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| May/June 2005 | Volume
18, Issue 3 |
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PRACTICAL
INFORMATION REGIONAL
NEWS FEATURE
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Regional
News Africa
GhanaState Has Spent $60 Million Over 6 Years Training UK Health Care Workers The British Medical Association has described the loss of healthcare professionals from the developing world as “one of the most serious global problems of today.” In Ghana, it is an enormous problem. In 2002, the equivalent of 94 percent of graduates from health-related fields went abroad to work. More than half of Ghana’s doctors work abroad, and the number working in Britain has doubled since 1999, despite a moratorium on active recruiting in Ghana and other countries with shortages of health workers. In 2003, 5,880 UK work permits were approved for health and medical personnel from South Africa, 2,825 from Zimbabwe, 1,510 from Nigeria and 850 from Ghana. Nearly a third of doctors practicing in the United Kingdom were trained overseas. In comparison, only 5 percent of doctors in Germany and France are not home grown. The British Medical Association, which was a co-sponsor of the Save the Children report, suggests that “urgent action” be taken by producing more health professionals in the United Kingdom. Other proposed actions include payment of compensation by developed nations for the improvement of health services and working conditions, including professional salaries, and the improvement of research and professional development facilities in developing nations. The report does note that it is not all bad news. Ghanaians working abroad (estimated at 20 percent of the population) account for the fourth largest source of foreign currency in the form of remittances. Unfortunately, the majority of remittances are used on daily needs, and the government still lacks a conceptual and legal framework to integrate the resources of the diaspora into a program of renewal and development. — Ghanaian Chronicle Kenya4 in 5 Qualified Students Cannot Find Places at Public Universities Statistics released by JAB reveal that only 10,250 of 49,700 students who reached the bar set for university entry have been selected to study for degrees offered at the nation’s six public universities. It has advised students not selected to apply to universities elsewhere. — Times Higher Education Supplement Liberia
University of Liberia Signs Agreement with Top US University The University of Liberia has been damaged by more than a decade of fighting and plunder. Faculty brain drain and extensive looting of the institution's facilities have severely disrupted its teaching and research activities. With the resumption of peace in 2003 following an ongoing intervention by the largest UN peacekeeping mission in the world, officials are hopeful that serious academic pursuits can resume. — Liberian Observer Interim Government Orders Online Medical School Closed The school in question has long claimed legitimacy through a 1998 charter that earned it a listing in the World Health Organization’s Directory of Medical Schools. Liberia at the time, however, was in the midst of a brutal 10-year-long civil war. The NTLA ruling follows a recent disclaimer from the National Commission of Higher Education stating that the institution was awarded its charter without gaining the necessary clearance from the commission, rendering the charter “null and void” (see Nov/Dec issue of WENR). — Liberian Observer NigeriaNUC to License 14 More Private Universities The new institutions are Bells University of Technology in Badagry, Lagos state; Crawford University of technology, Ogun state; Wukari University, Taraba state; Crescent University Abeokuta, Ogun state; Novena University, Delta state; Renaissance University, Enugu state; and University of Mkar, Benue state. It is hoped that the growing private sector will help service a growing number of school leavers for whom there are not nearly enough university places in the public sector. Although public attitudes toward quality standards at private institutions might best be described as skeptical, private universities have achieved similar percentages in the number of fully accredited programs as their federal counterparts in recent years. Further, in the 2004 rankings, a private university — Pan African University, Lagos — was rated overall as the nation’s second-best university. — This Day South AfricaPresident Seeks to Calm Rampaging, Furious Students Mr. Mbeki, while recognizing the legitimacy of student concerns, said that destructive behavior would not be tolerated on campuses. The president was reacting to students who went on the rampage at universities including Pretoria, Johannesburg, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and Transkei. One of the students’ biggest grievances is the failure of fund increases for loans and bursaries to poor students to keep up with the rapid increase in student numbers in recent years. — The Times Higher Education Supplement Troubled Australian Venture Sinks Further into the Red The Australian newspaper reports that Monash University — Australia’s biggest — has now invested US$42 million into its Johannesburg-based project, incurring losses of US$18 million over three years. Despite the losses, Monash University Vice-Chancellor Richard Larkins said enrollment is running ahead of projected levels, with 764 students now studying at the campus. The Melbourne-based institution opened Monash South Africa in 2000, and it was originally intended to break even by this year. Cameron suggested that universities should be aware of the potential hazards of large overseas investments, citing factors such as political instability, greatly fluctuating exchange rates and the fact that universities might not be able to sell overseas campuses if they run into trouble. — The Australian UgandaOfficials Clamp Down on Private Universities The license of Namasagali University was revoked by the council last month, and its officials have been barred from advertising as a university. Growing demand in Uganda and other countries in Africa that cannot be met by public institutions has resulted in a rapid increase in the number of private institutions, many of which operate from dilapidated buildings and lack qualified faculty. Despite the low standards, the classes are filled to capacity with students who have failed to gain admission (see Kenya piece above) to public universities. In East Africa, Uganda has the largest share of such institutions. Namasagali had been operating since 1975 and offered mainly certificate courses in business studies. The council also ordered the private Busoga, Kampala and Nkumba universities to make improvements or face closure. Nkumba is the largest of the three, with 3,900 students. Namasagali has 611 students; they have been advised to transfer to other institutions. — The Chronicle of Higher Education
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Since 1999, Ghana has spent US$64 million training healthcare workers who then go on to work in Britain, according to a recent report by Save the Children, a leading non-governmental organization for children’s rights. 
