Report Highlights:

• The report points out that African governments must prioritize teacher training to build a nation’s workforce and increase economic growth.

• There needs to be a stronger connection between the national education sector and industry, as many universities are producing graduates with few skill sets for today’s workforce, the report notes.

• Governments must increase funding for technical and vocational schools to fill skills gap.

• The national education sector is encouraged to invest in and deliver quality early education programs.
  

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Africa’s future relies on building strong national education systems that prepare citizens for today’s workforce and global economy, according to a new conference outcomes report from AAI’s Second Annual State of Education in Africa conference.

The conference outcomes report was produced from panel discussions and keynote addresses from the education conference, which was held on September 2 in Lagos, Nigeria, where educators and innovators from Africa and globally gathered to assess the progress of primary, secondary, tertiary, technical and vocational education in Africa.

Iyinoluwa Aboyeji, co-founder of Andela, spoke during the “Fireside Chat” about how his company has sidestepped the public education system to train African software developers and connect them with leading employers around the world, such as Microsoft, to meet the need for more technical talent in Africa.

The report provided reflections and insights from some of the world’s leading thinkers and practitioners in education on thematic, country and sector approaches to improving education and strengthening the capacity of Africans and educational institutions.

Patrick Utomi, Founder/CEO, Centre for Values in Leadership, in a keynote address said parents must realize that they are the first teachers in their child’s education, especially in primary school, and that teachers only assist in the learning process. “Until parents realize this, the education system will be suboptimal process and best executed at primary level,” he emphasized.

The State of Education in Africa Conference Outcomes 2015 is available here.  For full coverage of the SOE conference, click here. 

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