Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa [1 ed.] 9780798302340, 9780798302128

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Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved. Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of

Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

Millennium Development Goals

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved. Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Millennium Development Goals Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa

Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

Edited by Francis Nwonwu

Africa Institute of South Africa

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

First published in 2008 by the Africa Institute of South Africa PO Box 630 Pretoria 001 South Africa 978-0-7983-0212-8 © Copyright Africa Institute of South Africa 2008 No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission from the copyright owner. Publisher: Solani Ngobeni

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Editing, design, and layout by Acumen Publishing Solutions Cover design by Acumen Publishing Solutions Printed and bound by: The Africa Institute of South Africa is a statutory body and research organisation, focusing on political, socio-economic, international and development issues in contemporary Africa. The Institute conducts research, publishes books, monographs and a quarterly journal, and holds regular seminars on issues of topical interest. It is also home to one of the best library and documentation centres world-wide, with materials on every African country. For more information, contact the Africa Institute at PO Box 630, Pretoria 0001, South Africa; email: [email protected]; or visit our website at http://www.ai.org.za

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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CONTENTS ACRONYMS

vii

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

ix

INTRODUCTION

1

1

ERADICATE EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER Francis Nwonwu

9

2

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA Francis Faller

37

3

IS GENDER EQUITY ON TRACK IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA? Martine N. Ngobo

77

4

REDUCTION OF CHILD MORTALITY Ameena Ebrahim Goga

103

5

IMPROVING MATERNAL HEALTH Gerhard Theron

145

6

COMBATING HIV/AIDS, TB AND MALARIA Jeff Gow

167

7

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY IN AFRICAN COUNTRIES Ramos E.M. Mabugu

209

8

PROGRESS BY AFRICAN REGIONAL ECONOMIC COMMUNITIES Jacinta Tsephe

231

9

CONCLUSION

273

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved. Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

ACRONYMS

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AARR ADEA ADI AfDB AGOA AIDS AMU APP APRM ARI BFHI CEDAW CEMAC COMESA CSO DHS DOTS DRC ECCAS ECOWAS EFA FDI GDI GER GPI GPRS HDI HIPC HIV IMCI IMR ICT IMF LDC MDG MTCT MWCH

Average Annual Reduction Rate Association for the Development of Education in Africa African Development Indicators African Development Bank African Growth and Opportunity Act Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome Arab Maghreb Union Africa Progress Panel African Peer Review Mechanism Acute Respiratory Infections Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination Against Women Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa Civil Society Organisations Demographic and Health Survey Directly Observed Treatment, Short-course Democratic Republic of Congo Economic Community of Central African States Economic Community Of West African States Education For All Foreign Direct Investment Gross Domestic Index Gross Enrolment Ratio Gender Parity Indicators Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy Human Development Index Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Human Immunodeficiency virus Integrated Management of Childhood Illness Infant Mortality Rate Information Communication Technology International Monetary Fund Least Developed Country Millennium Development Goal Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV Maternal Women and Child Health

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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ACRONYMS Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

NAMA NCCEMD NEPAD NER NRD ODA OECD ORT PCR PHC PMTCT PRPF PRS PRSP REC SADC SAP SIDS SSA STI U5MR UNCTAD UNECA UNESCO UNFPA UNICEF UNIFEM WDI WFP WHO WTO

Non-Agricultural Market Access National Committee on Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths New Partnership for Africa’s Development Net Enrolment Ratio No reliable data available Overseas Development Assistance Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development Oral Rehydration Therapy Primary Completion Rate Primary Health Care Preventing Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV Poverty Reduction Programme Funds Puerperal Sepsis Poverty Reduction Strategic Papers Regional Economic Community Southern African Development Community Structural Adjustment Programme Small Island Developing States Sub-Saharan Africa Sexually Transmitted Infection Under-five Mortality Rate United Nations Commission on Trade and Development United Nations Economic Commission for Africa United Nations Educational and Scientific Council United Nations Population Fund United Nations Children’s Fund United Nations Development Fund for Women World Development Indicators World Food Programme World Health Organisation World Trade Organisation

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Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

ABOUT THE AUTHORS Ramos Mabugu obtained his PhD in economics from Gothenburg University, Sweden in 1996. He taught and supervised at postgraduate level at the University of Pretoria in South Africa (2003-2006). In 2006, Ramos joined the Financial and Fiscal Commission of South Africa, a statutory body that makes recommendations and gives advice to organs of state in the national, provincial and local spheres of government on financial and fiscal matters. He has developed several macroeconomic frameworks that are being used to assess the macro-micro links of public policy in such a way that issues of poverty, equity, growth and macro dynamics can be better understood. He has published in international and domestic journals as well as contributing chapters to peer-reviewed books and conference proceedings. Ramos was leader of a PEP Network project for South Africa that constructed a dynamic CGE microsimulation model for South Africa. He has taught on two occasions at the Ecological and Environmental Economics Programme at the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) in Italy. In 2006 Ramos received a visiting fellowship from Curtin Business School where he collaborated with researchers there to construct a constitutionally mandated, basic services simulation model for South Africa. He was a speaker at the 2007 GTAP meeting at Purdue University (USA) and plenary session speaker at the June 2007 policy conference on MDGs co-organised by the PEP Network in Peru. Jeff Gow has 10 years research experience on HIV/AIDS in South Africa. He was previously Acting Director and is currently a Research Associate of the Health Economics and HIV/AIDS Research Division (HEARD) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville, Durban. He is also an Associate Professor of Economics in the School of Accounting, Economics and Finance, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, Australia.

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Jacintha Tshephe has a Masters degree in agricultural economics with the University of the Free State. Francis Nwonwu is a professor and a research specialist, conducting research programmes at the Africa Institute of South Africa (AISA). He obtained a PhD in natural resource economics in 1993 from Iowa State University, Ames Iowa, USA. He was formerly the Head of the Economics and Sociology Division, at the Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria and Executive Director of FORSEC Consultancies. Gerhard B Theron has a particular interest is in community obstetrics. His focus is on developing and implementing pragmatic solutions in low resource settings. He has ample experience of working in rural settings in South Africa and Malawi. As a result of this experience he is editor of the Maternal Care Manual of the Perinatal Education Programme. By December 2007 there were more than 60 000 of these manuals in use in South Africa and neighbouring states. He is committed to teaching and has mentored many post-graduate students. He served on the National Committee for Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths of the National Department of Health in South Arica since its inception in 1997 until 2002. He was a chapter author of the first Saving Mothers report in 1998 and also the first tri-annual report for 1999 to 2001. He has published 45

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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ABOUT THE AUTHORS

scientific papers in peer review journals. He has a leadership position in his department and was appointed as full Professor and Chief Specialist in 2001. He has served on the Perinatal Research Agenda Committee of the Paediatric AIDS Clinical Trial Group (PACTG) since November 2003 and was protocol co-vice chair for of an international perinatal HIV clinical trial. This study was the first international obstetrics initiative of the PACTG and made an important contribution to obstetric practice in resource-poor settings.

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Ameena Ebrahim Goga is a South African paediatrician (Fellowship of the College of Medicine of SA, 1999), with a Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (University of Witwatersrand, South Africa, 1993), Diploma in Child Health (College of Medicine of South Africa, 1994), Masters in Mother and Child Health (cum laude, Institute of Child Health, London, 1996) and Masters in Epidemiology (Columbia University, New York, 2007). Her previous work experience includes clinical paediatrics in South Africa and the UK (1994-1999), working as a research scientist on the vertical transmission study at the Africa Centre for Health and Population Studies, South Africa (2000-2001), working at senior strategic, policy and programmatic level as a Child Health Specialist and Technical Advisor to the National Department of Health, SA (2001-2005), and working as a WHO and UNICEF consultant (2006). Ameena Goga is currently a scientist in the Health Systems Research Unit, Medical Research Council of South Africa. She is passionate about improving children’s access to health care, including nutrition and HIV-related interventions, and improving the quality of child health care in resource-limited settings. Martine Ngobo holds a PhD in agro-ecology from the School of Agricultural and Forest Sciences at the University of Wales, Bangor (UK). Martine has over 10 years experience in agricultural research and landscape management of rural resources in Africa and has worked in many regions across the continent. Since 2003, she has worked with the ‘Sustainable Tree Crops Program’ (a PPP program working to promote sustainable farming and marketing practices in the tree crop sector of five African cocoa-producing countries) of the CGIAR-International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA), currently based in Accra (Ghana). She has also been, since 1998, the deputy-regional coordinator for the CGIAR-global research group, ‘Alternatives to Slash and Burn’ for the Congo basin region. Francis Faller is Deputy Head of the Wits School of Education in the Faculty of Humanities at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. Since 1979, and after 10 years teaching in schools, he has taught in initial teacher education and in-service upgrading programmes. His main area of interest is the teaching of English language and literature. During the last decade, he has been involved in higher education management, including programme design, curriculum development and quality assurance. He has contributed to national teacher education policy and school curricula. x

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

INTRODUCTION Francis Nwonwu

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P

OVERTY IS RELATIVE and varies in levels and magnitude from one country or region to another. It is transferable and transmittable from parents to offspring and through generations. It is endemic and could be perpetuated over time especially when the instruments and attitudes that enunciate it become embedded in a culture, community or family. The African region has many social, cultural and traditional conservative attitudes that tend to perpetuate poverty. Poverty has persisted over generations in Africa and has been aided and abetted by inherent cultural and family values that promote principles inimical to progress. Illiteracy, social inequality, economic ineptitude, and political immaturity are key factors that demean the development stature of Africa. Africa’s political stature is therefore akin to that of the stunted Peter Pan that lived for many years but never grew up. Africa remains a political juvenile and economic midget with a stunted and embellished development personality that is poverty-stricken. This unenviable status contrasts with her lavish natural resource endowment. The favourable climatic conditions that complement this generosity paradoxically have not pulled the continent out of the poverty trap. Africa remains the laggard among contemporary development equals and ranks as the poorest among the developing regions of the world. It is common knowledge that Africa has the lion’s share of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries. According to The World Bank and the IMF, 34 of the 42 countries identified as potential beneficiaries of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries’ (HIPC) debt relief come from sub-Saharan Africa.1 By 2005 total external debt of African countries stood at one trillion dollars.2 The debt is staggering and so overwhelming that analysts fear that the much-anticipated gains from debt relief or forgiveness through the HIPC are not likely to bring about significant economic liberty to the beleaguered continent. Speculations are rife that even countries benefiting from the debt relief are still burdened with unsustainable debt. On the other hand, there are middle-income countries which are not included in the debt relief bracket that suffer from crushing debt burdens.3 The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are seen as the rescue ship for the sinking Africa’s development boat. Launched in 2000 during the United Nations Millennium Declaration and adopted in 2001, the MDGs serve as the blueprint and framework for measuring progress in development among the countries of the world. It is a universal benchmark for measuring advances in development efforts with hunger and poverty as the yardstick and critical point of departure in benchmarking underdevelopment. It is the culmination of several years of

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INTRODUCTION Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

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deliberations on and search for solutions to global poverty. Previous attempts at tackling the perennial problem of poverty and hunger failed to deliver anticipated results. Past prognosis on poverty and hunger eradication tended to locate their impacts only in rural areas and in the drudgery of subsistence agriculture. Consequently, prescribed policy interventions and implementation strategies focused on agricultural modernisation and rural transformation. These intervention measures failed to proffer solutions because they were narrow in scope and abstract in nature. Rather than eradicate poverty and hunger, such measures and their programmes created social and economic distortions that exacerbated poverty. Rural areas became urbanised and wiped away social and cultural values and attributes that the traditional societies had effectively and efficiently used to sustain their livelihoods and ecosystems at affordable costs. Similarly, the neoagricultural interventions displaced smallholder farmers thereby denying them employment, food security and a sustainable income. The Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) is one of such misguided and misdirected ideas that left Africa and other developing countries more impoverished than they were before. Debt burdens increased with SAP with the currency devaluation they demanded. Output dropped and unemployment galloped following the compulsory trimming down of the labour force especially in the public sector. Poverty spread throughout Africa as breadwinners lost their jobs and their dependants became dislodged from guaranteed income trickles into the family coffers. These efforts lacked holistic and comprehensive insight into the labyrinth of the problem. Rather, they treated poverty and hunger in isolation, thereby scratching the problem on the surface without penetrating to its inner core. Poverty stifles economic growth by limiting access to productive resources such as land, capital and managerial skills. In many ways it limits the domestic resources available for private investment and the production and distribution of public goods.4 Contemporaries of the continent such as East, Central and Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe and South America have advanced in their development efforts, leaving Africa in a development limbo. Political instability, civil wars, bad governance, and other forms of self-inflicted damages have stalled development and progress in Africa. Natural disasters – such as drought, flood, famine and disease epidemics namely malaria and HIV/Aids – have had their toll of the material and human resources in the continent. Africa’s poverty problem moves no sentimentalities in the marrows of the developed world. Other developing regions receive higher priority ranking in aid and financial assistance than Africa, with Africa picking up the crumbs from the dining tables of the sister developing regions. Little wonder the 2004 hunger crisis in Niger never received due attention from the developed and donor country governments. Instead the IMF and European Union prescribed the introduction of a 19 per cent tax on foodstuffs that deepened the hunger crisis in that country.5 The Christian Science Monitor

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved. Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

INTRODUCTION

lends its international voice to the social malaise in Niger when it decried the plight of the 2.9 million people that faced starvation during the 2004 hunger crisis. It further said that even that figure is just a tip of the iceberg, as over 31 million Africans suffer from famine because food production does not match population growth.6 The MDGs together represent a comprehensive and long-term, proactive prognosis and replacement of the ad hoc and reactive development responses of the past. African states have engaged in the drudgery of finding solutions to their underdevelopment and economic stagnation since they took over the mantle of leadership and governance in the dawn of independence in the 1960s. The failed and protracted trials and errors, political navigations, and economic algorithms for poverty eradication to achieve sustainable development now submit to the MDGs as the de facto tool that promises a lasting solution. The MDGs acknowledge that poverty and hunger do not exist in isolation and are not limited to a lack of financial wealth. Instead, they embody deprivations, discriminations and marginalisation of the economically disadvantaged. They represent a comprehensive assemblage of the contributing factors and their inter-linkages aggregated and synthesised into the eight measurable MDGs. The eight goals take a systematic approach to problem solving to include the sequence of using symptoms to try some diagnosis and treatments with a view to obtaining positive and long lasting solutions. The MDGs encapsulate every ramification of poverty and hunger, including the causes, and impacts on people’s livelihoods and the environment. They also include modalities and strategies for ameliorating and possibly eradicating the negative impacts and eradication. There are eight goals and eighteen targets to be met between the base year 1990 and the target year 2015. The goals and their corresponding targets are summarised in table 1.

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Table 1: The MDGs and their targets Goal

Target

1. Eradicate extreme hunger poverty and hunger

Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people whose income is less than US$1 a day. Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger.

2.

Achieve universal primary education

Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling.

3.

Promote gender Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education, equality preferably by 2005, and in all levels of education no later than and empower women 2015.

4.

Reduce child mortality

Reduce by two-thirds, between 1990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate.

5.

Improve maternal health

Reduce by three-quarters, between 1990 and 2015, the maternal mortality ratio.

6.

Combat HIV/Aids, malaria, and other diseases

Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/ Aids. Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases.

7. Ensure environmental Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country sustainability policies and programmes and reverse the loss of environmental resources. Halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation. Have achieved by 2020 a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers.

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8.

Develop a global partnership for development

Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable, nondiscriminatory trading and financial systems. Address the special need of Least Developed Countries (LDCs). Address the special needs of landlocked developing countries and small island developing states. Deal comprehensively with the debt problems of developing countries through national and international measures in order to make debt sustainable in the long term. Note some of the indicators are monitored separately for LDCs, Africa, landlocked developing countries, and small island developing states. In cooperation with developing countries, develop and implement strategies for decent and productive work for youth. In cooperation with pharmaceutical companies, provide access to affordable essential drugs in developing countries. In cooperation with the private sector, make available the benefits of new technologies especially information and communication technologies (ICT).

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

INTRODUCTION

This book analyses the performance of African countries and their prospects in achieving the MDGs. The strategies adopted, the efficiency in applying them, and the challenges and constraints the countries face in the implementation are highlighted and discussed. The book is presented in eight chapters that correspond with the eight goals of the Millennium Project. Chapter 1 discusses the first goal of Extreme hunger and poverty eradication. The importance of hunger and poverty and their overall contribution to the human productivity is acknowledged. Extreme poverty and hunger are considered a big threat to human existence and a favourable substratum for breeding and nurturing other social vices. They deprive individuals of the means to stay alive and drive them to extremities that lead to disease, death and irreversible environmental damage7 Hunger and poverty, though widespread, are more endemic in the developing regions of Latin America, Asia and Africa. Poverty remains the biggest threat to sustainable development and many cases of underdevelopment are linked to poverty. This chapter discusses some factors that contribute to hunger and poverty in Africa and assesses the prospects of achieving the goals and targets. Africa’s prospects are viewed in the light of new and progressive initiatives such as the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) and the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). Chapter 2 presents and discusses Goal 2, Universal primary education. Here the author reviews Africa’s performance using relevant indicators as the benchmarks for assessment. Key among the indicators are net enrolment, completion rate, gender parity, youth literacy, expenditure in education, and future supply of teachers. In addition to the general overview of the continent, the author presents the progress made by selected countries in the continent. Chapter 3 reviews Goal 3 that deals with Gender equality and empowerment of women. In recognition of the active role women play in development and mindful of the social, cultural and economic constraints that delimit their contributions, the chapter seeks answers and solutions to stem the marginalisation of women and girls. The chapter highlights the difficulty in assessing performance based on qualitative rather than quantitative yardsticks. It also highlights the ambiguity of using relative quantities such as ratios that do not portray exact situations. Considering the inherent lack of exactitudes and specificities in qualitative assessments, the author tries to capture gender parity from the prescribed benchmarks of ratio of girls to boys at all levels of education, ratio of literate women to men, share of women in wage employment in non-agriculture sector, and proportion of seats held by women in national parliament. The author documents that this goal is interconnected with the other goals. The highlights of country performances in form of country reports are included as part of the contribution of this chapter. Chapter 4 discusses Goal 4 on Child mortality. The author focuses more on sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) on the understanding that most North African

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countries are on course to achieve the MDGs. Within the SSA sub-region the chapter purposively selects nine countries for in-depth study. The countries selected are Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zambia and The Gambia. The chapter focuses on the achievements and challenges of the sub-region and selected countries in reducing child mortality in Africa, using the under-5 mortality rate (U5MR) and infant mortality rate (IMR) as points of departure. Chapter 5 deals with Goal 5 on Maternal health. The chapter assesses achievements using the two indicators – maternal mortality rate and proportion of births attended by skilled health personnel. This investigation is made against the backdrop of the revelation that in SSA, one in every 16 women will die from pregnancy-related complications, as against one in every 3 800 in the developed world.8 The author adopts a sub-regional approach to the assessment by using the five traditional geographic subdivisions of the continent namely North, Southern, East, West, and Central Africa. The author examines the constraints, highlights the interdependence of this goal with other goals, and offers solutions for improving maternal health and reducing maternal mortality. Chapter 6 presents and discusses Goal 6 on HIV/Aids, malaria and other communicable diseases. The discussions in the chapter are informed and guided by the indicators associated with the goal and its targets. The indicators include: HIV prevalence among pregnant women, condom use rates, contraceptive prevalence rate, percentage of population with correct knowledge of HIV/ Aids, and ratio of school attendance of orphans and non-orphans. Further to the discussion on HIV/Aids the chapter examines also the ravages of two other deadly diseases – malaria and tuberculosis. It takes an overview of the means of implementation from the perspectives of funding and global partnerships. Chapter 7 discusses Goal 7 on Environmental sustainability. It zeros in on the key targets and their corresponding indicators as they relate to environmental sustainability. The primary objective to be achieved from the first target is that of reversing the loss of environmental resources. The indicators associated with this achievement and which are discussed include: sustainable management of forestry resources, preservation of biodiversity and genetic resources, efficient use of energy, combating the ‘greenhouse effect’, which is linked to global warming, and damage to the ozone layer. Other targets discussed are sustainable access to safe water, and basic sanitation and improvement in the lives of slum dwellers. Chapter 8, the last chapter, discusses Goal 8 on Global partnership for development. This chapter approaches the assessment of Africa’s performance from the continent’s regional economic communities (RECs). Issues of funding through official development assistance (ODA), market access, debt management and sustainability are discussed. The chapter advances the prospects and potentials of NEPAD as the harnessing and galvanising tool in forging partnership for funding between the development partners and Africa to achieve the MDGs.

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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Africa Action 2002. Critique of the HIPC Initiative. Washington DC. Available at: http://www.africaaction.org/action/hipc0206.htm The website was last updated in September 2005.

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INTRODUCTION

ENDNOTES

Romilly Greenhill. 2002. New World bank reports confirm that the HIPC initiative is failing. Jubilee Research – Formerly Jubilee 2000. London.

3

ECA. 2005. The Millennium Development Goals in Africa: Progress and Challenges. Addis Ababa. Economic Commission for Africa. p. 29.

4

UNCTAD. 2002. The Least Developed Countries Report 2002. New York, United Nations.

5

IMF and EU are blamed for starvation in Niger. The Independent, 1 August 2005. This contribution is listed as one of the contributions (articles, speeches, reports and papers) that examine issues and problems of Development in Africa. The submissions are published under the general theme ‘Poverty and Development in Africa’. Available at: http://www.globalpolicy.org/socioecon/develop/indexafr.htm.

6

Hunger is Spreading in Africa. Christian Science Monitor, 1 August 2005.

7

UN Millennium Project 2005. Investing in Development: A Practical Plan to Achieve the

8

United Nations. 2007. Africa and the Millennium Development Goals. New York. United

Millennium Development Goals. Overview. p. 74.

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Nations Department of Public Information.

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CHAPTER 1

ERADICATE EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER

Francis Nwonwu

INTRODUCTION This chapter discusses the first Millennium Development Goal – Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger. The Goal has two targets, which are the milestones for measuring compliance and extent of performance of states in the Millennium Goals. The first goal has two targets:

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r
Target 1. Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people whose income is less than US$1 a day. r
Target 2. Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger. In making poverty and hunger eradication the first of the eight Millennium Goals, the United Nations recognises that the two disorders have assumed alarming proportions globally, both in depth and spread, to warrant profound commitment to address their eradication. Poverty has different meanings, different dimensions, and assumes different levels or depths with regard to people, nations and regions. The World Bank defines poverty as the state in which people live on less than two dollars a day, and extreme poverty as those that live on less than one dollar a day. Jeffrey Sachs defines extreme poverty as ‘poverty that kills, depriving individuals of the means to stay alive in the face of hunger, disease, and environmental standards.’1 Both hunger and poverty have assumed on disproportionate dimensions and have dealt deadly blows to individuals, households and countries all over the world, but more specifically in the developing regions of Latin America, Asia and Africa. Poverty remains the biggest threat to sustainable development.

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Many cases of underdevelopment are linked to poverty, which triggers off other social vices such as diseases that have similar devastating consequences on human welfare. It was estimated that in 2001, 1.1 billion people globally subsisted on consumption levels of below US$1 a day while 2.7 billion lived on less than US$2 a day.2 If the MDGs are achieved, more than 500 million people will be lifted out of poverty, 250 million will no longer suffer from hunger, and 30 million children and two million mothers who would have died as a consequence would be saved.3 While poverty exists everywhere, its rate, intensity and magnitude differs from one household, nation and region to another. Hence, it is often defined in comparative terms as either relative or absolute. In either case, poverty has very cruel and debilitating effects on health and living standards, and could result in death from starvation, malnutrition and disease, which otherwise is preventable and curable. In developing countries more than one person in five subsists on less than US$1 day. Since 1990, extreme poverty in developing countries is reported to have declined and has fallen from 28 to 21 per cent following successes in poverty and hunger eradication in high population countries such as India, China, Pakistan and Indonesia, which in spite of their high population, are on course to achieve the goal of halving the number of people living on less than one dollar a day by 2015. The world population has been rising steadily over time and between 1981 and 2001 grew by 15 per cent to 5 billion people. Of this number, 1.1 billion people or 22 per cent of the total is living in extreme poverty.4 In Africa, the situation is becoming increasingly pathetic as the number of people trapped in poverty rises with the increase in population especially in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). In the SSA sub-region, poor health from HIV/Aids and malaria, lack of education, and unemployment collectively deny people opportunities to enhance their income and savings. In the same vein, wanton depletion of resources, and environmental degradation in the face of mounting corruption, political conflicts, civil wars, and bad governance, hinder private investment, contribute to wastage of public funds, and hamper opportunities for economic growth. Many world statesmen at different for a have vehemently warned about the consequences of hunger and poverty on conditions and attitudes that perpetuate them within nations and between regions in the world. The United Nations Millennium Report documented the views of these world leaders. Among the leaders expressing such views are former President Jacques Chirac of France who is quoted as saying ‘The world economy as a whole is held back when the lack of development condemns entire regions to poverty and a seeming lack of prospect.’ President Benjamin Mkapa of Tanzania highlights the linkage between terrorism and poverty when he stated, ‘We should address the situations and factors that have the potential to sow terrorism namely, poverty, denial, deprivation, oppression and injustice’. The President of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo declared ‘Our quest for global peace and security will prove unsuccessful unless we intensify

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

international cooperation for development and the reduction of poverty’. The then German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder acknowledged that ‘Extreme poverty, growing inequality between countries and within countries themselves, are great challenges of our times, because they are a breeding ground for instability and conflict’. The former Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in dwelling on the peculiarity of Africa and the compelling degree of poverty in the continent declared, ‘There will be no stability and prosperity in the world unless the issues of Africa are resolved’. These statements and sentiments could not have been more eloquently expressed than by the African leaders and some of their leading partners in development from the developed world. The statements portray the stark reality of the debilitating effect of poverty on the African continent and its people. It is an outward expression of some deep sense of commitment and concern of the leaders over the serious problem of poverty in the world in general and Africa in particular. All the expressions demonstrate the interconnectivity of governance, economics, and resource management as tools for combating poverty. In this exposé poverty is projected as the result of bad governance, mismanagement of state apparatus, misallocation of resources, and inequity in resource distribution. This chapter presents and assesses the efforts and achievements of African countries on the first Millennium Goal – Extreme hunger and poverty eradication. It examines the chances of the continent meeting the two targets of halving the proportion of people living in extreme poverty and reducing the proportion of the people who suffer from hunger by 2015. The performances of countries are assessed, the factors that contribute to success and failures examined. Factors that influence the performance of states and thus influence their ability to meet the goal at global, regional and national levels are critically evaluated. Based on the findings, modalities for promoting the success-enhancing factors and best practices and minimising the failure elements are suggested. While comparisons are made between African states, the performance of the continent is stretched further by comparing its progress in poverty and hunger eradication with those of developing regions of similar ilk, such as Asia and Latin America. The chapter is presented in five parts. The first part discusses the factors that have contributed and continue to contribute to poverty and overall underdevelopment in the continent. The second section deals with strategies adopted by African states to tackle the problem of poverty from within and from outside the continent. Section three evaluates the performance of the continent, examines its potentials in meeting the goal of poverty and hunger eradication using a sample of African states. The last section provides concluding comments and recommendations.

