Regional
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Illiteracy
Still a Problem in Asia and Africa
According
to a recent United Nations report, worldwide illiteracy is diminishing,
with the rate estimated at 23 percent today compared to 45 percent
50 years ago. Although this improvement remains a remarkable achievement
given the fact that, over the same period, the world population
has risen significantly, there are still significant disparities.
Illiteracy rates remain the highest in Africa and Asia. In 1995,
for example, 19 countries had an illiteracy rate of at least 70
percent. Fourteen of those countries were in Africa and five were
in Asia. Moreover, the number of illiterate people is rising in
southern Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and the Arab states.
Director-general,
of the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Federico Mayor,recently
called on all governments concerned "to redouble their efforts
to spread adult education and literacy." He said solidarity
between industrialized countries and developing countries should
to be strengthened, suggesting that non-government organizations
(NGOs), the private sector and voluntary groups could play pivotal
roles toward this end.
— BuaNews
(Pretoria)
Sept. 9, 2002
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ANGOLA
16,000
Children Without Education
More than 16,000 children in the central province of Bié are not
in school due to a lack of classrooms and teachers. According to local
authorities, most school facilities were destroyed during the recently
ended civil war.
A dearth
of textbooks and other educational materials has exacerbated the situation.
Government officials told reporters they are dealing with the crisis by
building new schools.
— Angola
Press Agency (Luanda)
Sept. 3, 2002
ETHIOPIA
Four
Colleges to Assume University Status
Mekelle University College,
Bahir Dar University,
Jimma University
and South University will soon be upgraded to full-university status.
Currently,
the four institutions are designated as university colleges linked under
the umbrella of a single university. These schools will soon function
as autonomous, full-fledged universities, bringing the total number of
universities in Ethiopia to six.
One senior-level
education official cautioned that although the institutions have met the
required criteria to assume university status, they must improve the quality
of education they provide.
The presidents
of the four university colleges said that upgrading their institutions
will allow them to provide education geared toward addressing local problems.
— Walta
Information Center
March 2002
KENYA
New Nursing
Degree Offered
Kenyatta University currently offers
a new international degree in nursing.
The new program
will be offered in conjunction with Emory University's School
of Nursing in the United States and the Lilian Center for International
Nursing in Great Britain.
The bachelor
of science in community health and nursing will be offered through Kenyatta's
Open Learning Center. It will include hospital-based residential sessions.
—
The East African Standard
(Nairobi)
Aug. 17, 2002
New Mombassa
University Announced
The government recently announced plans
to build a new university in Mombassa in early 2003. Talks with the Saudi
Arabian benefactors were scheduled to take place in mid-September.
The project
is being seen as a major education boost for the Coastal Province, which
has continued to record better performance every year.
In addition,
a group of church-based organizations are set to establish a university
at Maandani in the Kilifi district. The construction of the campus will
be funded by U.S. donors, as well as by Methodist, Anglican and Baptist
churches from all over the world.
— The East African Standard
Sept. 9, 2002
Three
Colleges to Absorb WUST Faculties
It
was recently announced that at least three colleges in Western Province
are to be upgraded to offer different faculty courses for the new Western
University of Science and Technology.
The colleges
include Sangalo College in Bungoma, Kaimosi College of Technology in Vihiga
and Sigalagala Technical College in Kakamega.
According
to officials, the purpose of the move is to prevent overcrowding at the
university's main campus.
—
The
East African Standard (Nairobi)
Aug. 28, 2002
MOZAMBIQUE
Canadian
Aid Package Targets Education
Canada
recently agreed to donate 35 million Canadian dollars (about 22.3 million
US dollars) to bolster Mozambique's education sector. The money is earmarked
for two different programs: The first, scheduled to be launched in 2003-04,
will improve access to and the quality of basic education, and the second
will be geared towards strengthening education support services.
Canada is
regarded as the country's largest partner in terms of providing school
materials for primary education. Canadian cooperation with Mozambique
also covers the sectors of rural water supply, micro-credit, transports
and communications and the fight against HIV/AIDS.
—
Agencia de Informacao de Mocambique
Sept. 6, 2002
NIGERIA
Only
5 Obafemi Awolowo Degree Programs Gain Accreditation
The
National Universities
Commission (NUC) has accredited only five academic programs offered
by Obafemi Awolowo University,
(OAU).
The NUC granted
interim accreditation to 37 courses and denied approval to eight others.
The five degree programs given full accreditation were in agriculture,
civil engineering, mechanical engineering, electronic engineering and
nursing science. Programs denied accreditation were not listed.
— This Day
(Lagos)
Aug. 20, 2002
At Least
15 Killed in Attack on Students
Several
armed men burst into a classroom at the University
of Nigeria campus in Nsukka and opened fire on students taking engineering
examinations. At least 15 people were killed in the June attack, witnesses
and police said. Several other people were seriously injured.
Officials
blamed a university secret society believed to be targeting a rival student
group.
The assailants
used three cars to flee the engineering complex. Police have arrested
two students, Enugu Police Commissioner Nwachukwu Egbochukwu said.
Several university officials and students, speaking on condition of anonymity,
said they counted 15 to 18 bodies, most of them students but including
at least two lecturers. Nigeria's
daily Vanguard newspaper reported 18 killed.
The Nsukka
campus and another in Enugu were closed indefinitely after the attack.
Rivalries
between student movements at Nigerian universities have been blamed for
hundreds of deaths in campus clashes since the early 1990s.
—
The Associated Press
June 19, 2002
UGANDA
New Catholic
University to be Established
The
Brothers of Christian Instruction (BCI) recently announced plans to establish
a university campus in Kisubi.
A BCI spokesman
said he had concluded talks with Uganda
Martyrs University, Nkozi, to help set up the country's second Catholic-based
university. It is not yet known when construction will begin.
The BCI also
plans to build a new comprehensive school at Bubule.
Ugandan President
Yoweri Museveni hailed the organization for supplementing government efforts
in providing quality education.
— New Vision
(Kampala)
August 20, 2002
ZAMBIA
Faculty
Strike and Student Demonstrations Lead to Closure of College
A
faculty-led strike and student demonstrations closed Evelyn Hone College
on Aug. 18. Armed police officers ordered all students to vacate the campus.
Students
were angered by the fact that they had paid their fees but could not attend
classes because lecturers were on strike. School officials said the campus
had suffered significant damage resulting from the student unrest but
provided assurances that the college would reopen for the third term on
September 16, 2002.
— The Post (Lusaka)
Aug. 19, 2002
ZIMBABWE
University
Graduates Face Bleak Future
President Robert Mugabe presided over the the University
of Zimbabwe's August graduation ceremony, officially launching more
than 4,000 graduates into a dismal job market.
With the
country mired in severe economic crisis, the majority of graduates will
be unable to find sustainable jobs. A record unemployment rate of 70 percent,
soaring inflation currently pegged at 122 percent and international isolation
are all clear signs that the economy is on the verge of collapse.
Although
the government has poured billions of dollars into education since gaining
independence in 1980, Zimbabwe remains a poaching ground for countries
around the world seeking cheap professionals. Most university graduates
take the earliest possible opportunity to leave the country for greener
pastures in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand.
—
Zimbabwe Standard
(Harare)
Aug. 20, 2002
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