gained increased importance with the advent of the new information and communication technologies which, driven by the convergence of computers and telecommunications media, are crucial for facilitating, supporting, and enhancing learning and for the knowledge-based economy of the future. In “Africa’s Information Society Initiative (AISI): An Action Framework to Build Africa’s Information and Communication Infrastructure,” African ICT experts appointed by the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), have described the potential of the Internet to improve learning in higher education and established the foundation for this to become a reality in Sub-Saharan Africa. The AISI document that the group of experts produced was adopted by the ECA Conference of Ministers as the African Information Society Initiative (AISI) in 1996.

scholarly journals Remote Teaching of Histopathology Using Scanned Slides via Skype Between the United Kingdom and Nigeria

2017 ◽  
Vol 141 (2) ◽  
pp. 298-300 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olorunda Rotimi ◽  
Nnamdi Orah ◽  
Abeer Shaaban ◽  
Adetola O. Daramola ◽  
Fatimah B. Abdulkareem
Keyword(s):  
Cost Effective ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Tertiary Institutions ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Resource Limited ◽  
Interactive Lectures ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Pathology Teaching

Context.—Web-based learning is a major component of distance education. Objective.—To explore Web-based applications for pathology teaching in resource-limited sub-Saharan Africa. Design.—The participants were consultant pathologists and trainees drawn from tertiary institutions in Nigeria. They viewed the digital slides via the Leeds virtual pathology Web site, after which, interactive lectures were given via Skype (Skype Communications, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg). Questionnaires were administered via SurveyMonkey (Palo Alto, California) to all participants of 12 sessions between 2014 and 2015. Results.—Nine consultant pathologists and 33 trainees participated in this survey. Of all respondents, 29 (69%) thought it was fairly easy to navigate the system, 11 (26.2%) thought it was easy, whereas 2 (4.8%) felt it was difficult. In addition, 26 respondents (61.9%) found it fairly easy to make a make a diagnosis, 13 (31%) thought it was easy, and 3 (7.1%) noted that it was difficult. Twenty-four respondents (57.1%) had a fairly smooth user experience, 12 (28.6%) experienced occasional crashes, whereas 6 (14.3%) reported a smooth experience. Almost all (41 of 42; 97.6%) respondents felt the pathology teaching was beneficial to their local pathology practice, and all (100%) indicated the need for additional, similar sessions. Conclusion.—The beneficial applications of Internet-based lectures make them a viable, cheaper, and cost-effective alternative to face-to-face lectures in our environment.

Improving Electronic Information Literacy in West African Higher Education

2005 ◽  
pp. 427-432
Author(s):  
Ibrahima Poda ◽  
William F. Brescia
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Information Society ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Electronic Information ◽  
Knowledge Based ◽  
Knowledge Based Economy ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Sub Saharan

Electronic information literacy has gained increased importance with the advent of the new information and communication technologies which, driven by the convergence of computers and telecommunications media, are crucial for facilitating, supporting, and enhancing learning and for the knowledge-based economy of the future. In “Africa’s Information Society Initiative (AISI): An Action Framework to Build Africa’s Information and Communication Infrastructure,” African ICT experts appointed by the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), have described the potential of the Internet to improve learning in higher education and established the foundation for this to become a reality in Sub-Saharan Africa. The AISI document that the group of experts produced was adopted by the ECA Conference of Ministers as the African Information Society Initiative (AISI) in 1996.

scholarly journals Reflections on entrepreneurship education in African tertiary institutions

2006 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Bawuah ◽  
S. Buame ◽  
R. Hinson
Keyword(s):  
Small Businesses ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Economic Status ◽  
Entrepreneurship Education ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
Tertiary Institutions ◽  
Developed Economies ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Ssa Countries

It is a well-established fact that several developed economies grew on the back of small businesses and entrepreneurial development. It stands to reason then that the development of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) can also be catalysed by a rise in the number of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial activity. In that general regard, this paper sought to investigate the state of entrepreneurship education in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The method adopted in investigating this phenomenon was to critique the existing tertiary education entrepreneurship structures (where these existed at all) and to proffer recommendations where anomalies were discovered. It came to light that despite the critical importance of entrepreneurs in the economic development of a nation, Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries have not fully developed strategies to tap this resource. What the countries have, are haphazard policies designed to promote the lesser or uneducated individuals in the informal sector into entrepreneurship. SSA educational leaders must find ways to structure their curricula so that all or most of their students can take courses in entrepreneurship. This is essential for SSA countries in order to move them from their present disadvantaged economic status, to greater economic and social development. A tentative syllabus for African tertiary education is proffered at the end of the article but its robustness needs to be tested.