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FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO POVERTY IN AFRICA There are diverse factors and conditions that trigger off and perpetuate the state of poverty globally and specifically in Africa. Sachs identified four factors, which have an overarching effect on success or failure in achieving the MDGs. These factors include poor governance, corruption, poor economic policy choices, and denial of human rights.5 Also included and known to be embedded in the development path of most countries is the issue of the ‘poverty trap’. Many countries are caught in the poverty web in which they are deeply entrenched and seriously trapped. To pull out of the trap is problematic because of limitations in resources, infrastructure, social and economic climate and a conducive political environment to extricate poor countries from the poverty quagmire. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) concludes that poverty hinders economic growth by limiting the domestic resources available for private investment and public goods.6

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CIVIL WARS Since the years of independence Africa has been subsumed by the ravaging influence of political crises and civil wars. Resources, which should have been spent in development and tackling poverty, are diverted to the prosecution of civil wars. Many of these wars have been so protracted that they run into several decades. Cases in point include the conflicts in Angola, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Mozambique, Rwanda, and Burundi. Of late, wars have erupted in Côte d’Ivoire, DRC and Republic of Congo. There have been other countries that have not had peace and have been ravaged or have had their development stalled because of internal crises, such as Zimbabwe, Uganda and Sudan. South Africa has emerged from the crushing effect of Apartheid rule and, after more than 10 years into independence, the country is still faced with the reality of the entrenchment of extreme poverty among the black population.

POOR INFRASTRUCTURE AND THE EFFECT OF GLOBALISATION

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Poverty at both individual, national and regional levels stem from the prevailing socio-economic conditions. The United Nations contends that when a country’s capital stock – physical, natural and human capital – is too low, the economy becomes unproductive. The UN reiterates that there is a correlation between poverty and environmental degradation. It is this condition that if not nipped in the bud, sets up a vicious circle of poverty that will last for many generations. Once trapped, a country or household would have to make a phenomenal investment

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Figure 1:

Illustration of factors that contribute to the poverty trap The poor cannot invest in resource improvement. They rather resort to soil mining, deforrestation and environmental damage

Poorest families have laarge families, high populations and small land holdings, all of which worsen poverty

wth n gro latio popu id p Ra

Enviro nmen tal de grada tion

Poor households earn income only for subsistence and therefore cannot save

g

n avi

Brain drain

ws Lo

Low income and remunerations cause out migration of skilled workers from poor countries

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

that will create an external shock or impetus that would impinge on the poverty condition to move the victims out of the trap. The poverty traps in most countries are caused by a host of intertwining and interwoven factors that act both independently and in tandem to compound poverty-creating conditions and exacerbate the incidence of poverty. The United Nations highlights the following as the key elements that precipitate poverty: low savings rate, low tax revenues, low foreign investments, violent conflicts, brain drain, unplanned or ill-timed births and rapid population growth, and environmental degradation. The synergistic relationships of these factors and how they contribute to poverty are illustrated schematically in figure 1.

Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

e nc

le

o Vi

Resource scarcity generates tension which often destroys existing resources.

Low foreign investment Foreign investors shun low-income countries with poor infrastructure

x Ta w Lo Government revenue is low and limits the quantity and quality of personnel it could hire

A UNDP report warns that if the current attitude of ‘business as usual’ by the developed nations continues, most countries in SSA will fall short of their targets for the MDGs. The report continued to state that if the signatories to the MDGs can meet their targets by 2015, there will be 219 million fewer people in poverty in the region.7 The same sentiments were expressed by the African Civil Society about the UN Millennium + 5 Summit of 29 September 2005. The group dismissed the Summit as ‘Neither a review nor an expression of political commitment’. In their analysis of the three factors – aid, trade and debt – which they consider very critical for Africa’s development, the group bemoaned the exclusion of Africa from the negotiating process and warned that if things continue this way, ‘the cost to Africa will be catastrophic’.8

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PAUCITY OF FDI FLOWS According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) (2001) foreign direct investment (FDI) is an investment involving a long-term relationship and reflecting a lasting interest and control of a resident entity in one economy by an enterprise resident in another economy. FDI is an investment characterised by equity capital, reinvested earnings and intra company loans or debt.9 The most common criteria for FDI inflows are membership of a regional grouping, an economic growth rate that is higher than the population growth, access to foreign markets, primary skilled labour market, low cost of unskilled labour, high level of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), fiscal discipline, favourable corporate tax structure, and political stability.10 Africa has slowly been losing ground on FDI flows in comparison with the other developing regions such as Asia and Latin America. Africa attracted 25 per cent of the FDI flows into the developed world in 1970. The continent’s share of FDI dropped to a mere five per cent in 199711 and remained at that level in 2000.12 The low level of domestic savings and risk capital compels African countries to turn to FDI as source of investment capital to achieve rapid economic growth and development that would address the challenges posed by poverty and hunger, technology transfers, unemployment, industrialisation and manufacturing. Also contributing to the extreme poverty facing Africa is the low productivity and low economic growth vis-à-vis a very high rate of population growth.

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Table 1:

Population and GDP growth versus FDI flow

Country

Population Growth

GDP Growth

FDI Flow (Million US Dollars)

Angola

2.8

3.2

2 146

Botswana

2.4

6.3

26

Cote d’Ivoire

2.3

–0.9

44

DRC

2.5

–4.5

1

Nigeria

2.9

3.9

1 104

South Africa

1.7

2.2

6 789

Uganda

3.0

4.6

229

Zimbabwe

1.8

–8.4

4

Source: UNCTAD 2001

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The extent of economic and political stability determine the degree of FDI flows into a country. Hence the following factors have been identified as indicators for

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

assessing the quantum of FDI flows: abundance of natural resources, especially extractive minerals; the size of the domestic economy as it relates to stimulating demand and supply of goods and services; political stability which has an effect on security and risks of investment; and efficiency of financial management with special reference to the tax systems and degree of corruption. These serve as incentives or disincentives depending on how favourable or unfavourable they appear in a country, and how they are perceived by foreign investors. Africa represents a mixed grill of these conditions whereby some countries are richly endowed with mineral resources but have suffered from long years of political instability, at least in the recent past. Among the countries in this category are Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Sierra Leone. Other countries like Nigeria have rich natural resources and a big domestic market but poor infrastructure, a high level of corruption, and a very unstable political environment. Also worthy of documentation is the menacing effect of natural hazards; of particular significance is the famine of 2005 in Niger. Oxfam International contends that rich countries prefer to give aid ‘on the basis of news headlines and political priorities instead of need’. On the Niger crisis, Oxfam complains ‘while Iraq receives an average US$91 per person per year, Niger, a much poorer country, gets just US$12 per person’.13 As The Christian Science Monitor put it, ‘The 2.9 million hungry people in Niger are only a tip of the iceberg’. The neglect by the international organisations predisposes African nations to extreme and vulnerable hunger conditions. The failure of the rich and donor countries to prevent the deepening of the hunger crisis in Niger received worldwide condemnation. The Independent blamed the donor nations for failing to heed the appeal for funds by the World Food Programme (WFP) for Niger in 2004. Instead of reacting to the appeal, the IMF and the European Union pressed Niger to introduce a 19 per cent tax on foodstuffs.14 The policy compounded the food crisis and made food more expensive, thereby contributing to the hunger crisis. The report by The Christian Science Monitor went further to state that ‘Over 31 million Africans suffer from famine because the troubled continent’s food production cannot keep pace with population growth’.15 However, Angola and Nigeria have been very successful in attracting FDI because of abundant oil resources in spite of their unstable political and economic environment. Other mineral resources, such as gold in South Africa and Ghana, diamonds in Botswana, copper in Zambia, agricultural crops, e.g. cocoa in Côte d’Ivoire, coffee in Kenya and most parts of East Africa, and sugar have enhanced the chances of other African countries to attract FDI. South Africa enjoyed phenomenal FDI flows soon after independence in 1994 due to the privatisation process that followed independence, the return of companies from neighbouring countries, and the large domestic market among other things. To address the paucity of investment funds in developing countries, The United Nations Conference on Financing for Development was called in Monterrey, Mexico in March 2002. The primary aim of the conference was to sue for more

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financial support for the developing countries by raising Official Development Assistance (ODA) by developed countries. In spite of the commitments and pledges made in Monterrey, actual ODA flows into Africa have been far less than expected due to declining global private investments, especially in Africa. The role of ODA in development cannot be overemphasised hence the situation in Africa calls for active injection of these funds to meet the investment needs in the continent.

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LIMITED ACCESS TO WORLD MARKET FOR AFRICAN GOODS

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In spite of the rich agricultural wealth of Africa, the Doha Round that promotes global trade liberalisation has not favoured Africa. African agricultural outputs have not gained the desired access to international markets. Cotton, coffee, cocoa, tea and sugar from Africa have been denied access to developed country markets. At the same time, the developed countries have failed to withdraw subsidies to their farmers thereby making agricultural outputs from Africa less competitive than those from the developed countries. The EU and USA are the main offenders in this respect. It is reported that the US subsidises farmers to the tune of US$4 billion per annum. In the run-up to the 2005 WTO Ministerial Conference, The Guardian admonished that ‘To overcome the hurdles and reach a trade deal that would alleviate global poverty, rich countries should take Africa’s special need into account’.16 According to the report, a successful trade deal should embrace multilateral trade liberalisation in products of export interest to African countries. African countries constitute the majority of the developing country states that have not fully benefited from the much anticipated benefits of globalisation, but rather bear the brunt of the negative effects of the new world order. Transfer of technology and improved access to goods and services from Africa were conceived as two of the key benefits of globalisation yet to be realised by African countries. Some of the countries are subjected to punitive and discriminatory policies that include the imposition of non-tariff barriers and dumping of manufactured industrial goods from the North. At the same time developing nations are being denied Non-Agricultural Market Access (NAMA) following heavy tariffs imposed by the world on industrial or non-agricultural goods. This restriction is imposed against the backdrop of very high tariffs imposed on products such as textiles, clothing and fish products, which constitute the chief export commodities of developing countries of which Africa has a significant share. Of particular significance are the restrictions, which the EU places on its agricultural market, and the farm subsidies, which the US continues to give to its farmers, all of which contribute to making goods from Africa less competitive. It is a widely held view that globalisation grants the developed world access to Africa’s resources and empowers them through their relative technological superiority to exploit and expropriate the continent’s resources.

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

At the same time Africa is constrained through restrictions from making any inroads into the economic labyrinth of the developed world. The continent thus loses its resources to foreign interests without having proportionate inflows in revenues, investment capital, grants, or even access to world markets for its manufactured goods. This scenario has been painted in many different ways and addressed in many world and multilateral forums, but has not been fully articulated as serious issues that have hindered and continue to hinder the pace of development in Africa. It remains an obstacle to the attainment of the MDGs in general and the poverty eradication goal in particular. Thus, while Asia and North Africa are on course to meet the MDG target for poverty reduction, little progress is being made in SSA on meeting the target.17

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THE DIABOLICAL ROLE OF DEVELOPED COUNTRIES AND DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS The Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) embarked upon in the early 1980s dealt a crushing blow to Africa’s development and compounded the incidence of poverty in the continent. Different scholars have seen SAP in different lights. Nwonwu has criticised it as tantamount to the IMF and World Bank making one prescription of the same bitter pill for diverse disease elements and forcing it down the throats of the different patients.18 The Washington Post quoted the former Finance Minister of Eritrea as having criticised the Bretton Woods institutions for imposing their development models on Africa. In his view, the mission of the donor countries in Africa, especially in the colonial era, ‘was not to serve the people, but to dominate and exploit’.19 The implementation of the models by African states has been blamed for the waste of billions of aid dollars. The former President of Kenya, Arap Moi, lashed out at developed countries’ for ‘giving aid with one hand and taking it with another’. According to him, the aid comes with strings and strict conditionality attached to it. Donors will give the aid but will provide the technical experts and their advisers to manage the funds and the projects. Eventually, much of the money is repatriated to the donor country in the form of fees and salaries to the donor country service providers. The UN reported that since the Millennium Summit in 2000, ODA has shown a substantial increase, having grown from just over US$50 billion to US$79 billion per annum in 2004. The amount still falls short of the estimated needs of the poor developing countries, and merely represents a quarter of one per cent of donor countries’ overall annual income. It falls short of the expected 0.7 per cent required of the developed countries’ income to be disbursed as ODA for the benefit of the developing countries. The heads of state of the G8 countries agreed during their summit in Gleneagles in July 2005, to boost aid to Africa by

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US$50 billion a year by 2010. If past pledges and the new ones are redeemed, total ODA to Africa will increase to US$129 billion.20 According to the African Progress Panel (APP) headed by the former UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, the G8 countries have only achieved a mere 10 per cent of the target. Kofi Annan then warned that unless US$5 billion is made available annually the efforts to double aid by 2010 would not be achieved.21 The APP then forewarned that the promises of ‘economic justice’, which were made in Gleneagles and which the then Prime Minister of Britain, Tony Blair, wanted to bequeath as a legacy of his tenure as prime minister, was at the brink of collapse. Guardian Unlimited quoted Bob Geldof as having stated that the situation is tantamount to ‘grotesque abrogation of responsibility.’22 The former prime minister then warned of the dire consequences and repercussions in form of poverty, conflicts, mass migration, and the spread of terrorism that might damage countries like UK and Germany.23 Consequently the same spirit of promoting Africa’s development was transferred to the G8 meeting in Heiligendamm in Germany. In the run-up to the June 2007 G8 Summit, the elevation of the African Agenda in the G8 meeting was already being applauded. The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, was commended by Oxfam International as having shown real leadership by securing a prominent place for Africa on the G8 agenda24 by which the world’s wealthiest nations would direct resources towards the world’s poorest people of which Africa has a lion share. The German Government captioned it ‘shaping globalisation and helping Africa to development’.25

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HIV/AIDS A discourse on poverty in Africa cannot be complete without raising the menacing and impoverishing effects of HIV/Aids. Africa and the sub-Saharan sub-region are among the most infected by the disease pandemic. Speculations are rife to the effect that Aids is linked to poverty, based on the notion that the disease is more prevalent in the rural areas and among the urban poor. The disease makes twopronged impoverishing attacks on human beings. Firstly, there is the direct effect on the quantity and quality of human capital available to produce work and earn income. The mortality and morbidity effects of the disease cause increased death and a drastic increase in the general disability of workers. Consequently there is reduced productivity and low income for workers. Secondly, it increases the medical bill through increased costs of treatment and disease management. This excessive cash outflow constitutes a drain on domestic savings and investment capital. In the absence of domestically generated income, African countries rely on the rich countries of the West for the inflow of investment capital. The huge drain on financial resources by the disease is underscored by the report that 18

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

a whopping US$15 billion was needed in 2006 to reverse the spread of HIV/Aids in the developing world, and US$22 billion will be needed in 2008. According to the World Bank Group these huge financial injections into the control of HIV and the treatment of Aids notwithstanding, a hard fight still lies ahead. It is widely speculated that high population and HIV/Aids prevalence contribute to poverty as countries that have succeeded in reducing hunger and poverty have had lower population growth and lower rates of HIV infection.26 This is a pointer and a confirmation that these conditions hinder economic growth and development, and should therefore be eliminated if poverty and hunger eradication is to be achieved in Africa. The overall performance of Africa and the prospects of meeting the targets of the poverty and hunger eradication goal are summarised in table 1. The table presents the situation in 16 African countries and indicates that it is only Botswana, Tanzania and Zambia that show absolute potential of meeting the MGDs. Guinea Bissau and Nigeria fall within the bottom quartile of the United Nations Human Development Index (HDI), Namibia is classed as one of the most unequal economies in the world, while Zambia has an increasingly widening gap between the rich and poor. These conditions send chilling signals about the poverty situation in Africa. It is not only that there is a high proportion of people living in poverty but also that this condition of extreme poverty coexists with conditions of excessive wealth. The income inequality breeds internal wrangling, political and social frictions that lead to serious eruptions that worsen the poverty conditions in many countries.

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NATURAL HAZARDS AND DISASTERS Factors such as frequency and intensity of rainfall can tilt the balance in the water supply for agricultural production. Too little could cause drought and too much might result in floods, both of which could cause devastating damage to human lives and properties, livestock and crops. Also of significance, and contributing to instant poverty conditions are fire outbreaks in forests, farms and human settlements, especially in dry weather conditions. Memorable among these hazards in the recent past are the drought in Niger, floods in Mozambique, and the constant fire outbreaks in South Africa. The drought in Niger destroyed animals and food crops in this predominantly pastoralist economy, while the floods in Mozambique destroyed homes, farms and other means of livelihood. The constant outbreaks of fire in South Africa have destroyed ecosystems of immense economic importance and tourist attractions, including the Kruger National Park, Table Mountain and commercial farms. More significantly, there have been frequent fire outbreaks that destroy shacks, the dwelling places of the poorest of the poor in the society. The cause of the shack fires is often traced to the poor living conditions that face the

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inhabitants of the shacks, such as the use of paraffin or firewood for cooking and heating. An array of aggregate social and agro-ecological characteristics comes into play to determine the nature and degree of poverty among and between communities in Africa. Although this is not exclusive to Africa, the continent appears relatively more vulnerable than the rest of the developing world due to our deeper level of poverty and lower level of technological development, both of which make our post-disaster recovery slower and more excruciating.

STRATEGIES AND PROSPECTS FOR POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION IN AFRICA According to the UN Millennium Report, between 1990 and 2002 average overall incomes increased by approximately 21 per cent. At the same time, the number of people in extreme poverty declined by an estimated 130 million.27 The report further expressed optimism that the targets for poverty, hunger, literacy, health and infant mortality could be successfully achieved by 2015 if the agreed ODA obligations are met. However, the picture in Africa, especially south of the Sahara, is less optimistic.

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THE ROLE OF NEPAD AND APRM

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During the OECD–Africa Investment Roundtable meeting in Johannesburg on 19 November 2003, on Developing Actions for Creating Positive Investment Environment in Africa to Promote Development, held jointly with NEPAD, AfDB, World Bank and the government of South Africa, several issues on how NEPAD could be used as a vehicle for Africa’s development were raised. The meeting agreed that to attain the MDGs would require significant effort and commitment from African countries and their development partners. In particular, NEPAD estimated that for Africa to achieve the goal of halving the proportion of people living in poverty by 2015, it would be necessary to bridge an annual resource gap of 12 per cent of its GDP, equivalent to US$64 billion.28 To achieve this goal, the group admitted, would require higher levels of domestic and foreign private investments, and effective development aid. In his report In larger freedom, Secretary-General Kofi Annan informed the UN General Assembly in March 2005 that ‘The MDGs can be met by 2015 – but only if all involved break with business as usual and dramatically accelerate and scale up action now’. In 2005, a ‘global partnership for development … needs to be fully implemented. That partnership is grounded in mutual responsibility and accountability – developing countries must strengthen governance, combat corruption, promote private sector-led growth and maximise domestic resources

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

to fund national development strategies, while developed countries must support these efforts through increased development assistance, a new development-oriented trade round and wider and deeper debt relief.’29 Africa assumes a leading role in such vices as bad governance, corruption, and lack of transparency, which culminate in social, economic and political disintegration that lie at the heart of underdevelopment in the continent. NEPAD and its accompanying APRM are being fronted as instruments and platforms for demonstrating commitment and political will for democracy, good corporate governances, transparency and accountability, and respect for the rule of law. Efforts to make African leaders adopt these best practices as preconditions for effective donor agencies’ and development partners’ involvement in Africa’s development have often been misconstrued whereby the emerging consensus is that African leaders have tended to be more accountable to donors than to their domestic constituents. This trend is associated with loss of independence by states, occasioned by dependence on meagre domestic resources and largely on ODA. The latter used to be tied to donor benchmarks or conditionalities that may not necessarily tally with the recipient country’s objectives and priorities. The new dispensation hopes to build confidence for development partners, including multilateral financial institutions, developed countries, and the private sector to join forces to tackle the many developmental problems of Africa. The Comprehensive and Accelerated Agricultural Programme of NEPAD, among others, is designed to address the issues of hunger, poverty, rural unemployment and malnutrition. If and when properly arrested they will control the incidence of diseases and mortality, many of which are triggered by depressed resistance occasioned by hunger, poverty and undernourishment. The group of seven industrialised countries plus Russia (G8) have also extended their hands of support to Africa and its development agenda. At the Gleneagles conference in 2005, Africa and climate change were at the top of their agenda. The emphasis on climate change in the G8 Summit points to the significance of and correlation between poverty and environmental degradation. Poor people are historically known to be the first victims to bear the brunt of environmental degradation. The poor are usually the worst hit by environmental disasters and environment-related conflicts such as the Tsunami that hit East Asia and parts of Africa in 2004, and the Darfur crisis in Sudan. The poor constitute the bulk of the vulnerable group and they are the least able to cope with the hazards that accompany environmental disasters. According to the UNEP/GRID–Arendal, long-term, man-made global climate change is sending ripples of environmental degradation across all developing regions. Subsequently the natural resources of the affected countries notably forests, fisheries, soil and water become substantially polluted, degraded and, in extreme cases, depleted.30 The UN Millennium Report therefore warns against the danger of divorcing the environment from the fight against poverty. Instead the report insists that the earth’s natural resources

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must be seen as an integral part of the fight against poverty.31 Africa should view this interrelationship of environmental protection and poverty eradication seriously as both goals cannot be treated in isolation. The simultaneous recognition and arrest of their mutually damaging effects and the promotion of their complementing symbiosis should be pursued vigorously as we attempt to halve the proportion of people living in extreme poverty by 2015.

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POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGIC PAPERS PRSP APPROACH Following the dismal failure of the IMF and World Bank Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) to turn around the ailing economies of the developing world, the IMF replaced it with Poverty Reduction Programme Funds (PRPF). At the same time, the World Bank came up with the Poverty Reduction Strategic Papers (PRSP) as a replacement for SAP that will be pro-poor, wider in scope to include gender balance, and more participatory with all stakeholders (governments, civil society organisations (CSOs) and donors) involved. Initiated in 1999 to promote growth in low-income countries, PRSPs are prepared by member countries in collaboration with IMF, World Bank, CSOs and development partners.32 They contain macro-economic, social and structural policies and programmes to be pursued by the host country over several years to promote broad-based growth intended to eradicate poverty. They also include identified sources and amounts of external funding needed to pursue the economic growth and poverty eradication objectives. The approach aims at developing the package of policies and partnerships, as well as the concomitant development imperatives that would support the achievement of the goal of reducing by half the number of people living in poverty between 1990 and 2015.33 Five core principles guide the preparation of the PRSPs and serve as requirements for inclusion in country poverty reduction strategies. These principles make it mandatory for such strategies to meet specific requirements. For example, they should be:34 1. Country-driven: to reflect national ownership of the strategies by being broad-based, participatory and should include civil society. 2. Result-oriented: should be pro-poor and aim at an outcome that would benefit the poor. 3. Comprehensive: should recognise the complexity and multidimensional nature of poverty. Therefore, policies designed to eradicate it should reflect the diversity between regions and within segments of the society. 4. Long-term in perspective: this is intended to ensure that the strategies are long-lasting and sustainable. 22

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

ARGUMENTS IN FAVOUR OF THE PRSP APPROACH The World Bank and IMF have lauded the PRSP approach to poverty reduction and have credited it with the following successful outcomes.35 1. More attention is focused on country-specific constraints to development. This is a departure from the SAP approach that prescribed the same solution for diverse problems across different countries, which though underdeveloped, have different socio-economic and socio-cultural characteristics, and are at varying levels of the development hierarchy. 2. The approach places more focus on poverty reduction, engenders a more open participatory process to development, and provides greater opportunity for monitoring poverty-related outcomes. 3. In some countries, PRSP is being effectively linked to domestic decision-making, and creates room for involvement of ministries, local governments, and civil society organisations. 4. With increasing understanding and advancement of PRSP in some countries, budget allocations and a strategy of spending to reduce proverty enjoys increasing donor support. 5. PRSPs have facilitated better coverage of MDG topics, while good practices have emerged from linking MDGs to country-specific priorities.

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

5. Partnership-oriented: should involve all stakeholders, which include governments, civil society organisations and donors, especially the IMF and World Bank.

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THE SHORTCOMINGS OF THE PRSP With PRSPs intended to provide the operational basis for the IMF and World Bank concessional lending and the institutions’ debt relief under the Heavily Indebted poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative, scepticism has been expressed about the unlikelihood of saving enough funds from the HIPC debt relief programme to support the national PRSP programmes. PRSPs have been criticised as fraught with the same policy flaws that marked the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) and which contributed to its failure. A self-evaluation done by IMF and World Bank published in their work – Review of the PRSP Approach – acknowledges some shortcomings of the policy; among them is the fact that although national governments prepare the PRSPs, the international financial institutions heavily influence their contents. The UN Commission on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in their study – From Adjustment to Poverty Reduction: what is New? – upholds the view that not much has changed under the new approach.36 The critics question the wisdom of returning to an emphasis

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24

on economic growth through liberalisation and rapid integration into the global economy, which are policy prescriptions that were followed in the past, under SAP, without success. The London-based Panos Institute argues that some of the PRSPs will not have the desired impact as they are implemented alongside other policies that often have conflicting interests. For instance, the Institute states that the Ugandan PRSP will not have a significant impact because the country has 20 other loans worth about US$1 billion, which come with different conditionalities that cannot be influenced by the PRSP.37 UNCTAD also argued that high economic growth is not easily achievable in SSA because many of these countries cannot attract private capital without having rich mineral resources. According to the agency, it would take the injection of an additional minimum of US$10 billion annually over a decade to achieve accelerated economic growth in SSA.38 The African Learning Group on PRSPs, which is organised by the UNECA, reiterates that the majority of Africa’s poor live in the rural areas, and any strategy to improve their well-being must embrace rural development, enhanced agricultural productivity, and job creation strategies. These concerns point to the fact that PRSPs may be an improvement on the SAP’s approach to economic growth and poverty eradication. Yet it still carries the stigma of that obnoxious development route which failed to liberate Africa from the economic doldrums. PRSP therefore should incorporate the peculiar country socio-economic characteristics and attendant financial needs to arrive at a de facto set of interventions to be included in the papers to achieve effective, sustainable and long-lasting growth to eradicate poverty. Serious inconsistency marks the preparation and presentation of PRSPs in Africa. Delays in submission and outright failures have marked their submissions. Table 2 shows the dates of presentations of the interim, first and second PRSPs. The table shows varying dates for submitting the same report by different countries. These discrepancies could be attributed to several factors, some of which have been highlighted as militating against the successful pursuit of the PRSP as an alternative to poverty and hunger eradication in developing regions, Africa in particular. Among the militating factors are the level of technical capacity, skills and number of personnel, availability of funds for the exercise, and state of health and wealth of the economy. For as long as these discrepancies exist, policies designed to achieve economic and social advancement will continue to face perpetual underachievement in Africa. The figure shows that the majority of the states submitted their Interim PRSP (I-PRSP) documents in 2000, and nearly all 32 reporting states produced the document. For PRSP I, 25 states out of the 32 reporting states made submissions. But in PRSP II, only eight or 25 per cent of the reporting states has so far submitted their papers. The inconsistency serves as an impediment to the successful pursuit of poverty eradication in the states and in the eventual achievement of the MDG of extreme hunger and poverty eradication.

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Country

I-PRSP

PRSP I

PRSP II

Benin

2000

2003

n/d

Burkina Faso

n/d

2000

2005

Burundi

2004

n/d

n/d

Cameroon

2000

2003

n/d

Cape Verde

n/d

2005

n/d

CAR

2001

n/d

n/d

Chad

2001

2003

n/d

Comoros

2006

n/d

n/d

DRC

n/d

n/d

n/d

Congo Republic

2004

n/d

n/d

Côte d’Ivoire

n/d

n/d

n/d

Ethiopia

n/d

2002

n/d

The Gambia

2000

2002

n/d

Ghana

2000

2003

2006

Guinea

2000

2002

n/d

Guinea-Bissau

2000

n/d

n/d

Kenya

2000

2004

n/d

Lesotho

2000

2005

n/d

Madagascar

2000

2003

n/d

Malawi

2000

2002

2006

Mali

2000

2003

n/d

Mauritania

n/d

2001

2007

Mozambique

2000

2001

2006

Niger

2000

2002

n/d

Nigeria

2000

2005

n/d

Rwanda

2000

2002

n/d

São Tomé and Príncipe

2000

2005

n/d

Senegal

2000

2002

2007

Sierra Leone

2001

2005

n/d

Tanzania

2000

2000

2006

Uganda

n/d

2000

2005

Zambia

2000

2002

n/d

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

Table 2: Dates of presentation of PRSPs by selected African countries 2000–2007

n/d: no data Source: Data obtained from World Bank 2007 Report

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25

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26

DEBT RELIEF THROUGH THE HIPC INITIATIVE The heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC) initiative, launched in 1996 by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), is regarded as the first comprehensive debt relief plan that integrates all bilateral, multilateral and private creditors in one framework. It aims to reduce the debt owed by eligible countries in order to prevent them from defaulting on their outstanding loans. A country’s eligibility is determined by the amount of its debt relative to the value of its exports, as well as by its commitment to comply with the economic policy prescriptions of the creditors. Of the 42 countries identified by the World Bank and IMF as potential recipients of HIPC debt relief, 34 are in SSA.39 Unfortunately, export growth for HIPC countries has been far less than the World Bank and IMF predicted. For instance, in 2001 alone, export earning was less than half the projections, and the World Bank has found that 31 of the 42 HIPC countries are not on track for reaching sustainable debt levels through the HIPC process. Africa has the largest share of HIPCs. In recent times, Africa has garnered sympathy from the G8 and other developed countries of the world. The former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair demonstrated this sympathy through his Commission for Africa Plan, which provided the framework for the special support accorded Africa at the G8 Summit in Gleneagles in July 2005. At the Summit, the G8 countries wrote off an additional US$40 billion of debt owed by HIPCs, in which Africa has the lion’s share. In spite of that, the total external debt of African countries still remains close to one trillion dollars.40 The World Bank claims that almost US$35 billion in debt relief has already been committed through the HIPC framework. It is expected that this measure will reduce the amount of debt held by qualifying countries by up to one-third. Unfortunately, the practical effect of the debt relief is minimal because for most of the debts, the debtor countries lack the ability to pay and the balance of the debt burden remains overwhelming. Thus, while the HIPC framework claims to ease off the debt burden of the world’s poorest countries, it in effect extracts the maximum possible in debt repayments from these poor countries. Having been designed and controlled by creditors, the HIPC initiative simply writes off debt that was not being paid anyway because of this limited capacity of debtor countries. If African efforts to reduce poverty and the spread and impact of HIV/Aids are to be successful, Africa’s debt must be cancelled unconditionally. In principle, debt relief would release capital for development given the enormity of debt owed and repayments made by African countries. Eighteen of the 22 countries that qualify under the enhanced HIPC come from Africa, out of which only Uganda and Mozambique have reached their decision points.41 Africa’s debt is huge and the 48 countries in SSA spend approximately US$13.5 billion every year repaying debts to rich foreign creditors.42 Many of the debts lack legitimacy and their repayments divert money directly from

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

basic human needs such as healthcare, sanitation, education, and poverty eradication. The huge debt burden also undermines African governments’ fight against the Aids pandemic and their efforts to promote sustainable development. The United States Treasury Department lauds the HIPC process as an avenue for reducing the debt level of qualifying countries to 30 per cent with the capacity to significantly stimulate economic growth.43 It is further argued that the money spent on debt repayment could be channelled toward increasing the momentum of development to combat poverty in Africa. Whether this expectation will hold sway will depend on the effectiveness of the state in the use of their financial instruments to turn the gains from debt reduction into increased investment to stimulate growth in income and employment.

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PROGRESS ON POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION IN AFRICA According to the World Bank, the share of the population living on less than one dollar a day in Africa declined in the 1990s, but the number living below the poverty line increased over the same period.44 The UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) further reported an increase in the number of people living on less than one dollar a day as a percentage of the population in SSA from 45 per cent to 46 per cent.45 This level of achievement compares poorly with the desired target level of 22 per cent by 2015. Current estimates show that Africa has the highest share of the population living below the poverty line in the world with Africa and Asia assuming the unenviable status of being the regions with the worst incidence of poverty and hunger in the world. In Africa, poverty is more pronounced in SSA due primarily to man-made political crises and civil wars as well as from natural hazards such as drought, flood and famine. These scenarios exacerbated the poverty and hunger situations in SSA, and caused millions more to fall into deep poverty in the 1990s.46 Although the number of hungry people declined by 900 million between 1990 and 2002 globally, SSA and Southern Asia had increased the number of hungry people by tens of millions.47 Growing population and poor agricultural productivity have been blamed as primary causes of food shortages in the affected regions. Limited access to land and inappropriate technology in agricultural production are also known to have contributed significantly to food shortages. While hunger is more pronounced in developing countries, its impact is found to be localised among rural dwellers. Within the rural sub-region, the worst hit are landless people or farmers with small and uneconomic land holdings. The global poverty trend shows that out of the 1.1 million poor people worldwide in 2001, there were 100 million fewer people living in poverty in that year than in 1990, and there were about 400 million fewer people living in poverty

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27

CHAPTER 1 Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

in 1990 than in 1981. But for SSA, there was an increase rather than decrease in the number of people in extreme poverty to almost 320 million, which makes up over 25 per cent of the global total.48 The World Bank however forecasts that if current growth is sustained, by 2015 the number of the poor would drop to 0.6 billion. Furthermore, based on current pattern of distribution, 90 per cent of those that would still live in extreme poverty by 2015 would be living in South Asia and SSA.49 The UN report of 2005 on the status of the MDGs shows that the number of people living in extreme poverty has fallen by 130 million even when overall population has increased by more than 800 million in developing countries.50 In spite of the global achievement, 1.2 billion people still live on less than one dollar a day; half of the inhabitants of the developing world continue to face the stigma of poverty where large populations lack access to sanitation; 200 000 children under the age of five die every week; and 10 000 women die weekly while giving birth.51 It is forecast that in a few years time, and for the first time in history, there will be more people living in absolute poverty in Africa than in Asia. The role of women in poverty reduction cannot be overemphasised from many standpoints. Women bear a significant burden in the social development of families. They bear and care for children, provide resources – firewood and water – for food preparation and do the actual preparation, and assume a commanding role in farm management. Indeed, the number of women-headed households is increasing and attests to their increasing responsibility and authority in the household. In many parts of Africa, women have gone beyond kitchen chores to construct houses, brew beers, engage in trade, food processing, and manage agricultural and rural cottage industries. Therefore, their roles in rural development, employment creation, income generation and thus, poverty and hunger eradication cannot be ignored or downplayed. In societies and economies where women play these vital roles, the degree of success of the society and state in eradicating poverty will depend on the extent to which the capacity, ability and efficiency of women is improved. The synergy between women empowerment and social and economic development is very vividly depicted by Huyer (2004) who opined that individual poverty can be reduced and economic growth enhanced by bridging the gender gap in health and education.52 She draws an analogy and relational synergy between technological improvement and increased productivity of women; increased well-being of children; increase in school enrolment; decrease in birth rates; and increased environmental conservation. This sequence of positive effects when fully maintained will eventually dovetail to sustainable development. She further stresses the importance of information and communication technology (ICT) in poverty eradication when she paints a picture of the inverse relationship between the level of ICT and poverty in a country. She submits that the lower the level of ICT, the greater the poverty in the country.

28

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

The duality in the nature of hunger and poverty in Africa significantly contributes to the complication in poverty and hunger eradication efforts and makes its reporting more problematic. The UN Millennium Report of 2005 shows that SSA faces a very high level of poverty and hunger among the nations and people of the sub-region. In contrast, North Africa has very low poverty and hunger levels, which compare closely with other more advanced regions of the developing world in Asia, Latin America, Eastern Europe and Oceanic regions. The paradox of SSA remaining the natural habitat of the poorest of the poor – countries, households and people – remains an anathema and a significant factor in Africa’s development discourse. The UN Millennium Development Report of 2005 revealed that although poverty declined marginally from 36 per cent to 33 per cent, the actual number of people living below the poverty line (less than one dollar a day) in SSA increased from 227 million in 1990 to 313 million in 2001.53 Economic growth geared towards poverty eradication in Africa showed good prospects at the turn of the millennium. Several countries, namely Nigeria, Senegal, and Uganda achieved significant growth rates of 5 per cent or better. Still, poverty remains embedded in many countries in the continent because of failure to institute equitable distribution of the gains from economic growth. Available data suggests that the average real GDP growth rates of African economies including SSA showed steady improvements from a low rate of 1.9 per cent between 1976 and 1985, to 2.5 per cent between 1986 and 1995, and then to 3.9 per cent over the period 1996–2005.54 This overall growth translates to per capita real GDP growth rates of only 0.9 per cent in the period between 1986 and 1995 and 1.6 per cent in the period between 1996 and 2005. Consequently, there was a substantial increase of over 90 per cent in the number of people trapped in absolute poverty while their relative share of the population increased from 41.6 per cent to 46.4 per cent over the twenty-year period 1980 to 2000.55 These improvements in national income earnings have not practically translated into an improved standard of living for the majority of the African population, as poverty and hunger still grip many in the continent. Similarly, a high national income has not significantly changed the income situation of individual members of the society. Furthermore, revenue collection from the vast and rich natural resources in the continent and its distribution have failed to reflect positive changes in the macro economy. Instead, the exploitation of these natural resources tends to destroy the social systems, the livelihoods, and the environment that support the systems, and further exacerbate the poverty situation in some of the countries. The blood diamonds of Angola and Sierra Leone, the oil spills and gas flaring in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria, and the threat to the Baka Pygmies of the Congo Basin are examples of the systemic impoverishment of people and communities in close proximity to sources of natural resource exploitation in Africa.

29

CHAPTER 1

Poverty eradication would be achieved if resources were made to flow from the areas of surplus to areas of scarcity. This is the principle of creating a level playing field in which revenue collected from increased economic growth should be utilised to extricate the poor from their poverty trap. There has been a mixed grill in the revenue performance in Africa, with only a one per cent rise from 19 to 20 per cent over the two decades between 1976 and 1995, declining to 18 per cent between 1996 and 2005.56 The author attributes the disconnect to a serious gap between income generation and revenue collection; the weak link between domestic producers and the means of production for economic growth; and over-liberalisation intended to attract foreign investment in Africa.

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Table 3: The state of achievement of poverty and hunger eradication in selected African states

30

No

Country

Proportion Proportion on on less than less than $1/day (%) $2/day (%)

1

Angola

25

>60

Unlikely to achieve the MDGs

2

Benin

50

50

>25% cannot meet basic food requirement

3

Botswana

n/a

Unlikely to Has potential to meet eliminate almost all its commitments absolute poverty to the MDGs by 2016

4

Burundi

55

5

Eritrea

n/a

n/a

Disadvantaged groups remain at risk

6

Ethiopia

n/a

n/a

Unlikely to meet any of the MDGs

7

Ghana

n/a

n/a

Female illiteracy in rural areas was as high as 78% in 2003

8

Guinea Bissau

n/a

n/a

Illiteracy rates in the country stand at 50% and 83% for men and women respectively The country will not achieve the MDGs Country remains close to the bottom of the UN HDI.

Remarks/Status

MDGs unlikely to be achieved

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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Country

9

Kenya

22.8

58.3

Chances of meeting the MDGs are slim

10

Malawi

n/a

50 by 2005

Progress towards achieving the MDGs is limited by the spread of HIV/Aids and the failure of SAP in the country

11

Mali

n/a

n/a

There is little prospect of achieving the MDGs There is some hope for attaining food self-sufficiency

12

Namibia

>33

n/a

A Gini coefficient of 0.6 ranks the country as one of the most unequal societies in the world

13

Nigeria

70

n/a

Progress reports of 2004 and 2005 on prospects of meeting the goals conflict with each other with the latter more positive than the former Country falls in the bottom quartile of the HDI

14

Tanzania

n/a

n/a

Goal for extreme poverty eradication reachable by 2010 and to be eliminated totally by 2025

15

Uganda

n/a

35 (2000–2005) 31 (2006)

Absolute poverty increases by the day in the country

16

Zambia

76

94

The gap between the rich and the poor is widening Has the potential to achieve all goals except that of Universal Primary Education and Reduction of Maternal Mortality

Remarks/Status

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

No

Proportion Proportion on on less than less than $1/day (%) $2/day (%)

Source: Adapted from Millennium Development Goals mid-term review 2007

The dependence on external aid and foreign capital has eclipsed the primary responsibility of governments to generate domestic capital through better tax collection and the promotion of private savings. Indeed, external aid has become so popular among developing countries, and Africa in particular, that it eclipses government revenue collections in most African economies. The net effect varies

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CHAPTER 1

widely within and between states with conspicuous duality emerging as the dominant feature of this macroeconomic distortion. This feature is characterised by a widening income gap and co-existence of very rich urban and very poor rural dwellers in the majority of cases. Poverty eradication therefore should aim at eliminating this duality in the economy and direct resources towards the poverty-stricken members of the society. This could be achieved through the release of physical resources such as land and technology to which they lack access or by direct capital injection. An assessment of the progress made on poverty eradication in South Africa by Duma reveals that there is extreme inequality and the co-existence of scarcity and surpluses in the country. The author went further to report that 1.5 million children suffer from malnutrition, while 14 million others suffer from food scarcity in the country.57 The above views are re-echoed by Mark Malloch Brown, a UN Deputy Secretary-General when he said ‘… You do not sustain poverty reduction without ceding democratic rights and power to the poor; and you do not get a country to the starting point of meeting the MDGs if refugee, post-conflict and failed state crises are left unresolved’.58

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CONCLUSIONS

32

Africa remains a laggard in world development and a leader in poverty relative to other developing regions, even when it is generously endowed with immense and diverse natural resources. Africa ranks high among countries of the world in copious deposits of mineral resources such as oil, diamonds, gold, platinum, bauxite and iron. The climate and weather conditions in Africa accommodate a wide spectrum of diverse ecological zones, which favour and could support yearround production of various crops and animal products. These attributes could put Africa in a good position to achieve the MDGs. Yet, the continent, in particular the sub-Saharan sub-region, has the highest number of people living below poverty line in the world. Consequently many of the countries in SSA are not likely to meet the targets set for the MDGs especially the goal of extreme hunger and poverty eradication by 2015. This bleak picture exists in spite of the continent’s unrelenting efforts to chart out a new course of action to actively and aggressively address poverty eradication and the other MDGs through good governance via NEPAD and APRM, preparation of PRSPs, and fight for debt relief through the HIPC initiative. The ideals of these initiatives, notwithstanding a critical analysis of the approaches reveals a tenacious cling to the aprons of foreign donors and development partners that still pull the strings of the arrangement in their favour and not Africa’s. NEPAD and APRM and the HIPC still rely on fund releases from the developed countries before their implementations can take place. Unfortunately, these donors have not been forthcoming in meeting their pledges and commitments. The PRSPs on

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

their part have not gone down well with African states because of limited capacity and paucity of the resources needed for their implementation. Above all, the World Bank and IMF are still calling the shots and have imposed some conditionalities on the new initiative which are akin to those used in the failed Structural Adjustment Programmes. Poverty in Africa has been blamed on a host of individual factors and combinations of factors, paramount among which are political crises, many of which culminated in protracted and impoverishing civil wars. Others include low domestic savings and limited FDI inflows; of globalisation that gives unlimited access to overseas goods and not African agricultural goods into overseas markets. The ravaging effect of HIV/Aids affects the quantity and quality of human capital thereby depleting personal savings and investment capital. Poor infrastructure including a very low level of ICT; and natural hazards such as drought, floods and fire that destroy long-term investment assets, human lives and livelihood within a short space of time all add to the economic woes that face Africa. Opinions converge on the notion that improved trade relations, increased aid and financing for development, good governance and cessation of political hostilities and corrupt practices, would enhance the ability of African countries to harness and use profitably their immense human and material resources to eradicate hunger and extreme poverty. This action is expedient given that under the prevailing conditions, only the north African states and very few states in SSA are on course to meet the MDGs.

RECOMMENDATIONS

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The following recommendations are put forward to guide Africa on the path of accelerated growth and sustainable development. These two factors are preconditions for meeting the MDGs. 1. Africa should improve on its capital generating capacities to improve domestic savings, attract investment capital, mobilise domestic private sector capital, and reduce the over-dependence on foreign donors and foreign capital. 2. Efforts should be directed at activating and expanding Africa’s domestic (national and sub-regional) markets through inter-regional trade and the formation of sub-regional trading blocs. The sub-regional blocs would strengthen Africa’s ability to negotiate commodity prices and global markets. 3. A people-centred approach to development should form the basis of policy formulation and development planning. Development-oriented investments should identify the constraining factors, and stagnating or lagging sectors. Resources should then be directed to stimulate and pull the group or sector out of the poverty trap. For example where access to resources such as land,

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CHAPTER 1

capital, education, market and policy is lacking and causing a bottleneck, investments that should be directed at providing resources and facilities. 4. Developed countries and development partners should make good their pledges of financial support to NEPAD and other development-oriented initiatives in Africa. For instance, the expected contribution of 0.7 per cent of their GDP as aid to developing countries, including Africa, needs to be enforced. 5. The international framework conditions on trade and market access betwen Africa and the developed world would need to be reviewed. The developed countries should give Africa more aid on better terms, and accept constant debt review in favour of the developing countries. 6. Africa should eschew political violence; corruption and bad governance, and grasp transparency, a high sense of responsibility, and accountability to boost economic growth. Such political prudence would motivate the private sector and civil society to join as partners in development. The move would create jobs, and build the capacity of change agents – youth, women and NGOs, and contribute to poverty eradication.

ENDNOTES 1

Sachs J. 2005. Investing in Development. A Practical Plan to Achieve the Millennium Development Goals. Overview. Report to the UN Secretary-General, 2005. p. 74.

2

Wikipedia 2007. Poverty. http://www.wikipedia.org/wiwki/Poverty.

3

Editorial. Urgent action needed on Millennium Development Goals. Global Dialogue, Vol. 10, No 3, November 2005.

4

World Bank Group 2005. Reducing Poverty and Hunger. Washington DC. World Development Indicators 2005.

5

Sachs J. 2005. Investing in Development. A Practical Plan to Achieve the Millennium

6

Global Policy Forum. Poverty and Development in Africa – Social and Economic Policy.

7

Ibid.

8

Ibid.

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Development Goals. Overview. Report to the UN Secretary-General, 2005, p. 74.

9

UNCTAD. 2001. FDI in Africa shrinks. World Investment Report 2001(2). United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, New York, 2001.

10 Loots E. 2000. Foreign direct investment flows to African countries: Trends, determinants and future prospects. Mots Plueriels, No. 13, April 2000. 11 Ibid. 12 Mboweni T. 2003. African Economic Integration. Address to the 5th Annual African Development Finance Conference. 9 October 2003. Southern African Regional Poverty Network. 13 Oxfam International. Rich countries’ years of neglect have led to West Africa food crisis.

34

Oxfam International Press Release. August 2005. In Global Policy Forum, 2005.

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Forum, 2005. 16 It’s a long, bumpy road to the next Doha Round. The Guardian, 25 July 2005. Quoted in Global Policy Forum, 2005. 17 Stafford N. 2005. Address at the High Level Plenary Session of the 43rd Session of the Commission for Social Development on Agenda Item 3(A): Review of further implementation of the World Summit for Social Development and Outcome of the 24th Special Session of the General Assembly. 18 Asante S.K.B., Nwonwu F.O.C., Muzvidziwa, V.N. 2001. Towards an African economic community. Pretoria : Africa Institute of South Africa, p. 60. 19 In Africa, just help us to help ourselves. Washington Post, July 2005, Global Forum, 2005. 20 UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the UN Department of Public

EXTREME POVERTY AND HUNGER ERADICATION

14 Global Policy Forum, 2005. 15 Hunger is spreading in Africa, Christian Science Monitor, 1 August 2005. In Global Policy

Information. Progress on Goal 8 – A global partnership for development, September 2005. 21 Guardian Unlimited. 2007. In 2005, G8 pledged $50 bn for Africa. Now the reality. Guardian News and Media Limited. Special Report 2007. 22 Guardian Unlimited, p. 3. 23 Ibid. 24 Oxfam International. 2006. Oxfam welcomes German G8 agenda on Africa. 25 Rainer Falk. 2006. Towards Heiligendamm: The German G-8 Agenda, responsible, reliable, sustainable?, World Economy and Development in Brief, Issue 4/Oct–Nov. 2006. 26 World Bank Group 2005. Reducing Poverty and Hunger. Washington DC. World Development Indicators 2005. 27 Sachs J. Investing in Development. A Practical Plan to Achieve the Millennium Development Goals. Overview. Report to the UN Secretary-General, 2005, p. 74. 28 OECD and NEPAD. 2003. Actions for a positive investment environment in Africa to promote development: This statement was issued at the OECD–Africa Investment Roundtable which took place in Johannesburg, South Africa on 19 November 2003. Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

29 UNECA. 2007. Electronic Roundtable. Poverty Reduction Strategies and MDGs Knowledge Sharing Network. Available at: http://www.uneca.org/africanprsp/ER1_ OwnershipLeadership.asp. 30 UNEP/GRID–Arendal. 2004. Sustainable development, a global challenge. The Environment Times. Available at: http://www.enviroonmenttimes.net/article.cfm. 31 Ibid. 32 The World Bank. 2007. Country Papers and JSANs/JSAs – Sub-Saharan Africa. PovertyNet. Available at: http://www.worldbank.org. 33 IMF. 2005. Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSP). Available at: http://www.imf.org/ external/np/exr/facts/prsp.htm. 34 Ibid. 35 The World Bank and IMF. 2004. Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers – Progress in Implementation. Executive Summary. Washington DC. The World Bank Group.

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36 Gumisai Mutume. 2003. A new anti-poverty remedy for Africa? Adjustment policies weaken PRSP goals, critics charge. Africa Recovery. Vol. 18, No. 4, February 2003, p.12. 37 Ibid. 38 Ibid. 39 Africa Action 2002. Critique of the HIPC Initiative. Washington DC. The website was however updated up until September 2005. http://www.africaaction.org/action/ hipc0206.htm. 40 Ibid. 41 Colgan A. 2001. Africa’s debt – Africa Action Position Paper. July 2001. Available at: http://www.africaaction.org/action/debtpos.htm. 42 Ibid. 43 Ibid. 44 World Bank 1999. Poverty Reduction and the World Bank. Progress Report in the Fiscal 1999. Washington DC. The World Bank. p. 165. 45 Economic Commission for Africa. 2005. Millennium Development Goals in Africa: Progress and Challenges. Addis Ababa. 46 United Nations. The Millennium Development Goals Report 2005, New York, p. 48. 47 Ibid. 48 World Bank Group 2005. Reducing Poverty and Hunger. Washington DC. World Development Indicators 2005. 49 Ibid. 50 UNEP/GRID-Arendal. 2004. Sustainable development, a global challenge. The Environment Times. Available at: http://www.environmenttimes.net/article.cfm. 51 Ibid. 52 Huyer S. Poverty eradication and the knowledge society. United Nations Commission on Science and Technology for Development, 2004. 53 United Nations 2005. The Millennium Development Goals Report 2005. New York. UN Department of Public Information. Executive Summary of the Report of the Secretary-

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General – In larger freedom. p. 48. 54 Etukudo, U. 2007. Fiscal space for achieving the MDGs: What option for Africa? Africa ViewPoint. Number 3, May 2007. Johannesburg. UNDP Regional Service Centre for Eastern and Southern Africa. 55 Ibid. 56 Ibid. 57 Duma, B. Undated. Missing the Millennium Development Goals. SANGONeT. 58 ECA. 2005. Do the MDGs cater for refugees? MDGs in Africa: A challenge for change. Economic Commission for Africa, Addis Ababa.