Deployment and Adoption Strategy of Cloud Computing for Blended Learning in Higher Education Institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa

2015 ◽  
pp. 395-408
Author(s):  
Joel S. Mtebe ◽  
Mussa M. Kissaka
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Cloud Computing ◽  
Blended Learning ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Cloud Services ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Ict Infrastructure ◽  
The Cost

Many higher education institutions in sub-Saharan Africa have been blending traditional face-to-face delivery with various Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) to meet the strong demand for higher education as well as to improve the quality of traditional campus programs. Despite the increased adoption of various forms of blended learning in the region, the cost of acquiring and managing ICT infrastructure remained to be the biggest challenge. While cloud computing can provide powerful computing at a fraction of the cost of traditional ICT infrastructure, its potential to enhance blended learning in higher education in sub-Saharan Africa is unexplored. This chapter proposes deployment and adoption strategy of cloud computing to enhance blended learning services in the region. This work contributes towards helping higher education in sub-Saharan Africa to understand cloud services and to make plans for successful migration of computing services into cloud.

Deployment and Adoption Strategy of Cloud Computing for Blended Learning in Higher Education Institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa

2016 ◽  
pp. 1191-1204
Author(s):  
Joel S. Mtebe ◽  
Mussa M. Kissaka
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Cloud Computing ◽  
Blended Learning ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Cloud Services ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Ict Infrastructure ◽  
The Cost

Many higher education institutions in sub-Saharan Africa have been blending traditional face-to-face delivery with various Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) to meet the strong demand for higher education as well as to improve the quality of traditional campus programs. Despite the increased adoption of various forms of blended learning in the region, the cost of acquiring and managing ICT infrastructure remained to be the biggest challenge. While cloud computing can provide powerful computing at a fraction of the cost of traditional ICT infrastructure, its potential to enhance blended learning in higher education in sub-Saharan Africa is unexplored. This chapter proposes deployment and adoption strategy of cloud computing to enhance blended learning services in the region. This work contributes towards helping higher education in sub-Saharan Africa to understand cloud services and to make plans for successful migration of computing services into cloud.

scholarly journals The World Bank's Perspective on African Higher Education

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Damtew Teferra
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
World Bank ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
African Development ◽  
The World Bank ◽  
African Higher Education ◽  
The World ◽  
Catch Up ◽  
Sub Saharan

In it's report "Accelerating Catch-Up: Tertiary Education in Sub-Saharan Africa", the World Bank places education at the fore of African development priorities. This represents a shift in viewpoint from higher education as luxury to higher education as necessity. While this can be seen as progress, the report still contains gaps in data and may indicate a need for increased attention to this changing sector.

scholarly journals Public-private cooperation and agricultural development in Sub-Saharan Africa: a review of Nigerian growth enhancement scheme and e-voucher program

Food Security ◽  
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emmanuel Olatunbosun Benjamin ◽  
Oreoluwa Ola ◽  
Hannes Lang ◽  
Gertrud Buchenrieder
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Agricultural Development ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Living Standard ◽  
Growth Enhancement ◽  
Extension Services ◽  
Voucher Program ◽  
Economy Of Scale ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Impact

AbstractThe Growth Enhancement Scheme and e-voucher program, rolled out across Nigeria in 2011 by the federal government, provided the institutional basis for private agro-dealers to engage in the distribution of subsidized fertilizer, improved seeds and extension services to farmers. However, the impact of this policy on different modes of extension service delivery is still missing in literature. We apply an Ordinary Least Squared and Difference-in-Difference methodology on the (2010 and 2012) Living Standard Measurement Study of the World Bank. The results suggest that extension visitations as well as public extension services positively influence farm revenue. Furthermore, a substantial increase in fertilizer expenditure by farmers was observed, due to the e-voucher program, which could have contributed to the improved agricultural output witnessed in Nigeria post-Growth Enhancement Scheme era. Governments across Sub-Saharan Africa should implement policies that harness the economy of scale and scope of the private sector as well as information and communication technologies in delivering on time and adequate agricultural inputs to farmers.

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