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CHAPTER 2

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA Achievable or impossible target?

Francis Faller

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INTRODUCTION This chapter examines the performance of African countries in their progress towards the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of achieving universal primary education. The aim of General Assembly Resolution 55/2 is to ‘ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling’.1 This target is of vital importance to developing countries. According to Bruns et al, not only is education a fundamental precondition for informed democratic societies and enterprising individuals, but it is also an essential means of enhancing the spread of knowledge and the use of new technologies, and of laying the foundations for the efficient application and distribution of natural resources, information and goods.2 Primary education is the platform on which the building blocks for personal and collective progress – the capacity to learn the basics of literacy and numeracy, the ability to acquire information and to process it critically, and the acquisition of life skills – are shaped and laid. Bruns et al contend that of all human assets education is, in principle, one of the most attainable and transferable; the expansion of educational opportunity ‘is far easier to implement than the redistribution of other assets such as land or capital’.3 Bruns et al further state that basic education is acknowledged as a powerful instrument for reducing inequality and poverty, and for laying the foundations for sustained economic growth. It is fundamental to all the other MDGs. Furthermore, ‘recent research indicates that for girls and boys, education may be the most effective preventive weapon against HIV/Aids’, being a powerful source of improvement in matters like fertility, health and nutrition.4 The millennium target of universal primary

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education has two dimensions: firstly, delivering a foundational programme of learning that equips the pupil with the capacity to engage in some form of lifelong enterprise, whether it be immediate income generation or further vocational or academic training; and, secondly, broadening educational access to ensure that it redresses the inequities that exist between privileged and marginalised groups, between urban and rural communities, and between genders. Indicators for MDGs are essentially quantitative rather than qualitative. According to the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) ‘[T]he indicators touch only upon quantifiable issues, leaving many of the analytical and quantitative aspects untouched’.5 The emphasis on qualitative aspects is more appropriate to some MDG indicators than to others. For example, it is more amenable to the indicator 25, ‘Proportion of land covered by forest’ (Goal 7: ensure environmental sustainability) and indicator 13, ‘Under-five mortality rate’ (Goal 4: reduce child mortality) than it is to indicator 8, ‘Literacy rate of 15to 24-year-olds’ (Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education). In educational matters, the quality of achievement cannot be ignored. Furthermore, in assessing the accomplishments of regions and countries, the major source of data is the annual publications of the World Bank. Data used in this chapter are derived primarily from two World Bank publications: 2004 World Development Indicators6 and African Development Indicators 20047. These publications reveal an inconsistency in data. Whereas some countries have provided comprehensive data relevant to an analysis of their levels of progress towards the MDG of universal primary education, others have provided either incomplete data or none. This limits the options for comparing the same set of countries over the full range of indicators. In some cases, such as those that have recently undergone the ravages of civil war, the absence of data is explicable; in other cases, it is less so. But this makes a comprehensive continental evaluation of achievement of the MDG unfeasible. For the purpose of regional focus, this chapter concentrates on SSA, and, more particularly, on those countries for whom the requisite data is reasonably complete. North (Mediterranean) Africa is excluded for another reason: for the purposes of compiling many composite data, the region is amalgamated with countries of the Middle East, rendering an amalgamated scenario that falls beyond the scope of the chapter. The focus of the chapter, therefore, is the extent to which SSA is progressing towards the achievement of the MDG, universal primary education. To address the issue, both the quantitative and qualitative aspects need to be taken into account: the number of children with access to educational services and the value of this education in their lives.

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Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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For Africa, the challenge is especially daunting. Prior to the achievement of national independence and a fully representative government (a process commencing in the 1960s and culminating, in the case of South Africa, as recently as 1994), educational systems had been based on foreign models imported by missionaries and colonial administrations. Notwithstanding the establishment of a network of schools with high standards of educational achievement, these systems catered for a very small percentage of the indigenous population, and their curricula were usually devoid of indigenous content. Education was almost always exclusively in the colonist’s language, and access to this language was very limited. The fact that economic development led to a rapidly growing demand for schooling did not significantly change the situation. With their narrow goals and exotic substance, these educational systems left the newly independent states with an educational legacy that was elitist, chauvinistic, and alienating for the vast majority of their citizens. They were designed to produce a limited cohort of minimally literate, invariably male clerical assistants, and consigned the rest to a pool of manual labour in which the skills of literacy, imagination and enterprise were not only superfluous but undesirable. With the onset of independence, most African countries made the expansion of primary education facilities a priority. They were starting from an extremely low base. At the start of the 1960s, SSA’s primary school enrolment ratio was only 39 per cent, far lower than the 67 per cent in South Asia and 73 per cent in Latin America. Harsch8 states that the cost of inherited educational models are inappropriate for the capacity of emerging economies, and were not adjusted to meet national priorities. As Novicki observes, it was mainly foreign donors who determined the way in which funds were to be allocated.9 Great strides towards increased and improved public education were made throughout the 1970s, only to be set back in the following decade by economic recession. During the 1980s, when stringent austerity measures, enforced structural adjustment programmes, rising oil import costs and high debt-servicing burdens placed onerous constraints on educational budgets, public expenditure in SSA, as a share of gross national product, fell from 3.8 per cent to 3.1 per cent. Education came to be regarded as ‘non-essential’ public expenditure; teaching post and wage freezes led to a diminishing status in the profession, resulting in the resignation of some of the best practitioners and the tendency among many others to supplement low salaries with out-of-school work, thereby reducing both the time and attention given to pupils. By the 1990s the gap between educational demand and supply was – in most African countries – enormous. According to ADEA another problem endemic in Africa is the relative instability of the target population: the youth. Wars, civil strife and environmental catastrophes such as drought have resulted in massive uprooting, migration (often cross-border migration), homelessness, and destruction of the means of

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

CHALLENGES IN AFRICA

39

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self-subsistence. Disturbances have also, in many areas, caused the wholesale destruction of school buildings and resources. Disease has decimated communities. Poverty has forced many families to keep their children at home, regarding formal education as a loss of income-earning opportunity. It is estimated that, worldwide in the 1990s alone, two million children died, six million were seriously wounded and 12 million were left homeless – and half of these victims were residents of the SSAn region.10 According to UNESCO war and prolonged civil disturbance has the effect of producing multitudes of displaced and migrant children, which affects the educational systems of not only the countries directly involved but also of their neighbours. This has been the case in countries such as Guinea Bissau, Sierra Leone and Liberia (in West Africa), Ethiopia, Eritrea and Sudan (in East Africa), the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Burundi (in Central Africa), and Angola and Mozambique (in southern Africa). In each case, neighbouring countries have also felt the effects by having to accommodate, suddenly, hundreds of thousands of foreign children in their schools.11 Recently, the HIV/Aids pandemic has severely compounded the problem, especially in southern Africa. It is no longer simply a public health problem; the worst afflicted countries have come to recognise it as a major obstacle to development. While actual rates of infection are a subject of debate and controversy, there is now general agreement that its effect on education systems has become massive. It has created huge numbers of Aids orphans and others who are forced to abandon school to practise the role of family care-givers and bread-winners. A reasonable estimate is that over 90 per cent of Aids orphans live in SSA, and their chances of ever completing primary school education are slight. The World Health Organisation estimates that the region has more than 10 million children living on their own, most of them increasingly vulnerable to HIV.12 HIV/Aids is also decimating the teaching corps, reaping particular havoc among young female teachers. In these circumstances, universal primary education throughout the continent could be regarded not so much as a clearly achievable target than as a social and political miracle. This is even more so the case because universal primary education is not an end in itself or the only challenge facing governments; it is the first step towards a more ambitious goal, the provision of life long learning for all citizens, in the vocational and academic spheres. The enormity of the educational challenge in SSA is further magnified by the high proportion of the population who are younger than 15 years. Table 1 below gives the figure relative to other regions in the developing world, and the ratio in a sample of countries.

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Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Percentage of population aged 0–14 years13 Population 0–14 years as %

Gross enrolment ratio (secondary schools) as %

East Asia and Pacific

26.3

66

Latin America and Caribbean

30.9

89

South Asia

34.2

48

Sub-Saharan Africa

43.8

26.5

South Africa

32.1

87.3

Gabon

40.4

59.6

Botswana

41.8

79.1

Mozambique

42.5

11.9

Kenya

42.6

30.6

Tanzania

45.0

5.8

Ethiopia

45.7

18.0

Burkina Faso

47.0

10.2

Angola

47.6

17.6

Chad

48.8

11.5

Niger

48.9

6.4

Uganda

49.0

15.2

Region

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Country

Table 1 shows the percentage of the total population that is in the 0- to 14-year age bracket. The table compares this percentage with the gross enrolment ratio (GER) in secondary school. Assuming that current trends continue into the foreseeable future, this comparison provides an indicator of the percentage of children reaching the age of 14 who are likely to have access to post-primary schooling, and conversely the percentage whose education will end with the primary phase. The GER is the ratio of total enrolment, regardless of age, to the population of the age group that officially corresponds to the specified level of education. GER includes pupils who remain in that level of school and beyond, and those who enter the level when younger than the normal age. It is therefore possible for the GER to exceed 100 per cent. The GER can remain constant when large numbers of pupils are required to repeat grades even though the intake of new pupils is reduced. The GER can also be unusually high when, following a disruption of schooling caused by war and civil unrest and the restoration of a more conducive environment, pupils enter a school phase at an older age than is usual. This results in an over crowding of schools and abnormally high pupil/teacher ratios.

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

Table 1:

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42

An increase in the GER over a period of time does not necessarily mean a real increase in access to schooling, because expansion in the GER may not be keeping abreast of an increase in the rate of population growth. In SSA in 2000, primary school GERs ranged from over 140 in Gabon to less than 20 in Somalia.14 Table 1 indicates that the ratio of population in the age group 0–14 years is significantly higher in SSA than it is in any other part of the developing world. This inevitably puts added pressure on school systems and structures. It implies more schools, more teachers and learning resources, and that a higher percentage of public expenditure needs to be allocated to schooling. A total population in 2002 of 689 million (an increase of over 300 million since 1980), and a percentage of 43.8 in the 0- to 14-year age group, means that over 300 million SSAns are, or very soon will be, requiring primary school places if universal primary education is to be a reality in the region. What is more, the average annual population growth rate of 2.7 per cent is the highest in the world, significantly exceeding the growth rates in all the other developing regions.15 ADI however states that the GER of youngsters in SSA reaching secondary school (26.5 per cent) is far below the ratios in other regions, barely one-half of the ratio in South Asia, and less than one-third of the ratio in Latin America and the Caribbean. All the listed countries with a youth population of over 42 per cent currently have urban populations of less than 40 per cent, and are counted among the poorest countries on the continent.16 ADEA states that when these factors are taken into account, the extent of the burden on the primary school system in SSA becomes evident: to provide for huge numbers of pupils, an education that – being terminal, has the capacity to be self-sustaining. In 1990 SSA had a total of 55 million school places. By 2002 the number of places in primary schools had to increase by a further 41 million just to keep enrolment rates constant, let alone increase them to meet the MDG.17 Another matter complicating both the planning and provision of primary education is that – especially in countries whose current urban population is relatively low – the region is, at 4.3 per cent, experiencing the highest rate of urbanisation in the world, and the majority of newly-urbanised people are children requiring basic education. This demographic shift can create a major disjuncture in education planning. Countries with large rural populations can, for educational or political reasons, place the focus of attention on rural schooling, only to find that this attention, involving the construction of school buildings and a largescale deployment of teachers, is soon misplaced. In a situation like this, education planning can lag behind demographic realities, and erode the efficiency of both human and fiscal resources. The table also shows that the relative size of the 0- to 14-year age group varies markedly between countries, and the sample suggests a trend of some concern, namely that, in general, high 0- to 14-year age ratios accompany low ratios of access to secondary schooling. In countries where this discrepancy is

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

The diversity of those involved in improving basic education is an unprecedented asset in Africa. It is essential, however, that support to basic education be efficiently consolidated and managed in order to ensure participation of all major stakeholders at various levels of society.18

National ministries of education have increasingly acknowledged the importance of securing the support and collaboration of a variety of stakeholders: provinces and districts, commerce and industry, non-governmental organisations, teacher unions, local communities and parents. This is the only way in which universal primary education can be transformed from a well-documented political intention into a reality that will improve the educational opportunities and the lives of all the region’s children.

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

extreme (for example, Tanzania, Niger, Burkina Faso and Mozambique) the need for schooling to result, at least, in access to a complete primary-level education is paramount. Given this context, regional and inter-national co-operation – a sharing of research and strategic options to produce the most beneficial and cost-effective utilisation of limited resources – has become a matter of great urgency:

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THE GOAL According to Bruns et al, the meaning of ‘a full course in primary education’ is not uniform. The term ‘primary education’ is defined by the United Nations Educational and Scientific Council (UNESCO) as ‘the beginning of systematic apprenticeship of reading, writing and mathematics’.19 The EFA Global Monitoring Report states that the age bracket for compulsory education varies from country to country in SSA. In all countries it begins at the age of either six or seven. Its period, however, differs widely. Compulsory education ends as early as the age of 12 (for example in Cameroon, Guinea Bissau and Senegal) or as late as the age of 16 (Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon and Namibia).20 For the purpose of monitoring the achievement of the MDG, basic schooling is taken to extend over a period of five years (Grades one to five). Although many educationists would argue that this period is insufficient to enable most pupils to develop capacities that could be turned into economic opportunity and form the basis for lifelong learning, it is nevertheless regarded as the minimum time needed to acquire the basics of literacy and numeracy. Enrolment ratios are therefore calculated in terms of the enrolment numbers compared with the official population between the ages of six (or seven) and ten (or eleven). United Nations (UN) statistical surveys measure primary education efficiency as, among other indicators, the ratio of Grade five completion and Grade one intake: that is, over a cycle of five years – and this is the

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duration that will inform the assessment of achievement of the MDG. However, satisfactory completion of a primary ‘course’ cannot be measured simply in years of school attendance. A valid and reliable assessment must take into account curriculum content, the exit-level outcomes and the criteria for, and standards of, achievement. The efficiency of education systems has quite as much to do with the quality of provision as with the quantity of places available and filled. While many African countries have made remarkable progress in the scale of provision, curriculum transformation has not been consistently attained. Ideally, African benchmarks of educational quality in primary schooling and appropriate exitlevel assessment standards need to be agreed on, benchmarks that are comparable with international norms.

BACKGROUND

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In 1990, a worldwide Education For All (EFA) Conference was convened in Jomtien, Thailand. With its starting point being the assertion in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that ‘everyone has a right to education’,21 the delegates noted with concern that, throughout the world, more than 100 million children – of whom at least 60 per cent are girls – had no access to primary schooling, and that, of those who enter school, a similar number failed to complete basic education programmes. Problems such as ‘mounting debt burdens, the threat of economic stagnation and decline, rapid population growth, widening economic disparities among and within nations, war, occupation, civil strife, violent crime, the preventable deaths of millions of children and widespread environmental degradation’ have caused ‘major setbacks in basic education in the 1980s in many of the LDCs.’ In response to the setbacks, the Conference set a number of educational targets, including: r
universal access to, and completion of, primary education … by the year 2000 r
improvement in learning achievement to ensure that an agreed percentage of an appropriate age cohort (e.g. 80 per cent of 14-year-olds) attains or surpasses a defined level of necessary learning achievement. The Jomtien Conference identified major gender discrepancies between educational provision for boys and for girls, and stressed that targets should include equity by gender. Proposing steps to design policies to improve basic education, it emphasised the need for attention to the following matters:

44

r
appropriate training of teachers r
reform of curricula and assessment criteria

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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Following closely on Jomtien, SSA Ministers of Education assembled in Dakar in 1991, to plan strategies to meet the Jomtien targets. One of the aims was increased net enrolment ratios (NERs) in primary schools during the decade 1990–2000. Countries were grouped on the basis of existing ratios. Those countries with NERs lower than 40 per cent should double them; those with NERs between 40 and 70 per cent should aim for up to 80 per cent; only those with ratios already above 70 per cent should target universal enrolment. Depending on how they were grouped, countries should move towards the ultimate goal over different timespans. By the year 2000, a NER of 80 per cent would be the common benchmark. To provide a long-term solution to the continent’s education problems, the UN System-wide Special Initiative on Africa decided to place a major emphasis on assisting with the provision of basic education for all children, over a ten-year period. It has placed particular focus on 15 countries in SSA with enrolment rates lower than 50 per cent.22 In 1999 SSA met in Johannesburg, at an EFA Conference. The Conference had the theme, ‘Education for African Renaissance in the twenty-first century’. In his opening address the President of South Africa, Mr Thabo Mbeki, stated that ‘nowhere in the world has sustained development been attained without a well-functioning system of education, without universal and sound primary education …’23 The conference acknowledged remarkable – but uneven – regional progress. Only ten countries had come close to universal primary education, and there were still serious gender disparities in school enrolment. It observed a close correlation between social conditions and school enrolments: the greatest achievements went hand-in-hand with peace and comprehensive reform, while war and civil conflict had accompanied the greatest losses. Losses struck marginalised communities most severely: children in remote rural areas, those with disabilities, refugees and internally displaced persons, working children, ethnic minorities, and those afflicted with HIV/Aids. Effective education was also being constrained by irrelevant curricula, underdeveloped education planning and management, inadequate budgetary allocations, legal, administrative and tax constraints on the indigenous publication of learning materials, and a range of associated problems. The conference resolved to establish regional EFA consultative committees to oversee the continent’s education enterprise. These committees are designed to create a communication bridge between researchers,

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

r
adaptation of learning materials r
improvement of buildings and facilities r
improvement of teaching conditions, to reduce teacher absenteeism and increase learning time r
better synergies between formal and non-formal education r
sustained financial resources r
full community participation.

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policy-makers and practitioners at regional and national levels. The sub-regional consortia include:

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r
Educational Research Network for West and Central Africa, ERNWCA/ ROCARE. r
The Conference of Ministers of Education of Countries having French as a Common Language, CONFEMEN. r
Programme for the Analysis of CONFEMEN Countries’ Educational Systems, PASEC. r
Educational Research Network in East and Southern Africa, ERNESA. r
Southern and Eastern African Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality, SACMEQ.

46

While it is acknowledged that EFA ‘is primarily the business of each country, and can only be achieved through leadership and action from within’,24 a need is also recognised for the collaborative expertise of these organisations to provide research capacity, research reports, conferences, workshops, seminars and newsletters for sharing of results and learning from the experiences of colleagues throughout the region. A crucial resolution of the Johannesburg conference was that education – including primary education – was to be envisaged as a fundamental aspect of the African Renaissance, ‘the resurgence of a vibrant Africa, rich in its cultural diversity, history, languages and arts, standing united to end its marginalisation in world progress and development.’25 Emphasis was placed on the need for education ministries to work in closer collaboration with civil society, parent communities and teachers’ unions. It was acknowledged that primary education in SSA faced an enormous challenge if it was to meet the expectations of the new millennium. The Johannesburg conference expressed concern that a review of educational progress was made very difficult by the absence or inconsistency of statistics or, in other cases, incomplete analysis and quality control of the data. This meant that, often, statistics could not be compared with the policy directions that informed developments, and they could not reliably be used in education planning and management. Furthermore, data referred only to those sectors of education within the responsibilities of ministries of education, so that private, informal or vocational training or home-based education could not be encompassed. To enhance the gathering and collation of data, ADEA supervised the formation of the National Education Statistical Information Systems (NESIS) programme, with offices in Harare, Zimbabwe, and Dakar, Senegal, to assist African countries to build the capacity of their national educational information systems, thereby decentralising the collection of data to sub-regions. On the evidence of recent World Bank publications, the problem of incomplete data continues to prevail.

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

Figures for only slightly more than 50 per cent of SSAn countries are available for important information like primary school enrolment rates and the ratio of pupils reaching Grade 5 of the primary cycle, and statistics are far from complete for other indicators such as the primary school completion rate and the rates of literacy among the youth. Data from some countries with very large populations (such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria) are either absent or fragmentary, so any attempt to aggregate the information into regional, or subregional, trends is in danger of skewing the situation. The method adopted in this chapter is to refer to data from selected countries that can indicate either relations between different measures of educational targets or rates of progress over the last ten to fifteen years. Summarising the decade, a United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) report indicates that, by 2000, only eight per cent of the primary education target had been reached in SSA, leaving 92 per cent to be covered by 2015.26 If, over a 25 year period beginning in 1990, the MDG is to be achieved, then, in the first ten years, the region accomplished only about one fifth of its overall target. Only seven countries were on track. At this rate, the report estimates, SSA will not enjoy universal primary education until the year 2100. Bridging the gender gap in primary schools will not be complete until 2025. The report stresses the central importance of the education MDG. ‘Failure to meet the education target will reduce the chances of reaching other MDGs because basic education is key to unlocking positive externalities and synergies.’27 Yet this MDG deserves special attention and endeavour. ‘There is no good reason why universal primary education should not yet be a practical reality. Its cost is perfectly affordable; no new technological breakthroughs are needed to get all children into school; there is consensus that it makes good economic sense.’28 While there is consensus throughout the region about the last of these points, and widespread agreement on the second, reports from individual countries (see below) give different perspectives on the first point, the current affordability of basic education for all.

THE INDICATORS To monitor progress towards the MDG of universal primary education, UNESCO decided on three essential indicators: r
the net enrolment ratio in primary education r
the proportion of pupils starting Grade 1 who reach Grade 5 r
the literacy rate of 15- to 24-year-olds.

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These indicators cannot be separated from an indicator set for another MDG, promoting gender equality: r
the ratio of girls to boys in primary education. Before examining the extent of progress in Africa, some comment on these indicators is called for. Each of them tells us part of the story, but not the whole story.

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NET ENROLMENT RATE The first indicator, NER, is the ratio of children of official school age (as it is defined by the national education system) who are actually enrolled in school compared with the population of the corresponding official school age.29 This is chosen in preference to the gross enrolment ratio, which includes the total enrolment regardless of age. While using the NER rather than the GER has the dual merits of enhancing statistical accuracy and of monitoring the proportion of a defined age cohort that is not enrolled, it also has the disadvantage of excluding from the reckoning children who are slightly older who, for a limited number of years, have been excluded from school. In a continent beset by frequent wars, forced migrations, periodic drought and other calamities, this is a real problem, because it implies that they will, statistically if not actually, be lost to the education system, so that a country may be able to submit a 100 per cent NER without taking their continuing absence into account. The more interruptions there are to a country’s annual school enrolment, the less the NER approximates to the actual (gross) enrolment ratio. In any society, however, the target of 100 per cent net enrolment is unrealistic. It implies that every single child would enter school at exactly the official school age, would be promoted through the cycle without any repetition of a grade, that there would be no significant school disruptions, and that all children would complete the cycle at the same time. Even in the most advanced countries this is never achieved; the average for countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has been stable over many years at 94 per cent.30 Given the complex array of problems peculiar to Africa, it would appear that a more modest target (perhaps not much higher than 80 per cent) would, for countries currently with ratios far lower than this, represent an achievement comparable, in relative terms, to the achievement of the OECD. For a country such as Burkina Faso, with a ratio of 35 per cent in 2001/02 to reach 80 per cent by 2015 should be considered as an educational triumph rather than a failure to meet a predetermined target. This is especially the case when the poor performance throughout the 1990s is borne in mind. 48

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Table 2:

Primary education: gross enrolment ratios 2001/02 and net enrolment ratios, 1990/91 and 2000/0131 Gross enrolment ratio, 2001/02

Net enrolment ratio, 1990/91

Net enrolment ratio, 2000/01

Eritrea

61

24

43

Rwanda

117

66

96

Tanzania

70

51

54

104

49

71

Burkina Faso

48 (2002/03)

27

35

Côte d’Ivoire

80

47

63

The Gambia

79

51

73

Niger

40

25

34

Togo

124

75

92

Botswana

103

93

81

Mozambique

99

47

60

Namibia

106

89

78

South Africa

105

99

90

Swaziland

100

88

77

Zambia

99

–

66

Country East Africa

West and Central Africa Benin

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

Using selected examples, table 2 below compares primary school enrolment ratios (GERs and NERs). It also shows certain patterns of change in the NERs during the previous decade.

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Southern Africa

The table shows differences, in all cases, between the GER and the NER. The larger this difference is, the greater the number of children in primary school outside of the official age bracket. In some cases (for example, Mozambique) this can be attributed to the fact that the country has recently endured years of disturbance in the forms of civil war and devastating floods, preventing children from entering school at the appropriate age. Although Mozambique has drawn up an ambitious strategy, under the auspices of the UN System-wide Special Initiative on Africa, to achieve universal primary education by 2006,32 an official report issued by the country (see below) regards this as a most unlikely projection. In other cases, a significant difference must be attributed to a high rate of

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grade repetition. It is encouraging to note that, in most countries, the NER has increased, in some cases dramatically, Rwanda being an outstanding example. It is less encouraging to find that, in other countries with exceptionally low NERs at the beginning of the 1990s (Eritrea, Burkina Faso, Niger), the increase has been correspondingly low. This suggests that, for substantial improvement to occur, NERs need first to reach a certain critical point, and progress towards that critical point is very slow. For southern Africa, on the other hand, there appears to be a different problem: a sub-continental decrease in already high primary NERs. The most likely explanation is that more and more children in this area are being kept out of primary school because of the ravages of HIV/Aids; they may be orphans who cannot afford even the least expensive schooling, or children of infected parents and elder siblings who cannot do without them at home. It should at the same time be noted that NERs are probably not an accurate indicator of actual school attendance. They are based on school registrations at the beginning of a year. They cannot measure the degree to which enrolled pupils experience, for a number of reasons, occasional or severely interrupted participation in class.

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PUPILS REACHING GRADE 5

50

Bruns et al. states that there are limitations, as well, to the second indicator, the proportion of pupils starting Grade 1 who reach Grade 5. A high rate of retention is usually a sign of a country’s recent history of peaceful development and prosperity. This has not been the experience of many countries in the region. Taken as an effect of the NER, it excludes over-age children, and it takes into account only those who are enrolled ‘on-time’ in Grade 5 (thus excluding those who are forced to experience gaps in their primary education). It also does not measure the ratio that successfully completes the final grade. While the latter point can be explained by the fact that most education authorities are better able to calculate beginning-ofthe-year enrolment figures than end-of-year pass rates, it is a less useful indicator than a primary education completion rate; ‘the key number of policy interest to countries from a human capital standpoint is the share of children who eventually obtain (that is, complete) a primary-level education,’33 especially because, in many countries, the culmination of the cycle is a summative assessment of capacity to employ the cumulative skills that have been attained throughout the cycle. There can therefore be a significant difference between the rate of survival to Grade 5 and the rate of successful completion. This is borne out in a number of SSA countries. In Chad, the share of the age cohort reaching Grade 5 is over 50 per cent, whereas the completion rate is only 22 per cent; in Eritrea, over 80 per cent compared with 33 per cent – and these are but two of a number of similar instances. The following table indicates the share of the cohort entering Grade 1 – male and female – who manage to reach Grade 5.

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Share of cohort reaching Grade 5, 1990/91 and 2000/0134 Share of cohort reaching Grade 5, 1990/91 Male

Share of cohort reaching Grade 5, 1990/91 Female

Share of cohort reaching Grade 5, 2000/01 Male

Share of cohort reaching Grade 5, 2000/01 Female

Eritrea

85

80

89

74

Ethiopia

61

54

63

59

Burundi

65

58

68

59

Rwanda

61

59

39

41

Tanzania

77

81

79

83

Benin

55

56

89

78

Burkina Faso

71

68

68

71

Côte d’Ivoire

75

70

73

65

The Gambia

85

89

75

63

Mauritania

75

75

54

56

Niger

61

65

73

68

Togo

55

44

88

80

Botswana

94

98

87

92

Lesotho

58

83

60

74

Madagascar

22

21

33

34

Mozambique

37

28

56

47

Namibia

61

65

94

94

Swaziland

74

78

69

79

Country East Africa

West and Central Africa

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

Table 3:

Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

Southern Africa

Between 1990/91 and 2000/01, the share of the cohort reaching Grade 5 rose dramatically in some countries: Benin, Togo and Namibia are examples. If the trends continue, these countries appear to be on track to reach the MDG goal of a full five years of schooling for all children. While Mozambique remains far from that goal, its increase during that period has been equally remarkable. Madagascar, on the other hand, while increasing, remained in the situation that prevailed in Mozambique back in 1990. The situation in other countries, however, appears to be deteriorating. Rwanda, the Gambia and Mauritania have

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CHAPTER 2 Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

52

experienced severe declines in continued enrolment. Ten-year cycles can, however, create a misleading impression in some cases. In Rwanda, the 1994 genocide was a dramatic setback for basic education. Since then there has been – starting from a decimated base – a slow but steady improvement. In most countries the share of female pupils reaching Grade 5 is lower than the share of males, in some cases by a margin of over 10 per cent. This clearly indicates that, in the majority of countries, more females than males are required to abandon their schooling prematurely, mostly to provide domestic assistance to households. Interestingly, a number of southern African countries (Lesotho and Swaziland being the most notable) have reverse male/female preponderance; this could be attributed to the large number of young males whose schooling is curtailed by their being required as herders and stock-minders. Increased enrolment ratios and the number of pupils reaching Grade 5 do not, in themselves, indicate improvements in the quality and efficiency of an education system. Malawi is a case in point.35 Simultaneous with the advent of democratic government in 1994, an increase of public expenditure in primary education and the introduction of a policy of free basic education, the primary school NER leapt by nearly 70 per cent within a year. The participation of girls, including over-age girls previously denied places, doubled. Yet, within the next four years, the proportion of pupils reaching Grade 5 decreased by more than half, as did enrolment in the country’s adult literacy programme, and literacy rates, especially women’s literacy, began to fall sharply. The Malawi experience indicates that some of the effects of a drive for increased NER at the expense of other educational benchmarks are damaging to the system as a whole. It can have counter-productive effects, such as the employment of untrained or poorly trained teachers, inflation of the teachers’ salary bill at the expense of learning materials and resource production, and high drop-out and non-completion rates. All of these have negative consequences for post-school learning incentives and opportunities. Enrolment ratio increases can prove to be educational mirages. ‘To date, efforts to achieve Education for All have focused heavily on getting children enrolled in school, rather than on improving either completion rates or student learning outcomes.’36 Evidence indicates that a majority of adults who have had less than a full primary schooling of five to six years are unable to reach a minimum level of functional literacy and numeracy. Analysts concerned to distinguish between participation in schooling and effective accomplishment of the full primary school cycle prefer to measure the latter by means of a primary completion rate (PCR). The PCR is an indicator of the annual exit-level output of the primary education system. It is the percentage of students successfully completing the last year of primary school, calculated by taking the total number of pupils successfully completing the last grade of primary school (minus the number who are repeating that grade) in relation to the total number of children who are of official

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Table 4: Net enrolment ratio (NER) 2001/02, repetition rate, and primary completion rate (PCR) 2000/01–2002/03 as a percentage of the relevant age group37 NER 2001/02

Repeaters (% of enrolment)

PCR 2001/02 Total

PCR 2001/02 Male

PCR 2001/02 Female

Eritrea

43

17.5

33

38

29

Ethiopia

46

9.9

18

–

–

Burundi

53

26.3

27

30

24

Rwanda

96

36.1

25

25

24

Tanzania

54

2.5

58

57

59

Country East Africa

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

graduation age. The PCR counts all pupils completing the final grade, including over-age children who started school late or have repeated grades. It measures ‘any-time’ rather than ‘on-time’ completion.

Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

West and Central Africa Benin

71

20.1

45

58

32

Burkina Faso

35

14.0

29

34

24

Côte d’Ivoire

63

23.3

48

57

38

The Gambia

73

10.6

69

77

60

Mauritania

67

14.1

46

48

43

Niger

34

8.6

21

25

17

Togo

92

22.5

84

100

67

Botswana

81

3.2

91

87

95

Lesotho

84

19.7

65

55

75

Madagascar

69

29.0

41

40

41

Mozambique

60

22.9

22

27

17

Namibia

78

13.0

95

91

100

South Africa

90

8.8

90

89

91

Swaziland

77

16.7

74

77

72

Southern Africa

Whereas GER and NER include repeating students a number of times, the PCR counts each pupil only once. It can therefore measure actual trends, even when a school system has experienced a period of instability, and is a reasonable criterion

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of progress toward the MDG. Subtraction of the number of repeaters in the previous year, and the assumption that this number will remain reasonably constant from year to year, compensates for the fact that many education systems are able to provide data for enrolments in the final grade more easily than for exit from the grade. It must, at the same time, be noted that many countries have a period of compulsory basic education that goes beyond Grade 5, so that basic education completion rates can, in some cases, be substituted for primary completion rates, and this can account for significant discrepancies between PCR and numbers reaching Grade 5. This table arguably gives a more accurate reflection of the state of primary schooling in SSA. There are, in many cases, vast discrepancies between the ratios of those pupils reaching Grade 5 and those completing primary school. Some of them must be attributable to inconsistent data collection and analysis. At the same time, it suggests two possible educational phenomena: one, that drop-out rates are most severe in the later stages of primary schooling; and, two, that many pupils are allowed to proceed through the primary school grades but are unable to pass exit-level assessment tests. The latter possibility seems, however, to be contradicted by the high rates of grade repetition indicated – in a number of cases well above one in five pupils being classed as repeaters. If completion of the primary phase of schooling is to be taken as the criterion for achievement of the MDG, then the current situation is clearly a matter of grave concern. Out of 19 countries taken as a sample, ten have primary completion rates lower than 50 per cent; of those ten, seven have unusually high rates of repetition. In 12 cases, the completion rate for males exceeds the rate for females, and in at least four instances the male/female ratios are heavily weighed against girls. The actual picture of primary school completion is further aggravated by the fact that, taking six of these countries as reference points (Benin, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Niger, Togo and Madagascar), it has been found that rural pupils and, more particularly, rural girls suffer most from non-completion. The completion rate for rural pupils is less than 70 per cent of the overall average, while just over 50 per cent of rural girls complete primary schooling.38 Bruns et al. further states that a population-weighted comparison of the world’s developing regions indicates that Africa lags far behind other regions in terms of primary completion progress.39 By the year 2000 Africa’s overall PCR was 51, compared with a ratio of 81 for all developing countries. Whereas the overall rate had increased by eight points in the period 1990–2000, Africa’s had increased by a mere one point. It cannot be argued that the slow rate of progress is entirely attributable to economic constraints on the provision of education. A comparison of some countries in two regions with similar average gross national income per capita (South Asia, US$460, and SSA, US$450) shows that many South Asian countries (for example, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Cambodia)

54

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

To understand why the first decade of EFA failed to reach so many children, youths and adults, we have to know how learning opportunities are distributed in various environments and, for each type of settlement and condition of existence, we must ask ‘education for whom and for what purpose?’41

Response to this question has to include consideration of the unique needs of communities involved in traditional subsistence farming and animal husbandry, cash crop plantations, mining towns that employ large numbers of illiterate migrant workers, as well as those living in cosmopolitan and capital cities, many of whom are recent migrants, displaced persons and refugees. There are new pressures to cater for multitudes of urban street children and HIV/Aids orphans, many of whom are illiterate and cannot speak the mainstream language of the urban sophisticates. Allocation of funds for primary education is a particularly difficult challenge. With a growing youth population spread sparsely over large territory (Africa has a population density of 19 persons per square kilometre, much lower than the global density of about 36), funds are being greatly stretched. By the year 2004 the total amount of operating and equipment costs, for the primary sector alone (keeping the per capita expenses constant) would be in the region of eleven billion dollars per year, two billion more than the total expenditure on all levels of education in 1993.42

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

are achieving significantly higher PCRs than SSA countries with similar world rankings (for example, Benin, The Gambia and Rwanda).40 According to ADEA, increasing enrolment and completion rates in SSA is an extraordinarily complex undertaking. One of the reasons is the extreme variation in the region as a whole and even within countries, ‘in wealth, poverty, security, ways of obtaining a livelihood, language, culture and ways to survive and thrive.’

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COMPLETION RATES AND THE SUPPLY OF TEACHERS Notwithstanding the importance of increased capital expenditure (school buildings and classrooms) as well as learning materials including readers and other textbooks, the most critical resource for effective basic education is the provision of an adequate number of well-trained and qualified teachers. Data indicate that the ratio of qualified to non-qualified teachers varies widely from country to country in the region. Although in some countries this ratio is over 90 per cent, in others scarcely half of the teaching corps is qualified.43 Literacy and numeracy development require a high level of teaching skill, and the use of large numbers of unqualified (and usually under-paid) classroom practitioners can have a counter-productive effect, instilling in pupils a level of frustration at lack of progress, combined with an erosion of self-confidence, that leads to early exit from school. A drive to increase net enrolment that is not supported by a correspondingly

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adequate supply of qualified teachers creates a further barrier to children’s performance: unmanageably high pupil/teacher ratios. One detrimental effect of high ratios – especially in cases where there is a lack of learning resources – is an unavoidable resort to teacher-dominated, one-way methods of tuition that inhibit socially useful collaborative approaches to learning and a sense, in the child, of self-reliance. For those forced by circumstances to leave primary school before completion, and even those whose schooling ends with the primary phase, the absence of such modes of learning seriously inhibit their out-of-school prospects of self-employment or entrepreneurial initiative. High ratios create a further problem in that, in a region where a large percentage of young pupils have been traumatised to varying degrees and by a number of causes, the reduced capacity of the teacher to engage with individual pupils to provide occasional advice, support and counselling is another factor limiting the optimal development of educational potential. The burden shouldered by the teacher becomes more onerous, but the professional rewards are greatly reduced, together with a decrease in pupils’ completion rates. The table below suggests the likely effects of inflated pupil/teacher ratios caused by an uncontrolled increase in enrolment rates.

Table 5: Pupil/teacher ratio, net enrolment ratio and primary completion rate44

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Country

56

Pupil/teacher ratio, primary schools, 1999–2000

Primary Net enrolment ratio, primary completion rate, 2001/02 schools, 2001/02

Chad

71

58

22

Mozambique

66

60

22

Ethiopia

57

46

18

Benin

53

71

45

Burundi

49

53

27

South Africa

37

90

90

Togo

35

92

84

Ghana

32

60

59

Kenya

32

70

56

Swaziland

32

77

74

Botswana

27

81

91

Pupil/teacher ratios can, of course, be misleading, because they do not take into account the use of double shifts using one teacher for two or more parallel

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

classes. Conversely, they are unable to consider the under-utilisation of teachers. Furthermore, with rates of teacher and pupil absenteeism as well as turnover rates among teachers reportedly high in many parts, they should not be taken as a proxy for actual classroom situations. The result of these factors is that ‘[actual] teaching hours and days in operation are decreasing.’45 The sample in table 5 indicates a significant range of class sizes throughout the region. The range would inevitably result in great discrepancies between classroom methods and the capacity of teachers to engage on a regular basis with the progress, or lack of progress, of individual pupils. This, in turn, has a noticeable effect on pupils’ prospects of survival and completion. In this sample, differences between net enrolment ratios and completion rates vary in close proximity to class sizes, while there is a fairly consistent indirect ratio between class sizes and completion rates. If, as has already been suggested, the best measure of social and economic value accruing from basic education is the rate of completion of a full primary phase curriculum, then the cost-effectiveness of very large classes becomes a matter of great importance to education planners.

Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

GENDER PARITY It was also noted that, in many countries in the region, the primary completion rate for girls is significantly lower than it is for boys. Since 1990 the gender gap has been increasing in the region as a whole.46 Where gender bias and discrimination are still widespread, and where enhancing role models are not available in their domestic environments, the image and calibre of the teacher can play a crucial part in girls’ educational disposition and performance. Yet, in many countries – as shown in table 6 – the percentage of female teachers in primary schools falls far below the percentage of the total population. Where gender bias and discrimination persist, it is subtly represented by the female-poor staffing profile of schools, which appears to have a bearing on girls’ prospects of succeeding in primary school. With two outstanding exceptions in the sample (Togo and Burundi), there is a correlation between the number of female teachers employed and the completion rates for girls. The exceptions imply that the correlation is not causal, yet the overall picture suggests that imbalances are more likely than not to have a retarding effect on the quest for gender equality in primary education. The dearth of female teacher role models is not the only manifestation of gender inequality that calls for attention. In the school, environment factors such as the absence of separate female toilets, gender-insensitive curricula or textbooks, and lack of security from sexual harassment can each have an equally discriminatory effect. It should be of concern that the percentage of female teachers employed in SSA decreased from 1995–200047 and that, where the percentage is particularly low (for example, in Benin, Ethiopia, Ghana,

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Malawi, Mozambique and Sierra Leone – all under 40 per cent), the percentage of properly trained teachers is similarly low.48 In these and some other countries, the female teacher is not only under-represented but comparatively under-qualified. This situation needs to be remedied if gender parity among pupils is to become a reality. The gender inequalities are even more severe in rural areas.49 In the long run, the provision of competent qualified teachers in the right proportion of females to males is likely to prove even more important to gender redress than pupil/teacher ratios.

Table 6: Percentage of female teachers in primary schools, 2001/02 and female primary completion rate, 2001/02–2002/03 (ADI and WDI)50 Percentage of female teachers in primary schools

Female primary completion rate (PCR)

Chad

10

13

Togo

12

67

Benin

20

32

Cote d’Ivoire

20

38

Burkina Faso

23

24

Mali

23

31

Mozambique

26

17

Ghana

37

57

Malawi

38

48

Kenya

42

58

Burundi

54

24

Swaziland

75

72

South Africa

75

91

Botswana

81

95

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Country

58

In setting out to remedy these gender disparities in the primary classroom, and to overturn unpromising predictions,51 planners need to consider the likelihood of medium- to long-term redress in cases where it is necessary. The prospects of achieving redress can be gauged from the ratio of females with access to secondary and tertiary education; the qualified teachers of the future will emerge from the pool of the educated. Table 7 indicates that, whereas, on the basis of a gender parity index (the ratio of females to males), the ratio of girls in primary school consistently exceeds the current ratio of primary school female teachers, and

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Table 7:

Primary school female teachers and gender parity indices (GPIs) in primary, secondary and tertiary education (EFA)52 Percentage of female teachers in primary schools

Primary education GPI

Secondary education GPI

Tertiary education GPI

Chad

10

0.63

0.28

0.17

Togo

13

0.80

0.45

0.20

Benin

20

0.68

0.45

0.24

Mozambique

26

0.76

0.64

0.79

Ethiopia

30

0.69

0.66

0.27

Niger

33

0.68

0.66

0.34

Uganda

33

0.90

0.64

0.52

Ghana

35

0.91

0.81

0.40

Eritrea

41

0.82

0.71

0.15

Kenya

42

0.99

0.91

0.77

Zimbabwe

48

0.97

0.88

0.60

Zambia

50

0.95

0.81

0.47

Burundi

54

0.80

0.77

0.36

Mauritius

55

1.00

0.94

1.36

South Africa

75

0.95

1.09

1.23

Swaziland

75

0.95

1.00

0.87

Lesotho

80

1.05

1.20

1.76

Botswana

81

1.00

1.06

0.89

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Country

In other cases, however (Kenya and Mozambique are outstanding examples), there is a substantial tertiary GPI relative to the current ratio of female teachers. If these trends can be translated into products of tertiary education entering the teaching profession and being attracted to the primary phase of education, then the chances of gender parity in the teaching cohort, enhancing a drive towards greater female enrolment and completion rates, appear to be favourable. In other

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

is only slightly lower at secondary school level, it is inconsistent when tertiary education is taken into account and, where the percentage of female teachers is lowest, the gender parity index in tertiary education is more or less at the same low level.

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cases where the GPI is low throughout the educational sector, there is little likelihood that the problem will be resolved, especially in countries and communities where male-dominated hierarchies do not consider a redress of GPI disparities to be an urgent matter.

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YOUTH LITERACY The third MDG indicator defined by UNESCO is the achievement of literacy among youths from 15 to 24 years. ‘Since the formal primary education system is one of the chief means of increasing literacy, … the importance of completing the primary education cycle for the acquisition of literacy skills cannot be over-emphasised.’53 The literacy rate is intended, however, to measure not only the acquisition but also the retention levels of literacy; retaining the skills acquired through primary education can result in the development of associated life skills and the capacity for lifelong learning. Retention is especially important for the high proportion of youth whose primary school completion does not lead to access to secondary schooling. Where opportunities for some form of further education, such as distance education, do not exist, acquired literacy skills can prove to be evanescent. In addition, the definition of literacy is a matter of controversy. For the purpose of regional and national assessment, UNESCO defines a literate person (often called functionally literate) as someone who can with understanding ‘read and write a simple statement on his or her everyday life.’54 This definition has been criticised for being too narrow. It is, in fact, somewhat narrower than the criterion used by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which defines literacy as ‘whether a person is able to understand and employ printed information in daily life, at home, at work and in the community.’ The divide is not between those who can read and write and those who cannot. It is between those capable of applying those skills for personal, family and communal benefits and those for whom the printed word becomes a dead letter outside of the school environment. One of the limitations of the UNESCO definition is that it does not measure a person’s ability to deal with numbers, signs and symbols. Based on a particular form, that of narrative, it cannot guarantee the capacity a person has to comprehend prices and money exchange, or a pamphlet on the prevention of HIV/Aids, or the administration of a drug regimen, or to complete accurately an application form for a job – acts of reading and writing that are vital to the survival of those with limited educational experience. However, because of lack of global data based on any another definition of literacy, the UNESCO criterion must suffice.

60

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Country

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Benin

40

57

73

25

38

9

5

Burkina Faso

26

36

26

14

14

(1990/91) (1990/91) 3 2

Mali

27

38

32

17

17

(1990/91) (1990/91) 3 1

Niger

17

25

34

9

15

3

2

Senegal

39

50

61

30

44

–

–

Ethiopia

42

52

63

34

52

6

4

Liberia

56

75

86

39

55

11

8

Sudan

60

76

84

54

74

–

–

Togo

60

79

88

48

67

12

8

Kenya

84

93

96

87

95

8

8

South Africa

86

89

92

88

92

13

13

Tanzania

77

89

94

77

89

5

5

Zambia

80

86

91

76

87

7

7

Zimbabwe

90

97

99

91

96

10

9

Low

Medium

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

Table 8: Total literacy rates 2002, youth literacy rates percentage of 15- to 24-year-olds) and expected years of schooling (ADI and WDI)55

High

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Legend Column 1: Country; Column 2: Literacy rate (percentage of population 15 years of age and above that is literate); Column 3: Youth literacy rate (percentage of the population ages 15–24): male, 1990; Column 4: Youth literacy rate: male 2002; Column 5: Youth literacy rate: female, 1990; Column 6: Youth literacy rate: female, 2002; Column 7: Expected years of schooling: 2000/01, male; Column 8: Expected years of schooling: 2000/01, female.

There is clearly an across-the-board improvement in literacy rates if one compares the rates for the 15- to 24-year-old group with those for the population as a whole. But, where general literacy rates are low, the rates for the youth group remain similarly, and disappointingly, low. In all instances, the youth literacy rate for females is lower than that for males, in some cases remarkably lower, and this appears to be directly related to disparities in the number of years males and females are expected to remain in school. For SSA as a whole, the adult (15 years or older) literacy rate is 71 per cent for males but only 56 per cent for females. The youth literacy rate is higher, with a smaller gender gap: 83 per cent for males and

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74 per cent for females. Yet the rate of development of literacy among the youth suggests that the region as a whole is very unlikely to achieve the goal of universal literacy by the target date. The major problem is the slow increase in literacy among young females, especially in countries with a mainly illiterate general population. It is nevertheless encouraging to note that, in most countries, progress is being made, however slow it may be. The progress needs, however, to take into account the kind of literacy (or literacies) that is being assessed. In a study of 14 countries in southern and eastern Africa, it was found that, while girls in a majority of the countries performed better at reading literacy, boys out-performed girls in mathematics literacy.56 Universality in literacy refers not only to the number who are defined as literate but also to the range of skills that literacy encompasses. It should be accepted, however, that universal (100 per cent) literacy is an unrealistic target for even those countries with the highest current rates of literacy. For others, it would be more practical to set achievable targets based on existing realities, and to regard consistent progress towards those targets as a satisfactory achievement. The targets should take as a priority a narrowing of the gender gap in literacy, as a task equal in importance to an absolute increase (which could, if taken as an end in itself, maintain or even increase the gender gap).

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PUBLIC EXPENDITURE ON EDUCATION

62

It is generally acknowledged that, comparing the costs and benefits of schooling and using formal sector earnings as a barometer, the average rates of return on education expenditure are high relative to returns on spending in other sectors, and are highest for primary school. Evidence from East Asia ‘indicates that by far the single largest determinant of economic growth for eight East Asian economies was primary education.’57 In Africa, although the total amount of public funds allocated to education has increased since 1990, this increase masks a drop in educational expenditure in real terms. Total public expenditure on education in SSA amounts to approximately 5.6 per cent of the gross national product, but the median expenditure on primary education has remained stagnant at 1.7 per cent in west and central Africa and has experienced only a slight recent increase to 1.5 per cent in east and southern Africa.58 In most countries the proportion of public expenditure on primary education for teachers’ salaries amounts to as much as 90 per cent, so there is little money left for quality investment in school upgrading, the provision of textbooks and classroom learning resources, and teacher in-service development. Access to essential teaching and learning resources becomes dependent on contributions from (usually very poor) communities or else donor agencies. Most of the funds provided by the World Bank and, to a lesser extent, the African Development Bank have been used largely for these purposes.59

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

According to the EFA the regional mean for public expenditure on education in SSA (3.4 per cent of gross national product) is lower than it is for developing countries worldwide, which is 4.1 per cent.60 Of direct concern to achievement of the MDG is the amount allocated to primary education. The allocation is uneven, ranging from above 20 per cent of the gross domestic product per capita to well below 10 per cent. Where there has been attainment or near-attainment of a primary completion rate of, say, 90 or more, a decrease in primary education spending can be attributed to a re-adjustment following a successful period of intense focus on the education MDG. There have been decreases, however, even in countries with very low primary completion rates (Chad 22, Mauritania 46, Senegal 49). Public expenditure on primary education actually decreased during the period 1990/91 to 2001/02 in more countries than in which it increased.61 Africa Recovery reports that in most cases, the decrease can be attributed to the effects on public expenditure of the burdens of structural adjustment; International Monetary Fund (IMF) inflation targets have, effectively, made the Jomtien educational targets irrelevant.62 But an increase in public expenditure on education is very difficult to achieve. If one takes a daily income of two US dollars to be the absolute household minimum for its children’s education to be a feasible priority, then as much as 76 per cent of the region’s inhabitants are not in a position to expend any earnings on education,63 and public funds for education have to be gathered from a tax-base as low as 24 per cent of the population. In this situation, governments become sorely pressed to favour the educational interests of the small but relatively wealthy tax-base, whose interests would lean heavily towards well-resourced secondary and tertiary education sectors, at the expense of universal primary education.

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FUTURE SUPPLY OF TEACHERS Because a continued supply of qualified teachers is essential for sound education, planning in the sector needs to establish norms for an appropriate rate of passage from primary completion to secondary schooling and, beyond, into tertiary education. From both educational and economic perspectives, this is another important indicator of the relevance and quality of the primary school curriculum. Targeting the MDG for primary education without attention to its effect on post-primary educational opportunities would be short-sighted and, ultimately, counter-productive. But what should these norms be? Table 9 gives the gross enrolment ratios in, and the public expenditure allocated to, the three educational sectors in 10 SSA countries.

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Table 9: Ratios of enrolment in and expenditure on primary, secondary and tertiary education (WDI 2004, 72–74 and 76–78)64 Country

2

3

4

5

6

7

Botswana

103

6.0

73

5.5

5

88.6

Burundi

71

11.6

11

61.7

2

691.5

Chad

73

9.5

12

28.4

1

422.7

Kenya

96

0.9

32

2.2

4

256.7

Mauritius

106

9.0

80

13.9

11

48.7

Niger

40

16.8

6

56.7

1

304.5

Rwanda

117

6.9

14

22.0

2

575.0

South Africa

105

14.3

86

18.3

15

56.8

Swaziland

100

10.4

45

29.7

5

253.2

Togo

124

11.0

36

26.0

4

297.7

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Legend Column 1: Country; Column 2: Gross enrolment ratio (GER), primary 2001/02; Column 3: Public expenditure per student, primary (percentage of GDP per capita); Column 4: Gross enrolment ratio (GER), secondary 2001/02; Column 5: Public expenditure per student, secondary (percentage of GDP per capita); Column 6: Gross enrolment ratio (GER), tertiary 2001/02; Column 7: Public expenditure per student, tertiary (percentage of GDP per capita).

64

The table shows that there is no direct proportion between primary enrolment rates and enrolment in secondary and tertiary education. The difference between primary and secondary GERs varies enormously, from over 100 to less than 20, while the differential between primary and secondary school expenditure allocated by countries is similarly great, ranging from –0.5 to over 50. The range of difference between secondary and tertiary enrolment is just as broad as it is between primary and secondary school (a high of 71 and a low of 5). There also appears, in general, to be a direct relationship between low enrolment ratios and extremely high per capita costs in the tertiary education sector. Expenditure ratios between primary and secondary, and between secondary and tertiary, education appear – in some cases – to be exorbitant. The figures suggest that there are no agreed regional norms. There is a danger that a universal targeting of a uniform achievement of the MDG is creating a situation in which a focus on this single goal is isolating it from a sober country-by-country evaluation of the education sector as a whole. Dembélé states that the high costs of tertiary (and, to a lesser extent, secondary) education pose a major problem for the production of the number of teachers required to pursue the goal of universal primary education at a

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UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

time when the number of child-clients continues to increase. Between 2000 and 2015, Africa will need to produce over 1.3 million new teachers,65 an increase of 54 per cent over its current number. Countries face a dilemma of trying to reconcile the need to train and deploy large numbers of new teachers without exceeding education budgets. There are considerable differences between countries in the duration and cost of teacher education, varying from three- or even four-year post-school programmes to nothing higher than an end-of-primary school certificate. Certain trends point towards very curtailed initial training. In Guinea, for example, a ‘short cycle’ of teacher training comprises no longer than six months of coursework interspersed with nine months of supervised student teaching with full responsibility for a classroom, and a ‘long cycle’ comprises only 18 months.66 From a financial viewpoint, such urgent measures make sense. But the full value of these rapid training initiatives can be properly measured only after there has been a longitudinal study of, firstly, the graduates’ capacity for quality provision in teaching and learning and, secondly, the retention rate of these new teachers thrust early into a very demanding school environment. Programmes for the production of quickly-certificated teachers need also to take into account a possibly adverse reaction from better-qualified members of the existing cohort who, throughout the region, are expressing opposition, through strikes and other measures, to a perceived (and, in some cases, governmentally orchestrated) erosion of both their professional and economic status. Some countries already experience the problem of having teachers absent themselves from their school duties to seek second- or even third-stream income, to the detriment of their pupils. If a continued erosion of the teacher’s status were to increase the extent of this practice, and the presence in classrooms of experienced practitioners were to be reduced, it would adversely affect the prospects of the new intake for effective, regular supervision and guidance. Alongside drives towards short-duration teacher training, education authorities need to consider the implementation of incentives for experienced teachers to accept their supervisory roles as a fundamental part of their professional profile. Funds directed to this end would be a sound investment, in that they would encourage in-service development for new teachers and reduce the risk of early-career attrition.

PRIVATE EXPENDITURE ON EDUCATION Limitations on public expenditure, coupled with a drive to increase enrolment, usually results in a greater financial burden being imposed on households in the form of fees. School fees can take a variety of forms: tuition fees, textbook charges, the cost of compulsory uniforms, contributions to parent-teacher and community organisations, and activity fees. Worldwide, fees represent approximately

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66

20 per cent of total education spending, but in Africa it is considerably higher: as much as 30 per cent.67 Perhaps more than any other factor, high fees act as a brake on primary school access for children of poor families. Some African countries have abolished tuition fees. In Uganda, the abolition of tuition fees in 1996 led to an immediate 70 per cent increase in enrolment; when Cameroon did so in 1999, the primary gross enrolment rose by 17 per cent; in Tanzania doing away with tuition fees in 2001 led to a 28 per cent increase. Yet the case of Malawi, mentioned earlier, shows that an abolition of fees, while it can draw a larger number of pupils into school, cannot be guaranteed to keep them there throughout the primary cycle. When tuition fees are abolished, school running costs can still be charged to pupils in other forms, such as textbook charges. For many, affordability of education depends on a lowering of direct costs across the board. The World Bank has introduced a scheme for the subsidisation or low-cost rental of textbooks; the scheme has been applied in many countries, but with only limited success. Subsidies ‘appear to have been unsuccessful in reaching the poor.’68 The Bank observes that, in some cases, a full set of primary school textbooks can amount to more than twice the average annual spending on education of many families. Countries in need of an alternative source of income to compensate for the abolition of most or all school fees can make use of the Bank’s Fast Track Initiative Catalytic Fund, which provides temporary financing for this very purpose. However, the elimination of fees alone is of only limited educational benefit, unless it is accompanied by initiatives that make for a meaningful and productive school environment, such as the provision of competent and committed teachers whose professional development is assisted through in-service upgrading of skills and the provision of necessary resources and materials for teaching and learning. Poor families are also confronted with the indirect opportunity costs of their children’s schooling. These include loss of domestic chore and sibling care time, and a reduction of earnings.69 In many cultures, the costs are higher for girls than they are for boys, because of greater domestic work time being imposed on girls. In certain SSA countries, many parents take the view, too, that schooling interferes with basic home education in child care and household crafts training. For these homes, time spent at school can also have the disadvantage of postponing the acquisition of a bride price for daughters. Besides these factors, some parents – especially those who have had no schooling themselves – are unable to foresee any increase in a school-going child’s earning potential, and so discourage an extended school career; this affects girls in particular. The World Bank has assisted a number of African countries to offset the loss of indirect opportunity costs through stipends, education vouchers and bursaries. Other important measures include the provision of free or subsidised transport to school and the introduction of school feeding schemes for pupils whose school progress would otherwise be undermined by the cognitive and emotional deficits caused by

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

COUNTRY REPORTS: A SELECTION During the last few years, SSA countries have, in association with the UN, produced progress reports on their efforts to approach the MDGs. The reports include developments in basic education. What follows is a summary of the status of primary education taken from a selection of these reports.

EAST AFRICA

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

malnutrition and ill health. Improvement of enrolment and completion rates is dependent on an increase in public expenditure on education, but it also depends on inter-related efficiencies of budgetary line-items, through imaginative and flexible allocation of the funds that are currently available.

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ETHIOPIA Throughout its history, Ethiopia has had a policy of free education up to the tertiary level. But extreme levels of poverty, causing widespread reliance on child labour for survival, make attempts at universal primary education very difficult.70 Ethiopia is confident, on the basis of the current annual rate of increase in primary school enrolment, of reaching the target of 100 per cent even before 2015. This is, however, accompanied by a caveat: ‘[a] mere drive towards achieving universal primary education may sometimes come at the expense of the quality of education.’71 Pupil/teacher ratios have been rising, and teachers’ morale has been compromised by lack of incentive structures, a poor school environment, and a shortage and poor quality of textbooks. These matters, together with the construction of additional schools, the training of more teachers, development of syllabi, and improvement in assessment methods call for attention. On the grounds that every one per cent improvement in primary enrolment rates contributes 0.1 per cent growth in per capita gross domestic product, Ethiopia has increased its public expenditure on primary education to 46 per cent of its total education budget. The report notes that gender disparities are considerable, especially in rural areas, and overcoming them requires women’s access to basic assets such as land and livestock.72 Gender issues must be addressed alongside cultural, religious and traditional barriers to equity. The country regards a redress of the existing disparity in education (27 per cent of girls compared with 41 per cent of boys)73 to be very important because it would enhance economic growth, and ‘household heads whose wives have completed primary education have a low probability of facing poverty.’ The Ethiopian report remarks on the difficulty

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experienced by such a poor and large country in generating and processing all the data required to monitor progress towards the MDG.

RWANDA Progress towards universal primary education was dramatically reversed during the 1994 genocide, and Rwanda ‘is beginning from behind the ‘starting line’ in trying to achieve the MDGs.’74 However, if present trends continue, the country is now in a good position to achieve the goal, perhaps by 2010. But, whereas enrolment has increased substantially, drop-out and repetition rates are at unacceptable levels (at 14 and 32 per cent respectively).75 Although gender parity in primary schools has been achieved, the drop-out and retention rates for girls are disproportionately high. Rwanda identifies the need to recruit and train qualified personnel to administer education at national and provincial levels as equally important to the training of suitably qualified teachers. Associated aims are to increase the authority and responsibility of school directors, teachers and parent committees, and to provide improved incentives for teachers. Primary education receives 45 per cent of the total education budget but this is considered insufficient when compared with 40 per cent allocated to a tertiary education system that caters for a mere two per cent of the relevant population (and a per capita cost that is 80 per cent higher than the cost of primary education – see table 9). A redeployment of tertiary resources to the primary sector may be necessary if the MDG is to be realised.

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KENYA

68

According to the MDG Report for Kenya in 2000 the net primary enrolment rate was 73 per cent and the ratio of girls to boys 75 per cent.76 But the enrolment rate has been declining since 1990. In an effort to reverse this trend, Kenya has introduced free primary education, through its Children’s Act of 2002. It has also invested in other key programmes covering school feeding, subsidy for textbooks and bursary funds aimed at improving transition rates from primary to secondary schools.77 These steps have, however, been compromised by a reduction in the budgetary allocation for primary education (nine per cent in 2002).78 Although overall urban and rural rates are almost identical, there are sharp regional disparities, especially where nomadic lifestyles hinder regular school attendance. (Provincial enrolment rates range from 100 to 20 per cent.) The challenges identified in the report include the need to improve retention, promotion and transition rates; the main causes of poor progression rates are poverty, the use of child labour and the HIV/Aids epidemic. Primary progression rates for girls are almost equal to those of boys, except in some regions, although the gap remains a major one in the tertiary sector. From 1989 to 2000 the ratio of literate females to

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

TANZANIA Universal primary education by 2015 is ‘unlikely’, largely on account of a ‘weak’ supportive environment, but gender equality in primary school will ‘probably’ be achieved by 2005. Recent gains in enrolment rates have been modest. In Tanzania, as in Kenya, there are marked regional disparities; whereas Zanzibar has experienced significant gains, attributed to improved community involvement, almost half of the mainland districts have enrolment rates below 50 per cent. Repetition rates are high, retention rates poor, and the pass rate for the primary learning examination is below 20 per cent. Very few pupils (14 per cent) have access to secondary schooling. Although the performance of girls is still worse than that of boys, the prospects of achieving the gender parity target are promising.79 Some of the main problems identified are constraints on public expenditure, slow educational reform, imbalances between urban and rural allocation of teachers, and a poorly motivated teaching corps. Public expenditure on education has increased significantly since 1990, but effective use of funds is constrained by weak capacity for planning and management at central, regional and local levels. Based on current trends, gender parity is likely to be achieved by 2005, but parity in primary education is far from being maintained in secondary school, where the drop-out rate for girls is much higher than for boys. The main reason for the high female drop-out rate is that many women continue to regard education of daughters as a poor investment because of its loss-of-opportunity costs.

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

males in the 15- to 24-year age group improved by nearly 10 per cent. The MDG of universal primary education is ‘potentially’ achievable.

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WEST AFRICA GHANA The MDG Report states that the overriding problem for Ghana is that, while it compares favourably with neighbouring countries, its economic growth lags behind the rate required by the Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS), and one-third of the population cannot provide for their basic nutritional needs.80 As a result there was little progress during the 1990s towards the goal of universal primary education;81 enrolment ratios stayed constant, drop-outs from school remain high, 10 per cent higher in the primary sector for girls than for boys, and there are large regional disparities in enrolment. Country-wide, as many as half of the children of school-going age either do not enter school or leave before primary completion. Problems include a high population growth,

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inadequate number and location of schools, insufficient places in rural schools, poor condition and distribution of instructional facilities, and high expenditure from the available budget on teachers’ salaries. Gender parity in primary education improved slowly throughout the 1990s, but remains elusive in secondary schooling and in poverty-stricken regions.82 To address this problem, a girls’ Education Unit was established in 1997. The GPRS increased expenditure on education in 2002 by seven per cent, 51 per cent of which was devoted to basic education. This has not, however, redressed the low quality of education provided, nor the problem of a perceived lack of relevance of the school curriculum that has resulted in a low demand for schooling, especially among the poor. Among the steps being taken to approach the MDG, the improvement of education management, a decentralisation of educational control, implementation of a human resource audit, improved quality of teacher training, and the implementation of incentives to teachers to improve the quality of education, are high on the agenda.83

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THE GAMBIA According to the First National MDG Report between 1991 and 1997, primary enrolment grew, above the target rate, at eight per cent per year. The growth rate fell, however, to four per cent during the period 1997–2001 – three per cent below the target rate.84 There is a difference of nearly 20 per cent between urban and rural enrolment rates. Expenditure on education is 47 per cent of the total government expenditure, which, in the mid-1990s was about 16 per cent of total expenditure on education. Universal primary education is ‘potentially’ achievable by 2015. The Gambia intends to seek greater participation from the private sector, communities, civil society and parents to improve access without compromising the quality of service and the relevance of the curriculum. Another priority is increased support for teacher training and in-service supervision of teachers. Considerable progress has been made towards gender parity, although accelerated enrolment of girls is still required. The challenges facing the country include a social bias towards investing in the education of male children, a school environment unfriendly to girls, and ‘the belief that school girls tend to become sexually active whilst in school and remain unmarried thereafter.’85 A Scholarship Trust Fund to subsidise girls’ education is an important policy innovation, although it does not yet have sufficient funds to ensure nation-wide coverage.

CAMEROON

70

The Country Report: MDG Progress, 2nd Progress Report states that both primary education for all by 2015 and gender equality by 2005 are ‘potentially’

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

achievable, despite the fact that 40 per cent of the population still live below the poverty line.86 Yet the challenge is great, for, although compulsory primary education is constitutionally guaranteed for all, and the country was close to universal primary education in 1990, enrolment rates have ‘significantly deteriorated over the last decade’ and there are large disparities between provinces.87 The decline has been accompanied by very high repetition rates (28 per cent per year) and disappointing primary school achievement scores. Although girls comprise more than half of the primary school population, there has been a similar decline, over the same period, in girls’ enrolment.88 One of the problems is that some parents regard schooling as a danger to their children’s faith, and prefer a domestic training regimen in agricultural work and motherhood. The country has a weak capacity for monitoring and evaluating the educational environment. The status of teachers has been eroded by a reduction in salaries brought about by the financial constraints of the 1990s, poor working conditions, poor deployment policies, and an over-centralised management system that causes bottlenecks, opaqueness in resource allocation, and corruption at all levels. Cameroon is also concerned about an increase in the number of unqualified teachers. In 2000, Cameroon became eligible for assistance from the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries initiative. Through this assistance, it hopes to improve the situation through its abolition of compulsory fees for primary education, the allocation of increased resources to the sector, a vigorous recruitment of new teachers, and an improvement in teachers’ earnings and working conditions.

SOUTHERN AFRICA

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ZAMBIA Universal primary education by 2015 will ‘potentially’, and gender equality by 2005 will ‘probably’ be achieved, despite Zambia’s high external debt, its high (65 per cent) rural population and the high rate (58 per cent) of extreme poverty. However, primary enrolment rates have recently been in decline, dropping by four percentage points from 1990–2003, and literacy rates and the gender parity index are static.89 The decline needs to be urgently reversed if the targets are to be met. Against that, progression rates in primary school increased by nine per cent, but the overall improvement has not been matched in improvement in the completion rate for girls. One of the major problems is the effect of the HIV/Aids pandemic. While this reduces enrolment rates, it has a more severe effect on the teaching corps, ‘most of whom are dying from Aids,’90 and this has resulted in over-crowded classrooms and an ever-increasing pupil/ teacher ratio. In some rural primary schools there is now a single teacher for all the grades. In 2003 a five-year education sector plan was formulated to address

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the major problems. State resources are allocated in terms of revised criteria that include provisions for the increased enrolment of girls. The plan aims to reverse gender disparities at all levels of education, and to improve the ratio of literate females to males in the 15- to 24-year age bracket, which declined between 1990 and 2002.91

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MOZAMBIQUE The Report on the MDG contends that although Mozambique has an extremely high poverty rate (70 per cent) especially in its Northern and Central provinces, and financial constraints are aggravated by its vulnerability to natural disaster in the form of floods, it has experienced, since the ending of civil war and the election of a multi-party democracy, a vigorous economic recovery, with an average growth rate of nine per cent.92 This growth has benefited education. Primary enrolment rates and gender ratios have increased, more so in urban than in rural areas, but – given the historical backlog – not at a rate that will enable the country to achieve the MDG target.93 Yet enrolment rates do not tell the full story. To complete the first level of primary education, normally five years, the average number of years spent is 12.7 for boys and 13.8 for girls. This indicates very high rates of repetition, leading to high drop-out rates (eight per cent) and a brake on youth literacy rates. Repetition and drop-out rates are higher for girls than for boys. With the country expecting to lose 17 per cent of its education personnel (teachers, principals and managers) from HIV/Aids during the first decade of the millennium, already high pupil/classroom and pupil/ teacher ratios will be exacerbated. Youth literacy rates remain low, although they must be evaluated in relation to the condition of almost universal illiteracy prior to independence. Besides challenges being faced elsewhere, Mozambique plans to give attention to the introduction of quality education in the mother tongue, the use of distance education methods with a strong emphasis on active pupil learning to counteract existing teacher-centred pedagogy, and provision for local printing of textbooks to decrease dependency on foreign sources. Its Education Strategic Plan, which has resulted in an increased budget allocation for education, also aims to render the infrastructure less vulnerable to natural disaster, to develop community-based structures especially for Aids orphans, and to implement a non-formal education system for out-of-school children with a view to integrating them into formal schooling. Increasing the capacity of the Ministry of Women and Coordination of Social Action is intended to redress gender inequities.94 Through these measures, gender parity is anticipated by 2005, but achievement of universal primary education by 2015 is ‘unlikely’.95

72

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Disappointing progress during the first phase of the MDG quest is confirmed by the Education For All report for 2003/04.96 The region includes nearly half of the world’s countries with chronically low (less than 30 per cent) primary enrolment rates. Only 58 per cent of the region’s primary school-age children were enrolled, the lowest of all the world’s regions, and well below the world average of 84 per cent. This left 44 million of the region’s children of the official primary school age out of school. Another problem is the very high grade repetition rate. In more than half the countries that supplied data, the repetition rate is higher than 15 per cent, and in almost all cases girls repeat more often than boys. Half of the countries providing data were expending less than 3.4 per cent of national income on education, a figure lower than the average of 4.1 per cent for all the world’s developing countries. This situation prevails notwithstanding the fact that SSA receives 27 per cent of all bilateral aid to education, and, although overall aid has declined, the amount allocated to basic education has increased. On the positive side, girls’ enrolment in primary education has increased throughout the region as a whole, with substantial improvement in a number of countries. It is highly unlikely that, except for a minority of countries (mainly countries in southern Africa), the MDG of universal primary education will be achieved by 2015. That should not, however, deflect the attention of countries in the region from setting more modest, but realistically attainable, goals based on their present primary school situation.

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

CONCLUSION

ENDNOTES 1

United Nations, Millennium Declaration, General Assembly Resolution 55/2,

2

Barbara Bruns, Alain Mingat and Ramahatra Rakotomalala, Achieving Universal Primary

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18 September 2000, section 19. Education by 2015: A Chance for Every Child, The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank, 2003, p. 26. 3

Bruns et al. 2003, p. 1.

4

Bruns et al. 2003, pp. 28–29.

5

Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA), Sub-Saharan Africa EFA Secretariat, NESIS Regional Centre, ADEA Working Group on Educational Statistics, Assessment of Basic Education in Sub-Saharan Africa 1990–2000, p. 7. Available at: http://www.adeanet.org/publications/nesis/AssessmentofBasicEduc.pdf.

6

2004 World Development Indicators (2004 WDI), Washington DC: The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank, 2004.

7

African Development Indicators 2004 (ADI 2004), Washington DC: The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank, 2004.

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8

E Harsch, Schools struggle with crises: Financial constraints hamper expansion of primary education in Africa, Africa Recovery, Vol. 14, No. 2, 2000, p. 1.

9

Novicki, M. A. Boosting basic education in Africa: Special Initiative seeks to reverse declining enrolment, Africa Recovery, Vol. 11, No. 4, March 1998, pp. 2 and 4.

10 ADEA, p. 22. 11 UNESCO, The Context of EFA in Sub-Saharan Africa, Par. 1.5. Available at: http://www. unesco.org/education/efa_2000_assess/afrique_1a_en.doc. 12 ADEA, p. 23. 13 2004 WDI, pp 38–40 and 76–78; UNESCO, EFA Global Monitoring Report 2003/4, Regional Review: Sub-Saharan Africa, p. 2. 14 ADI 2004, p. 335. 15 2004 WDI, p. 40. 16 ADI 2004, pp. 333 and 334. 17 ADEA, p. 18. 18 Ibid., p. xiii. 19 Bruns et al., 2003, p. 39. 20 EFA Global Monitoring Report 2003/04, p. 2. 21 UNESCO, World Declaration on Education For All, Preamble and Framework For Action: Meeting Basic Learning Needs. Available at: http://www.unesco.org/education/efa/ ed_for_all/background. Another target was the ‘expansion of early childhood care and developmental activities, including family and community interventions, especially for poor, disadvantaged and disabled children’ (documentary emphasis). Educationists would agree that preschool preparation is an important component of the achievement of primary education targets. The issue of early childhood development is not, however, discussed in this chapter. 22 Africa Recovery, Vol. 11, No. 4, p. 1. 23 UNESCO, Education for African Renaissance in the Twenty-first Century, Regional Conference on Education for All for Sub-Saharan Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa, Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

6–10 December 1999, Preamble. Available at: http://www.unesco.org/education/efa/ wef_2000/regional_frameworks. 24 UNESCO, The Context of EFA in Sub-Saharan Africa, p. 6. 25 UNESCO, World Declaration on Education For All, Preamble, p. 4. 26 United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), The Millennium Development Goals in Africa: promises & progress, New York, 2002, p. 25. 27 Ibid., p. 8. 28 Ibid., p. 25. 29 2004 WDI, p. 79. Significant differences between the GER and the NER are indicative of disruptions in a country’s schooling system. The greater the difference between the GER and the NER, the greater the likelihood that the country is emerging from a period of civil or economic disturbance and has to cater for pupils whose access to schooling has been

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delayed.

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

31 2004 WDI, pp. 76–78. 32 Africa Recovery, Vol. 11, No. 4, p. 5. 33 Bruns et al., 2003, p. 38. 34 2004 WDI, pp. 80–82. 35 Africa Recovery, Vol. 14, No. 2, p. 2. 36 Bruns et al., 2003, p. 29. 37 2004 WDI, pp. 76–78 and 80–82. 38 Bruns et al., 2003, p. 34. 39 Ibid., p. 44. 40 2004 WDI, pp. 14–16 and 80–82. 41 ADEA, p. 12. 42 ADEA, pp. 17–18. 43 2004 WDI, pp. 72–74. 44 ADI 2004, p. 327 and 2004 WDI: pp. 76–78 and 80–82. 45 ADEA, p. 24.

UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA

30 Bruns et al., 2003, p. 35.

46 ADEA, p. 42. 47 ADI 2004, p. 326. 48 2004 WDI, pp. 72–74. 49 ADEA, p. 48. 50 ADI 2004, p. 326 and 2004 WDI, pp. 80–82. 51 Ibid, p. 41. 52 EFA Global Monitoring Report 2003/04, p. 2. 53 Chowdhury, K. P. Literacy and primary education, HCO Working Papers, No 50, Washington DC: The World Bank, p. 5. 54 Ibid., p. 2. 55 ADI 2004, p. 322 and 2004 WDI, pp. 84–86. 56 Saito, M. Gender equality in reading and mathematics achievement, International Institute for Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

Educational Planning Newsletter, Vol. XXII, No. 2, April – June 2004, p. 9. 57 Chowdhury, p. 4. 58 ADEA, pp. 33–34. 59 Ibid., p. 35. 60 EFA Global Monitoring Report 2003/04, p. 2. 61 2004 WDI, pp. 72–74. 62 Africa Recovery, Vol. 14, No. 2, p. 3. 63 2004 WDI, p. 3. 64 2004 WDI, pp. 72–74 and 76–78. 65 Dembélé, M. Competent teachers for African classrooms, International Institute for Educational Planning Newsletter, Vol. XXII, No. 1, January – March 2004, p. 5. 66 Ibid., p. 6. 67 ‘School fees: a roadblock to the future’, Education Notes, The World Bank: August 2004, p. 2. http://www1.worldbank.org/education.

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68 ‘EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2005’ Summary, p.35. 69 Chowdhury, p. 6. 70 The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and the United Nations Country Team, Millennium Development Goals Report: Challenges and Prospects for Ethiopia, Vol. 1, Addis Ababa: March 2004, p. 3. 71 Ibid., p. 20. This concern is reflected in a very low PCR – see table 2. 72 Ibid., p. 4. 73 Ibid., p. 22. 74 Republic of Rwanda and the United Nations, Millennium Development Goals: Status Report 2003, 2003, p. 7. 75 Ibid., p. 14. The repetition rate is lower than the rate of 36.1 published by the World Bank – see table 4. 76 Republic of Kenya, Millennium Development Goals Progress Report for Kenya, 2003, p. 9. 77 Ibid., p. 14. 78 Ibid., p. 13. 79 United Republic of Tanzania, IDT/MDG Progress: International/Millennium Declaration Development Goals, 2003, p. 10. 80 Ghana, Millennium Development Goals Report, 2003, p. 1. 81 Ibid., p. 10. 82 Ibid., p. 14. 83 Ibid., p. 11. 84 Republic of the Gambia, First National Millennium Development Goals Report, 2003, p. 11. 85 Ibid., p. 14. 86 Republic of Cameroon, Country Report: MDG Progress, 2nd Progress Report, December 2002, pp. v and vii. 87 Ibid., p. 5. 88 Ibid., p. 7. 89 Zambia, Millennium Development Goals Progress Report, 2003, p. 2.

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90 Ibid., p. 6. 91 Ibid., p. 8. This contradicts the data published by the World Bank – see table 8. 92 Republic of Mozambique, Report on the Millennium Development Goals, August 2002, p. 5. 93 Ibid., p. 18. 94 Ibid., p. 21. 95 Ibid., p. 2. 96 EFA Global Monitoring Report 2003/04, pp. 1–3.

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CHAPTER 3

IS GENDER EQUITY ON TRACK IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA?

Martine N. Ngobo

INTRODUCTION

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STATEMENT OF THE ISSUE This chapter examines the performance of African countries in their progress towards the third Millennium Development Goal of promoting gender equality and empowering women, specifically setting targets to eliminate gender disparity in access to primary and secondary education preferably by 2005 and at all levels of education no later than 2015, and women’s empowerment and representation in parliaments.1 The MDG goal for eliminating gender disparities in primary and secondary education has the earliest target date, 2005, thus requiring urgent action if any of the other goals are to have any value. This target: ‘is important because countries that recognise the rights of women not only acknowledge our common human dignity but they also can double their capacities, benefiting from the energies and insights of the other half of their population’.2

The Global Poverty Report states that women’s empowerment is particularly important for determining country demographic trends, which affect its economic success and environmental sustainability. For many development practitioners, ‘the promotion of gender equality is expected to contribute to the achievement of several goals at the same time’.3

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HISTORY OF THE ISSUE According to Pearl, from the local village to the global policy-making arenas of African countries, women’ actions are a driving force for change.4 From the 1975 United Nations (UN) international Year on Women, through the Decade on Women (1976–1985) and the Women International conferences and summits of the 1990s, women actively participated in shaping the economic, social, political, and sustainable development policies in the society. Throughout the 1990s, various women’s organisations struggled to put gender on the global policy agenda at key United Nations international conferences, such as the UN Conference on Environment and Development (Rio, 1992), the International Conference on Human Rights (Vienna, Austria, 1993), the International Conference on Population and Development (Cairo, Egypt, 1994), and the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing, China, 1995). These conferencing and discussions led to The Platform for Action5 in 1995, advancing the importance of gender equality in the international sphere. As a result of this global awareness-raising strategy, a far-reaching international policy agenda that promotes women’s equal rights and empowerment came out. At the 2000 United Nations Millennium Summit, 191 governments reaffirmed their commitment to women’s empowerment and adopted the Millennium Declaration, agreeing to ‘promote gender equality and the empowerment of women as effective ways to combat poverty, hunger and disease and to stimulate development that is truly sustainable.’ In 2001, the UN Secretary General put forward eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that included a time-bound target, with four indicators, intended to ‘eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education preferably by 2005 and in all levels of education no later than 2015’.6 However, in Africa, the role of women is one of the more controversial issues frequently discussed. Scholarly literature on the role of women in traditional African societies has increased greatly in the 1980s and 1990s. In some quarters (e.g. the Ghanaian scholar Mercy Amba Oduyoye), there has been a tendency to emphasise the strong roles women played in traditional African families. Outside of the context of specific crises (such as wars), African women traditionally played an important role that was rather culture-centred: they were mothers, spouses and educators in their African way. Through these eminent and unique roles, whereby women hold the indispensable function of life giver and peacekeeper, they traditionally exercised the power to protect life in dignity and pride, more so than anyone else in African society: An African anthropology of development is probably woman-centred.7

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IS GENDER EQUITY ON TRACK IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA?

Firstly, as a mother, the African woman was the foundational pillar upon which all the family and community structures relied. Traditionally, there was an African depiction of the process of decision making where the role of the woman as mother was omnipresent, in contrast to the Western traditions of relationships of power. Secondly, as spouse, the African woman was not just a ‘female’: she was a partner equally involved in the process of building the family, the nucleus of the community. The third specific attribute of the African woman was her role as an educator. Education entailed not only the teaching of human and cultural values, but as mothers and educators, women led their sons and daughters on the road to a good life. With economic bankruptcy and the collapse of many African institutions, traditional organisational structures in African society have changed so much. Moreover, the role of women in African countries varies greatly from state to state, due in large part to the differing economic, religious, and cultural backgrounds regionally. The vast differences between African states, both religious and in terms of government, has led to a continent that has very unequal representation of women’s rights. There is a large disparity between the status of women in many African nations and the status in many states that have conventionally been considered developed. For instance, health care, literacy, family planning resources, and equal pay have often been lacking in African countries. According to the Student Atlas for World Politics, over half of the countries globally rated as ‘most unequal’ in gender treatment are in the African continent. There has been much discussion of what roles women should play not only in governments and businesses, but also in homes and communities around the world. The United Nations and its member states have played an influential, though limited role, in the development of a standard of women’s rights.8 According to the Journal of International Co-operation in Education, the inclusion in the creation of policies and documents regarding gender equality has been a big step for many African countries. Incorporation of the gender concept in development then became a widespread issue. The phenomenon made its appearance in development thinking in the 1970s.9 The Millennium target of gender equality and women’s empowerment by 2015 is particularly crucial to African countries, given the key role that women traditionally play in their societies. Though progress has been made towards a more equal and respectful treatment of women in most SSAn countries, some obstacles remain for future policy-making. Also of key importance to notice here is the impact of religion, and mostly the Islam religion, on the role of women in African countries. Though Sunni Islam, the most followed religion in Africa, has greatly impacted the development of women’s rights in countries that predominantly follow the religion, many Islamic sects still have very specific rules regarding the treatment and roles of each gender.10 These rules may have a

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substantial impact on which countries are interested in discussing and finding solutions to the lack of equal rights for women.

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MDG3

80

Progress towards the eight MDGs in general, and the goal of gender parity and women’s empowerment in particular, in over 50 countries that constitute SSA is difficult to summarise. Firstly because the four quantitative indicators set to measure this progress give only part of the picture, overlooking the analytical and qualitative aspects. For example, Indicator 9, ‘ratio of girls to boys in primary, secondary and tertiary education’ does not allow a determination of whether improvements in the ratio reflect increases in girls’ school attendance (which is desirable) or decreases in boys’ attendance (undesirable).11 Therefore, this indicator is not a perfect measure of the accessibility of schooling for girls. Moreover, it does not give an indication of enrolled girls who complete the relevant education cycles, nor does it reflect the gender structure of the school-age population. Indicator 6, ‘net enrolment ratio in primary education’ (Goal 2: achieve universal primary education) is a better measure for Indicator 9 as it considers the population structure of the country. On another side, shortcomings in the definitions of ‘literacy’ and for employment status weaken Indicators 10, ‘ratio of literate women to men 15–24 year olds’ and 11, ‘share of women in wage employment in the non-agricultural sector’. Whereas Indicator 12, ‘proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments’ may not be sufficient because it does not take into account the various obstacles that women still face in fully and efficiently carrying their parliamentary mandate. Monitoring progress towards the MDG-3 is also made difficult by the fact that, like other MDGs, the associated indicators are derived from national statistical systems which are not always efficient, reliable, comparable or up-to-date in some African countries.12 About 25 per cent of African countries lack adequate data to measure progress towards the set MDG. Improvements in the statistical systems of these countries are needed to provide a complete and accurate picture of their progress.13 There is still a critical shortfall in even international efforts to develop appropriate and sustainable statistical capacity. The international comparability of indicators is limited by differences in the concepts, definitions, data collection procedures, and estimation methods used by national statistical agencies and other organisations that collect data. In assessing the progress made by regions and countries towards the third millennium goal, this report relies heavily on online information, by and large accessed in the World Bank, the United Nations and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) web sites.14 Detailed data published in this report are derived from two major World Bank publications: 2004 World Development Indicators database15 and African Development Indicators 2004.16 Different sources of information

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

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IS GENDER EQUITY ON TRACK IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA?

often give different estimates, without necessarily being inconsistent. However, this review draws on the ‘best’ data currently available; inconsistent data have been omitted. Because only a few African countries have provided comprehensive and up-to-date data allowing a monitoring of their progress towards the MDG-3, only a set of countries were comparable over the full range of indicators, thus limiting the possibility of a full regional assessment of the progress made to date towards achieving the third millennium goal. For the purpose of this chapter, the focus has been on the performance of SSA countries and their prospects of meeting the millennium goal of gender equality and women’s empowerment by 2015. The inclusion of other regions was only done when comparing the performance of Africa as a continent. Another problem endemic to SSA countries since the last few decades is political and social instability, which leads to wars and prolonged civil conflicts. In such countries or regions, while men account for the largest numbers of combatants, women are among the most affected civilians.17 According to Mendoza this affects the structure of the traditional African family and society as girls and women are then forced to leave school or to find wage employment in order to meet the needs of both ageing relatives and children without the help of a male partner. In addition, the recent spread of pandemic diseases such as HIV/Aids and malaria in the region has compounded the problem. Approximately 23 million adults aged 15–49 are currently infected with HIV.18 Gilbert et al. state that of those, an estimated 57 per cent are women and among those aged 15–24 almost three quarters are women and girls. Notwithstanding the existence of effective preventive strategies, the numbers of those infected with HIV continues to mount, with the sharpest increase among women and girls. Since 1985, the percentage of women among adults living with HIV has risen from 35 per cent to almost 50 per cent. Limited education, in combination with poverty and economic marginalisation has been blamed for the particular vulnerability of women to HIV/Aids in SSA.19 Other reported contributing factors are conflict and domestic violence. The MDG goal of gender equality is critical in the fight against HIV/Aids for a variety of reasons. The economic, social and biological factors that undermine women’s capacities to protect themselves are at the heart of the MDG targets. In the HIV context, the epidemic cannot be curbed unless women are given their rightful social and economic status. The achievement of MDGs in Africa depends on many factors, among which are the population challenges the region is facing. The extent of the gender parity challenge in SSA is accurately expressed through the figures displayed in table 1. The table gives the figure relative to other regions in the developing world, and the sex ratio in a sample of African countries.

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Table 1: Total population by sex and sex ratio, 200320 (medium variant)

Country*

Total

Male

Female

Sex ratio (males per 100 females)

Benin

6 736

3 313

3 423

97

Botswana

1 785

876

909

96

Burkina Faso

13 002

6 359

6 643

96

Burundi

6 825

3 332

3 493

95

Cameroon

16 018

7 951

8 067

99

Cape Verde

463

221

242

91

Chad

8 598

4 254

4 344

98

Congo, Rep.

52 771

26 131

26 640

98

Cote d’Ivoire

16 631

8 475

8 155

104

494

244

250

98

Gambia, The

1 426

706

720

98

Ghana

20 922

10 410

10 513

99

Guinea-Bissau

1 493

737

756

97

Kenya

31 987

15 824

16 164

98

Madagascar

27 404

8 658

8 746

99

Malawi

12 105

5 977

6 128

98

Mali

13 007

6 448

6 558

98

Mauritania

2 893

1 429

1 464

98

Mauritius

1 221

607

615

99

Mozambique

18 863

9 085

9 778

93

Namibia

1 987

971

1 016

96

Niger

11 972

6 043

5 929

102

Rwanda

8 387

3 986

4 401

91

Senegal

10 095

5 014

5 080

99

South Africa

45 026

22 003

23 023

96

Swaziland

1 077

515

563

91

Tanzania

36 977

18 316

18 661

98

Togo

4 909

2 432

2 478

98

Zimbabwe

12 891

6 405

6 487

99

Population (thousands)

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Equatorial Guinea

*

Countries with data available over the full range of indicators reviewed in this chapter.

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IS GENDER EQUITY ON TRACK IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA?

From this table, we can see that in 2003, the population of the developed regions stayed at 1.2 billion people, with 4.9 billion people inhabiting less developed areas. Asia remained the most populated continent, with 3.7 billion people. Africa contained 794 million people, Europe 727 million, Latin America and the Caribbean 519 million, North America 314 million, and Oceania 31 million. Countries with the highest population growth rates in 2000 were India, China, Pakistan, Nigeria, Bangladesh, and Indonesia. Africa’s share of the world population is expected to more than double by the year 2025 – and its population is projected to reach between 2 billion and 3.6 billion by 2050.21 With sustained annual growth rates higher than 2.5 per cent between 2000 and 2050, the populations of Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Somalia, Uganda and Yemen are projected to quadruple, passing from 85 million to 369 million in total.22 During 2000–2050, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo are among the eight countries that are expected to account for half of the world’s projected population increase. It is also important to notice the increasing heterogeneity of population dynamics among African countries. Under normal circumstances, the sex ratio, defined as the number of males per 100 females, is around 100, reflecting near equality in the number of males and females. However, the SSA region is unique in having an average sex ratio below 100, reflecting an excess of females. Within the region, females outnumber males, particularly in countries affected by wars (e.g. Rwanda and Burundi). Linkages between population, education, and environment are strongly articulated in various international agreements, and the importance of education for women is particularly highlighted. As such, the question is to know whether SSA countries can achieve economic development while still leaving behind a significant section of their population.

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THE GOAL As already mentioned, the third millennium development goal calls on nations to ‘promote gender equality and empower women’, building on the work of women’s advocates at various UN conferences in the 1990s, in particular the Fourth World Conference on Women, and the five-year review of the Conference’s Platform for Action. Additionally, the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) has played an important part in shaping international commitment to gender equality. In its ‘Progress of the world’s women 2002’,23 the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) reported that SSA countries have the lowest worldwide levels of progress in achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment. This low progress is primarily due to a devastating combination of national poverty, conflict and the effects of HIV/Aids. However, another major finding of this biennial report is that progress has been uneven across the region and within each

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country. Regional aggregation is seen to be unable to show how individual countries are performing, or how socio-economic groups are benefiting from ‘average’ progress. Using indicators created for MDG-3, the UNIFEM Progress report shows that the economic, social, political, legal and cultural structures that perpetuate gender inequality are still in place across the region and many countries still lack the resources to implement changes that would benefit women.

THE INDICATORS Progress toward the millennium goal to promote gender equality and women empowerment is measured by four quantitative indicators, which are derived from national statistical systems:

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r
Indicator 9. Ratio of girls to boys in primary, secondary and tertiary education r
Indicator 10. Ratio of literate women to men aged 15–24 r
Indicator 11. Share of women in wage employment in the non-agricultural sector r
Indicator 12. Proportion of seats held by women in national parliament. However, a number of other issues related to gender equality and women empowerment are better measured by integrating other MDG indicators. Indicator 9 cannot be separated from Indicator 6 (‘Net enrolment ratio in primary education’) of the MDG, promoting universal primary education. It is essential to bear in mind that, while international focus may have narrowed from broader to more specific actions, sex-disaggregated data are essential for monitoring the achievement of almost all MDGs. 24 Nevertheless, so far, most of the nationallevel reports on the MDGs contain sex-disaggregated data only for those goals that require it (MDG-2 and -3). Sex-disaggregated data is rarely used to monitor MDG-1 (‘Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger’) even though available data indicate that women are among the poorest of the poor, and that the poorest households are often those headed by women. Similarly, sex-disaggregated data is not always used to monitor the sixth MDG (‘Combat HIV/Aids, malaria and other diseases’) even though recent data indicate that the HIV/Aids epidemic is increasingly and even predominantly affecting women as a result of their greater physical vulnerability and their subordinate social status. The following section provides an overview of the progress made toward gender equality and women empowerment across the SSA region, based on the four relevant Indicators. 84

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

This indicator is hereafter defined as ‘the ratio of number of female students enrolled at primary, secondary and tertiary levels in public and private schools to the number of males’.25 It is calculated as the number of enrolled girls to enrolled boys, regardless of age. The rationale behind this measure lies in the recognition, strongly endorsed at major UN conferences and summits, that education – especially primary schooling – is critical for achieving social and demographic progress, sustained economic development, and gender equality. The right to education is proclaimed in numerous international treaties and agreements (e.g. the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights). Principle 10 of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (1994) states:

IS GENDER EQUITY ON TRACK IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA?

RATIO OF GIRLS TO BOYS IN PRIMARY, SECONDARY AND TERTIARY EDUCATION

‘Everyone has the right to education, which shall be directed to the full development of human resources, and human dignity and potential, with particular attention to women and the girl child.’26

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Since ratios of girls to boys in education may be quite different from actual attendance and completion, and actually reflect the gender structure of the school-age population, these statistics are, in general, considered in conjunction with ratios based on net enrolment (Indicator 6-MDG-2) or gross enrolment, thus taking into account the population structure of the country. Usually, two measures of gender disparities are used in comparing indicators: r
The ‘gender parity index (GPI)’ is the ratio between the female and the male gross enrolment rates. The further the GPI is from one the greater the advantage to one sex or the other. r
The ‘gender gap’ is the difference between the female and the male enrolment rates. In the following analysis, we gave preference to the GPI since it is less dependent on the magnitude of the studied indicators. Data on school enrolment are usually either recorded by the ministry of education or derived from/completed by survey and census data. Ratios of girls to boys at country, regional and global levels are normally produced annually, by UNESCO, and are available at the Millennium Indicators web site (http://www. millenniumindicators.org). However, there are often problems associated with the data, especially with regard to the availability of data on enrolment by age and data quality. For certain countries in SSA, it is difficult to survey all schools,

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especially those in remote areas. Moreover, private schooling, whose growth is increasingly an important development in several countries, is often not recorded or incompletely covered. Over reporting of enrolment by schools for financial reasons is another problem found in some countries.27 In addition, data on higher education are not as frequently reported as data on primary and secondary enrolment. Finally, it should be noticed that changes in educational systems within countries, as well as changes in the educational systems used for international comparisons, could significantly affect comparisons over time. Table 2 shows progress achieved towards gender parity in primary school enrolment in selected SSA countries, grouped into sub-regions. It also shows patterns of change in the gender enrolment in primary education during the previous decade. In the period between 1990/1991 and 1999/2000, gender disparities narrowed, particularly in countries with the biggest gaps, such as Benin, Chad, Guinea, Mauritania and Niger, demonstrating that the gender measures taken during the 1990s, however moderate, are having an effect. In some countries, such as Lesotho and Namibia where disparities favoured girls, the gender parity index has moved closer to gender parity. With 0.61, Chad reports the lowest GPI in the region, and even in the world. Enrolment at primary and secondary education in this country strongly favours boys, and the millennium goal on gender parity is very unlikely to be achieved by the target date. When only those children of regular school age are taken into account, using net enrolment, disparities in enrolment between girls and boys are usually lower.28 However, although more boys are enrolled overall, they also make up more of the over-age pupils. Therefore, a gender disparity in school enrolment against girls is partly explained by the fact that they are more likely than girls to remain in school beyond the official school age. In addition, while in the majority of countries in other regions of the world, boys repeat grades more than girls, SSA is the only region where girls repeat more than boys – with overall repetition levels above 15 per cent very common. Countries of the region also have the lowest overall enrolment and the greatest disparities in favour of boys in terms of access and enrolment at primary education, with the lowest levels being found in Central and West Africa (where the GPI is below 0.60). From UNESCO considerations, it is believed that countries that have moderate gender disparities in favour of males (GPI between 0.81 and 0.98) have a reasonable chance of reaching parity by 2005 as established by Millennium Goal three; whereas in countries with high disparities (GPI below 0.80), the goal of achieving gender parity in primary and secondary education by 2005 seems unlikely to be reached. The target appears particularly unlikely for countries with a GPI below 0.60 as is the case for Central and West African countries, for primary education.

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Gender parity index (Female GER/Male GER) SSA country (by sub-region)

1990

1999

Benin

0.5

0.7

Burkina Faso

0.6

0.7

Chad

0.5

0.6

Côte d’Ivoire

0.7

0.8

Democratic Republic of Congo

0.7

0.9

Gambia, The

0.7

0.9

Congo, Rep.

0.9

0.9

Niger

0.6

0.7

Senegal

0.7

0.9

Togo

0.7

0.8

Burundi

0.8

0.8

Kenya

1.0

1.0

Tanzania

1.0

1.0

Botswana

1.0

1.1

Lesotho

1.1

1.2

Malawi

0.8

1.0

Namibia

1.0

1.1

Zimbabwe

1.0

1.0

West & Central Africa

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Table 2: Changes in gender disparities at school enrolment in SSA: changes in gender disparities in gross enrolment ratios (GER) between 1990 and 200129

East Africa

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Southern Africa

However, this indicator does not allow a determination of whether improvements in the ratio reflect increases in girls’ school attendance or decreases in boys’ attendance. A close examination of available data reveals that, once enrolled, girls’ attendance rate is higher than boys’ attendance rate in some countries (e.g. Angola, Côte d’Ivoire or Sudan).30 According to the Journal of International Co-operation in education, beyond school enrolment, there is the challenge of (primary and secondary) school completion. In SSA countries in general, it is shown that there is greater difference across the region in primary school completion rate. Once again, available data reveal that once enrolled, girls complete Grade 4,

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the level of schooling presumed to have established literacy, at a comparable rate with boys.31 In many countries in the region, the proportion of pupils starting Grade 1 who reach Grade 5 is very low (table 3). Typically, a high rate of retention in a country reflects a recent history of economic development; which is a situation not so common in the region.

Table 3:

Proportion of pupils starting Grade 1 and reaching Grade 532 Share of male pupils reaching Grade 5 (%)

Country

Share of female pupils reaching Grade 5 (%)

1990/91

2000/01

1990/91

2000/01

Benin

55

89

56

78

Burkina Faso

71

68

68

71

Côte d’Ivoire

75

73

70

65

The Gambia

85

75

89

63

Niger

61

73

65

68

Togo

55

88

44

80

Burundi

65

68

58

59

Rwanda

61

39

59

41

Tanzania

77

79

81

83

Botswana

94

87

98

92

Mozambique

37

56

28

47

Namibia

61

94

65

94

Swaziland

74

69

78

79

West and Central Africa

East Africa

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Southern Africa

Table 3 shows that, in many countries in the region, girls’ primary completion rate is significantly lower than boys’. Since 1990, although the completion rates have improved over the years, a gender gap still remains. In most countries, the share of female pupils reaching Grade 5 is lower than the share of males, in some cases by a margin of over 10 per cent. This clearly indicates that, in the majority of countries, more females than males are required to abandon their schooling prematurely, mostly to provide domestic assistance to households. However, in Burkina Faso and in some southern African countries (e.g. Botswana and Swaziland), the share of female pupils reaching Grade 5 is higher than the share 88

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IS GENDER EQUITY ON TRACK IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA?

of males. A possible reason for this situation could be that male pupils are obliged to drop out of schools to provide assistance as herders and stock-minders. UNESCO data indicate that in many countries in the region, there is a correlation – though not causal – between the number of female teachers employed and the completion rates for girls33; suggesting that the presence of female teachers as models is of crucial importance in girls’ educational disposition and performance. This element is therefore fundamental to the efforts toward gender equality in primary education. In Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland, female teachers outnumber male teachers at primary education. Another manifestation of gender disparity calling for attention in the education sector relates to the lack of a gender-sensitive school environment in many countries of the region. The absence of separate toilets for female pupils, lack of gender-sensitive curricula or textbooks, and sexual harassment each contribute to a retarding effect on the quest for closing the gender gap in primary education. In addition, the fact that in some countries, female teachers are comparatively less competent than their male colleagues calls for urgent attention, especially in rural areas. Overall, it can be said that the patterns of gender disparity observed in primary education in SSA countries become more marked in secondary education. There is a gender gap between young female and male enrolment across the region, with barely two girls enrolled for every three boys, and often only two girls for every four boys.34 However, in countries such as Botswana, Lesotho and Namibia, there is a positive advantage in favour of girls. Not only is enrolment at secondary education lower for boys, but representation in the over-age group of students is also greater. The continuation rate from primary to secondary is reportedly much lower among female students than male students. This gender gap widens up the grades. At tertiary level, the gross enrolment demonstrates the largest gap in many countries of the region. Numerous studies show that girls are disadvantaged in terms of school retention, high rates of examination failure, repetition and drop-out being more evident among girls. However, SSA is also the region with the lowest life expectancy, up to Grade 4 as compared to other regions of the continent. In countries like Malawi and Mozambique, survival rate of boys is higher than the survival rate of girls.35 Sub-Saharan Africa therefore stands as the region of the world with the lowest progress toward the achievement of gender equality in school enrolment. In the west and central African sub-region, where gender disparity in secondary school enrolment is the most important, girls enrolled in secondary education appear academically less prepared than boys, probably due to increased domestic chores, early child-rearing and other family obligations. Although improving every year, this situation shows that female students in the region are disadvantaged not only in access to education (primary, secondary or tertiary) but also in achievement. The lower achievement among girls is likely to result in reduced

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access to higher education and hence less chance for joining the labour force in the non-agricultural sector.

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RATIO OF LITERATE WOMEN TO MEN AGES 1524 Calculated as the ratio of the female literacy rate to the male literacy rate for the age group 15–24 this indicator measures progress towards gender equity in literacy and learning opportunities for women in relation to those for men.36 This measurement is seen as a key indicator of women’s empowerment in society as an outcome of improved school attendance. Despite shortcomings in the definition of literacy, and measurement problems, the literacy rate is universally intended to measure both the acquisition and the retention levels of literacy. However, in assessing literacy levels, it is important to define literacy in a way that is relevant to the local context and at the same time permits international comparisons. Most countries follow the UNESCO standard definition of basic literacy, even though the criteria and methods used during actual data collection to determine whether a person is literate or not may vary from country to country. According to the revised recommendation concerning the International Standard Classification of Education 199737, the adult literacy rate is defined as ‘the percentage of the population aged 15 years or over who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about his/her everyday life.’ The illiteracy rate for the 15–24 age group (or youth illiteracy rate) reflects the outcome of the more recent basic education process. According to UNESCO estimates, the world youth illiteracy rate is estimated to have dropped from 25 per cent in 1970 to 16 per cent in 1990 and 13 per cent in 2000. Table 4 shows the gender breakdown of the literacy rates in selected countries in SSA. Although the gender gap in literacy continues to narrow, the gap in west and central African countries remains wider than that in southern African countries such as South Africa or Zimbabwe. For SSA as a whole, the gender gap in the youth illiteracy rate is estimated to have decreased from 15 per cent in 1990 to 10 per cent in 2000.38 If this trend continues, the rate is likely to decline to 5 per cent by the year 2015. In West and Central African countries, gender disparity in youth literacy rate against females appears to be directly related to disparities in the school retention rate between males and females, suggesting that, at the current progress rate, these countries – which already display the lowest overall literacy rates (with women making up about two-thirds of illiterate adults) – are very unlikely to achieve the goal of literacy gender parity by the target date.

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Youth literacy rate (% ages 15–24) 1990 Country

Male

Gender gap (%)

Youth literacy rate (% ages 15–24) 2002

Gender gap (%)

Female

Male –female

Male

Female

Male –female

West and Central Africa Benin

57

25

32

73

38

35

Burkina Faso

36

14

22

26

14

12

Liberia

75

39

36

86

55

31

Mali

38

17

12

32

17

15

Niger

25

9

16

34

15

19

Senegal

50

30

20

61

44

17

Togo

79

48

31

88

67

21

Kenya

93

87

6

96

95

1

Tanzania

89

77

12

94

89

5

South Africa

89

88

1

92

92

0

Zambia

86

76

10

91

87

4

Zimbabwe

97

91

6

99

96

3

IS GENDER EQUITY ON TRACK IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA?

Table 4: Youth literacy rates by gender39

East Africa

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Southern Africa

Conversely, a substantial number of countries in the eastern and southern part of the continent, have already achieved gender equality in literacy rates among the youth population or are close to this goal. These countries however display female to male literacy ratios of around 90 per cent. Nevertheless, assessment of the progress made toward literacy gender parity should take into account the fact that statistical representations may underestimate female non-literacy, as it is easier to conceal the non-literacy of women than that of men. It should also be recalled that the education of mothers is a vital factor in ensuring the education of their children. Evidence shows that an educated girl is the best guarantor that her children will attend school, thereby ending the inter-generational transmission of poverty (UNDP and UNICEF 2002).40 The third MDG – eliminating gender disparities – thus takes on added significance when its benefits for future generations are considered.

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SHARE OF WOMEN IN WAGE EMPLOYMENT IN THE NONAGRICULTURAL SECTOR This indicator calculates the total number of women in paid employment in the non-agricultural sector expressed as a percentage of total employment in the same sector; the ‘non-agricultural sector’ including industry and services whereas ‘employment’ refers to ‘people above a certain age who worked or held a job during a reference period’.41 Over the last decade, there has been a significant increase in women’s share of paid employment in the non-agricultural sector worldwide, suggesting that women have become more integrated into the monetary economy. Despite the lack of sex-disaggregated data, table 5 suggests that in the case of SSA, the little information available shows that women’s share of employment in the non-agricultural sector has increased, mostly due to overall economy growth. In the non-agricultural sector, the female share of the employed population is still very low in the region, rarely exceeding 20 per cent. Only few countries surpassed 50 per cent, such as Benin. In most countries of the region, most employment is agricultural and mostly for family subsistence; with women being at the forefront. Wage employment is mainly concentrated in urban areas and it is more likely to go to household male members. The low level of labour participation among women has sometimes been attributed to child-rearing or other family obligations. However, a closer look at the available data reveals that low levels of education are the key reasons to the low female share of employed population in many SSA countries. Typically, wages and choices of work are limited for the less educated, implying a disadvantage for women and a greater one for less educated women. According to the Journal of International Co-operation in Education, even though the beneficial effect of female education on wage employment has been widely recognised over the last decade, empirical evidence has been presented to show that this return to female education is not always higher than that of men in the region, and worldwide.42 In most cases, there is a huge gap between men and women in terms of salary. Another constraint for women in the non-agricultural employment sector concerns gender differentials in working conditions. Other factors to consider in the calculation of this Indicator include the level of remuneration and the extent to which women and men benefit from labour legislation and accompanying social programmes. Overall, it should be noticed that the employment share of the agricultural sector is severely under-reported, limiting opportunities for comparisons with the non-agricultural sector.

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Share of women employed Proportion of seats in the non-agricultural sector held by women in national parliament (% of total employment (% of total seats) in sector) Country

1990

2000/02

2003

Benin

52

n/a

6

Burkina Faso

13

n/a

12

Côte d’Ivoire

23

n/a

9

The Gambia

24

n/a

13

Niger

11

n/a

1

Togo

47

n/a

7

n/a

18

West and Central Africa

IS GENDER EQUITY ON TRACK IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA?

Table 5: Proportion of women in wage employment in the nonagricultural sector and of seats held by women in national parliament43

East Africa Burundi Kenya

21

38

7

Rwanda

17

n/a

49

Tanzania

33

n/a

22

Botswana

47

45

17

Mozambique

15

n/a

30

Namibia

46

49

26

Swaziland

35

30

3

Zimbabwe

15

20

10

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Southern Africa

PROPORTION OF SEATS HELD BY WOMEN IN NATIONAL PARLIAMENT Women representation in parliaments is one of the MDG Indicators retained to measure women’s empowerment, in terms of opportunities in political and public life. This measurement is computed by dividing the number of parliamentary seats occupied by women by the total number of seats occupied.

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94

Table 5 shows that gender equality continues to fall short in the legislative arena of most countries of the region. Not only is the overall proportion small (about 15 per cent), but also it varies greatly across the region. Over the last decade, there has been a significant increase in the proportion of seats held by women in approximately 14 SSA countries, while the situation has remained unchanged and has worsened in other four countries.44 The lowest rate (about 10 per cent) is found in West and Central Africa, whereas countries such as Rwanda and Burundi have the regional highest share of female representatives in national parliaments. In fact, Rwanda actually presents the highest number of seats held by women in parliaments (48.8 per cent of total seats). During the recent elections in South Africa, the proportion of seats held by women in parliaments had increased to 33 per cent. Among African countries with the lowest number of seats held by women at national parliaments are Nigeria – one of the most populated countries of the region (6 per cent of total seats), Niger and Mauritania reporting less than 5 per cent. The recorded improvement in the political status of women in some countries (e.g. South Africa, Uganda have adopted a quota of 30 per cent in the African National Congress and local government respectively, and Tanzania) is the result of special actions and measures taken by national governments and political parties. Such measures comprised the adoption, by political parties, of the system of ‘quotas’. However, data show that this system in itself does not guarantee an improved female participation in the decision-making process. Most often, systems based on quotas do not have specific information and recommendations for implementation, and there is no framework for monitoring and sanctioning political parties that do not comply with the agreed quota. However, despite the observed improvement in the number of female seats in national parliaments, the type of legislative changes and political dialogue that elected female parliamentarians have been able to bring in is still a matter for concern. Lack of relevant information on this issue hinders a proper assessment of the progress achieved to date.45 In South Africa, for instance, female parliamentarians succeeded in bringing in the 1996 Act on Pregnancy Interruption as well as the 1998 Act on Domestic Violence and the 1998 Act on Maintenance. In 2003, following a long struggle, Mozambique has adopted a family code which is now considered as the most radical family code promoting women’s empowerment ever adopted at the national parliament in Mozambique. Furthermore, an increased number of seats by women in national parliaments must go along with improvement regarding the ‘quality’ of the participation, as well as an increased proportion of influential parliamentarian positions to women. In this regard, good examples are already given by a few countries such as Lesotho and South Africa, where a woman is at the head of the national parliament. The recent election of a woman at the head of the African Union parliament is also another significant accomplishment towards the promotion of women’s political

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

LINKS BETWEEN GENDER EQUALITY AND OTHER MDGS While achieving equal access to education is an important step towards gender equality, bridging the gender gap in other issues such as legal rights, labour market opportunities, protection against HIV/Aids or sexual violence are also steps towards a development that is truly sustainable. Gender issues are highly relevant to achieving the MDGs of protecting the environment, achieving sustainable development, or enabling universal access to health care.46 Gender equality is an essential ingredient for achieving MDG-1 (‘Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger’), 2 (‘Achieve universal primary education’), 4 (‘Reduce child mortality’), 5 (‘Improve maternal health’), 6 (‘Combat HIV/Aids, malaria and other diseases’) and 7 (‘Ensure environmental sustainability’). Because these MDGs are mutually reinforcing, progress towards one goal affects progress towards the others. Success in many of the goals will have positive impacts on gender equality, just as progress toward gender equality will help further other goals.

IS GENDER EQUITY ON TRACK IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA?

empowerment in the region. In conclusion, although some positive initiatives have been taken across the region to improve the participation of women in the policy-decision process, specific support is still needed to ensure that women can effectively participate and are not only given token representation.

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COUNTRY REPORTS: A SELECTION Progress achieved towards achieving the third millennium goal of gender parity and women empowerment in SSA varies greatly across the region. Within the UN framework, these countries have, more or less regularly, produced progress reports on their efforts to approach all the millennium goals. These reports include progress made towards gender equality and women’s empowerment, and are available on the UN website. Below is a synopsis of the progress made by a selection of countries in the region with regard to MDG-3, using information from the latest available country reports online.

WEST AND CENTRAL AFRICA CAMEROON In this country, women represent about 51 per cent of the overall population and 52 per cent of the total poor. They produce most of the domestic agricultural production. Although various governmental education sector documents address

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the gender equity in education (such as the 1998 Education Orientation Law), reported data shows that it is highly unlikely that the country will reach gender balance in enrolment at primary and secondary education by 2005. The proportion of girls among primary school pupils declined from 85 per cent in 1989/90 to 82.1 per cent in 1997/1998, whereas the proportion in secondary education increased from 82.9 per cent in 1994/95 to 85.6 per cent in 1998/99. The prevalence of poverty is reportedly the main reason for this situation as parents enrol more boys than girls when family incomes are limited. However, these rates conceal large in-country disparities, with, for example, a lower rate of gross primary enrolment of girls in the northern part compared with other parts of the country. Fortunately, with strong international support and a supportive governmental environment that is improving, though still weak, there is a clear indication that the situation might see great improvements in the years to come.

BENIN Gender disparities in favour of men still exist, in many development aspects, although women represent 51 per cent of the total population. With a gender parity index of 0.7, a global net enrolment ratio for girls of 78.1 per cent (against 110.5 per cent for boys) and 7.2 per cent of seats held by women in the national parliament, the country is likely to reach the MDG-3 targets by 2015 only, and only if the pace of progress registered since 1990 is maintained and even increased. In order to reduce all forms of gender disparity in Benin, the government has initiated various programmes and policies, which include the exemption of school fees for girls in primary education, and implementation of the Support Programme to Social Development (DEVESOC) with its Education and National Policy for the Promotion of Women project.

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CÔTE D’IVOIRE

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In this country, women make up about 49 per cent of the total population. With the launching of women-oriented sensitisation programmes, the country has made slight progress towards gender equality in school enrolment, with an increase in gender parity index at primary education level (from 0.77 in 1997 to 0.81 in 2000), youth literacy (69.5 per cent in 1993 against 75.2 per cent in 2002), enrolment in secondary education (from 47 per cent in 1990 to 54 per cent in 2000), share of wage employment in the non-agricultural sector (20 per cent in 1998 and 22.3 per cent in 2002) and share of seats in the national parliament (with a net increase from 4.6 per cent in 1991 to 8.5 per cent in 2001). From these figures, it appears that progress has been made since 1990 towards gender equality and women’s empowerment in Côte d’Ivoire. However, gender disparities still remain and the slow progress made toward achieving gender parity in

Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

SENEGAL

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In this country, women represent 52 per cent of the total population but still remain the most disadvantaged group of the society, the poorest and the least educated. In 1997, Senegal adopted its Second National Women Plan of Action, which was elaborated in a participatory way and has incorporated recommendations from the Beijing International Women Conference. This Plan of Action included various strategic axes such as improvement of participation of women in the decision-making process, improvement of education and training levels for women and girls, enhancement of women’s health status (including reproductive health), enhancement of women’s economic situation, and the fight against poverty through strengthening gender-sensitive institutional mechanisms. Since then, the country has made progress, though slow, towards gender parity in school enrolment and political empowerment. From 1997 to 2001, the gender parity index has increased very slowly, at a pace of approximately 0.01 every year (passing from 0.63 to 0.69). With only 10.6 per cent share of women in wage employment in the non-agricultural sector and 24 per cent of seats occupied by women in the national parliament, Senegal is unlikely to reach the MDG of gender parity by the target date, given the pace of progress recorded over the past decade.

IS GENDER EQUITY ON TRACK IN SUBSAHARAN AFRICA?

primary and secondary school enrolment during the period 1990–2000 suggests it is unlikely that the country reaches MDG-3. There are many challenges to overcome if any significant progress is to be achieved, and these include attenuation of some socio-cultural negative behaviour that hinders women’s empowerment, promotion of a national policy favouring girls in access to primary and secondary education, and adoption of incentive measures to ensure women’s access and rights to land.

EAST AFRICA KENYA In this country, the ratio of girls to boys in primary and secondary education recorded in 2001 was 97.3 and 89.5, whereas the ratio of literate females to males of age 15–24 reached 90.5 per cent. These figures show that Kenya is most likely to achieve the target on gender parity in primary and secondary education but the main problem in enrolment is in post-secondary tertiary educational institutions. Although there have been improvements in overall literacy for both males and females (from 81.3 per cent in 1989 to 90.5 per cent in 2000) and a narrowing of the gap between them, the overall goal of closing the gender

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literacy gap will not be achieved without focusing attention on the underprivileged regions. More specifically, there is a need to address general enrolment in the North Eastern Province and Nairobi, while focusing on gender disparity in the North Eastern Province and the Coast where relatively fewer girls enrol in schools. Conversely, the country seems very unlikely to reach the target of gender parity in women’s participation in economic development, as only 30.7 per cent of women are employed in the non-agricultural sector. Kenya also continues to perform dismally in the participation of women in politics. Although there has been a marginal increase in the number of seats held by women in national parliament from a mere 5 in 1990 to 18 in 2002, they only comprise 8 per cent of the total parliamentary membership. The government has committed itself to mainstreaming gender issues in its policies, programmes and legislation. It is also a signatory to various international treaties and international conventions on women’s rights and empowerment. However, for the MDG of gender parity and women’s empowerment to be fully achieved by 2015, the government must implement the National Gender and Development Policy that was recently adopted.

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TANZANIA If the current pace of progress is maintained, the goal to achieve gender parity in education is likely to be met at primary and secondary levels in this country. Virtually closed in primary education (the percentage of girls to boys stood at 99.6 per cent in 1999), the gender gap is larger in secondary education but improving (up from 80 per cent in 1995 to 85.5 per cent). However, given that very few Tanzanian children, boys or girls, enter secondary education, these statistics are misleading. In fact, Tanzania’s gross enrolment rates for secondary education are among the lowest in the world. Furthermore, gender parity and performance disparity become a problem at the higher secondary grades. Even if gender parity in school enrolment is no longer a problem in Tanzania, challenges related to performance and drop-out levels (due mainly to early pregnancy at secondary school), and opportunity costs (real or perceived) remain critical to the promotion of women empowerment.

SOUTHERN AFRICA MOZAMBIQUE

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Although Mozambique has made significant socio-economic progress since the peace agreement in 1992, it still remains one of the poorest countries in the world with a human development index rank of 170 out of 173 countries. Government programmes to tackle poverty aim at reducing the current level of 70–60 per

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cent in 2005 and 50 per cent in 2010. Because of their low level of education (female illiteracy is twice as high as male illiteracy), women are more vulnerable to the incidence of poverty in the country than men. However, the gender gap in primary education is gradually closing at the low primary education level: in 2001, 78 girls were enrolled against 100 boys, up from 71 in 1998. In secondary education, the gap is higher and did not show any improvement in the last few years, with a ratio of girls to boys of 67:100. The Northern and Central Provinces as well as rural areas are absolutely disadvantaged. The proportion of seats held by women in parliament was 30 per cent in 2001, while the share of women in wage employment in the non-agricultural sector was only 4 per cent in 1997. If current trends are maintained, the goal of achieving gender parity in education is likely to be met at the first level of primary education soon after 2005 while the goals for higher primary education and secondary education are likely to be met in subsequent years. As in many countries of the region, little information was available to assess the progress made since the benchmark year of 1990 towards the target of gender parity in decision-making.

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ZAMBIA In this country, despite the significant progress made during the past decade, gender disparities still exist at all education levels. Between 1990 and 2000, the gender gap in primary school enrolment has narrowed but has remained unchanged between 2000 and 2001 (with a girl to boy ratio of 98:100). At middle to basic and secondary school levels girls drop out of school for many reasons, including pregnancies, early marriages, and domestic chores. These result in fewer females entering colleges and universities. These gender disparities are later manifested in the labour markets: the share of women in formal wage employment in the non-agricultural sector declined from 39 per cent in 1990 to 35 per cent in 2000. Despite some improvements, the situation in Parliament still shows wide gender gaps. In 1991, women represented only 6 per cent of the members of parliament. This figure rose to 10 per cent in 1996 and to 12 per cent in 2001. Among the various reasons behind existing gender disparities in the country are strongly entrenched cultural norms that need to be tackled to reach the millennium goal of gender equity and equality by 2015. In support of this, the government has put in place an institutional mechanism for gender mainstreaming.

CONCLUSION Almost all countries in the region have made progress in achieving gender equality in enrolment at primary and secondary education but, again, the rates of improvement are much too slow in many parts of West and Central Africa to

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achieve the goal for gender parity by 2015, starting from the lowest net enrolment ratios and making slow progress. In the case of gender equality and the empowerment of women, gender parity in education is a necessary first step towards ensuring that women have the same opportunities as men. However, education is not the only factor that affects women’s status in society, nor should it be the only area addressed by governments of the region in their pursuit of gender equality. A majority of governments have made some solid gains when it comes to adopting policies and laws protecting the rights of women, putting in place measures to increase girls’ enrolment in primary and secondary schools, as well as setting up educational and employment programmes for women. In general, the overall improvement is very slow in the area of political empowerment, but there are positive trends towards gender equality in education and work. With the initial target of eliminating gender disparities in primary and secondary education preferably by 2005 being missed in so many parts of the region, there is an urgent need for African governments to give some substantial attention to this MDG. It is the only MDG target set for 2005 and urgent action is required if any of the other MDGs are to have any value. It could be interesting to document the reasons why this goal is unmet in West and Central Africa in general and therefore, comprehensively reviewing the initiatives that have led to progress in southern African countries and the strategies that have failed in others would be very instructive. The need to continue refining and elaborating a comprehensive set of tools for measuring gender empowerment is also suggested. As the Secretary General recently stated, ‘there is no time to lose if we are to reach the MDGs by the target date of 2015. Only by investing in the world’s women can we expect to get there. When women thrive, all of society benefits, and succeeding generations are given a better start in life.’47

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ENDNOTES 1

United Nations, Millennium Declaration, General Assembly Resolution 55/2, 18 September 2000, section 19.

2

United Nations Secretary General First Progress Report on MDGs. Juillet, 2002, p. 9.

3

Achieving the Millennium Development Goals in Africa: Progress, Prospects and Policy Implications. Global Poverty Report 2002. African Development Bank in collaboration with the World Bank. p. 18.

4

Pearl, R. Women’s Access to Natural Resources and the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. Copyright © Women’s Environment and Development Organisation (WEDO). 2003, p. 1.

5

The Platform for Action http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/beijing/platform.

6

United Nations. http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals.

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Dimandja, A. L. The Role and Place of Women in Sub-Saharan African Societies, 2004. Available at: http://www.globalaging.org.

8

http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.

9

Yumiko, Y. Gender in Education and Development. Hiroshima University CICE. Journal of International Cooperation in Education, Vol. 1, No. 1, p. 60.

10 African Union. http://www.africa-union.org/home/Welcome.htm. 11 Ibid. 12 Indicators for Monitoring the Millennium Development Goals: Definitions, Rationale, Concepts and Sources. United Nations, New York. 2003. 13 2004 World Development Indicators Database (2004 WDI), Washington DC: The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank, 2004. 14 http://www.worldbank.org, www.un.org/esa and www.undp.org/mdg, respectively. 15 2004 World Development Indicators Database (2004 WDI), Washington DC: The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank, 2004. 16 African Development Indicators 2004 (ADI 2004), Washington DC: The International Bank

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7

for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank, 2004. 17 United Nations Secretary General First Progress Report on MDGs. July, 2002, p. 9. 18 Mendoza, A. (2004). Relevance of population aspects for the achievement of millennium development Goals 6 and 3: combating the spread of HIV/AIDS. Paper presented at the Seminar on the relevance of population aspects for the achievement of the millennium development goals. New York, 17–19 November 2004, p. 2. 19 Gilbert, L. and Walker, L. (2002). Treading the path of least resistance: HIV/AIDS and social inequalities – a South African case study, Social Science and Medicine, Vol. 54. 20 Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat (2003). World Population Prospects: the 2002 Revision. Highlights. New York: United Nations. pp. 25–29. 21 http://uk.encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761561241/Population. 22 Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

Nations Secretariat (2003). World Population Prospects: The 2002 Revision. Highlights. New York: United Nations. 23 Progress of the world’s women 2002. Gender equality and the millennium development goals. Available at: http://www.unifem.org/resources. 24 Anderson, H. Missing links: gender equality, the MDGs and the International Conference on Population and Development. Paper presented at the Seminar on the relevance of population aspects for the achievement of the millennium development goals. New York, 17–19 November 2004, p. 4. 25 World Bank. World Development Indicators 2004, Annual. Available at: http://www.worldbank.org/data. 26 Report of the International Conference on Population and Development, Cairo, Chap. 1, Resolution 1, Annex, 1994. 27 World Population Monitoring 2003: Population, Education and Development. United Nations. Department of Economic and Social Affairs Population Division. New York, 2004, p. 32.

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28 UNESCO World Population Monitoring, p. 176. 29 UNESCO Institute for Statistics, Estimates and projections of youth and adult illiteracy, July 2002 assessment. 30 La Commission de l’Union Africaine (2004). Vers une égalité entre hommes et femmes en Afrique: Vue d’ensemble. Addis Abéba, Ethiopie, p. 17. 31 Yumiko, Y. Gender in Education and Development. Hiroshima University CICE. Journal of International Cooperation in Education. Vol. 1, No. 1, p. 54. 32 World Development Indicators 2004, Annual. World Bank. http://www.worldbank.org/ data. 33 WDI 2004. Online consultation. 34 UNESCO Institute for Statistics, Estimates and projections of youth and adult illiteracy, July 2002 assessment. 35 La Commission de l’Union Africaine. Vers une égalité entre hommes et femmes en Afrique: Vue d’ensemble. Addis Abéba, Ethiopie, 2004, p. 17. 36 WDI 2004. 37 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (1997). International Standard Classification of Education, 1997 (ISCED 1997). Paris. BPE-98/WS/1. 38 The MDG in Africa: Promises and Progress (2002). UNDP and UNICEF. Available at: http://www.undp.org/mdg/mdgreportinafrica. 39 UNESCO Institute for Statistics, Estimates and projections of youth and adult illiteracy, July 2002 assessment. 40 WDI 2004. pp. 84–86. 41 WDI 2004. 42 Yokozeki Yumiko. Gender in Education and Development. 43 WDI 2004. 44 La Commission de l’Union Africaine. Vers une égalité entre hommes et femmes en Afrique: Vue d’ensemble. Addis Abéba, Ethiopie, 2004, p. 32. 45 Ibid., pp. 33–34.

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46 World Bank (2003). Gender equality and the Millennium Development Goals. Gender and Development Group. Washington, D.C. p. 3. 47 Mr. Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General, this time – on the occasion of the International Women’s Day, 2003.

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CHAPTER 4

REDUCTION OF CHILD MORTALITY An evaluation of the performance of African countries

Ameena Ebrahim Goga

INTRODUCTION This chapter evaluates the performance of African countries in meeting the fourth MDG of ‘reducing child mortality by two-thirds between 1990 and 2015’. The chapter is divided into six sections:

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1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Section 1: MDG-4 and the current profile of childhood illness in Africa. Section 2: The regional political context for achieving MDG-4. Section 3: Regional progress towards attaining MDG-4. Section 4: Case studies of nine African countries. Section 5: Recommendations on approaches and interventions needed to accelerate the pace of achieving MDG-4. 6. Section 6: Summary and conclusion. The focus of this chapter is on SSA because North Africa is considered to be largely on track with regard to achieving MDG-4. The chapter is developed largely with materials from the World Development Indicators database1, the Human Development Reports2 and UNICEF reports.3 Furthermore, it considers data from an evaluation of annual rates of change in infant mortality rate (IMR), based on 43 demographic and health surveys, conducted between 1978 and 1998, in 24 African countries.4 Other materials consulted, data and inspirational discourse, include case studies of nine African countries (Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zambia and the Gambia). The case studies focus on the achievements and challenges facing Africa in reducing child mortality. The nine countries were chosen

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as representative of the diverse economic, social and political conditions that prevail in Africa. These various sources have been used to present a comprehensive picture of progress towards meeting MDG-4 and to circumvent any bias that may result if only one source of information is used. In some situations data from various sources are slightly incongruent, depending on the primary source of the data. However, the trend or pattern of progress is more important than the actual figures that are quoted. According to the World Health Organisation childhood mortality is closely linked to malnutrition – almost half of the deaths among children under the age of five associated with malnutrition.5 The author therefore considers it an implicit part of this chapter briefly to review progress made in reducing stunting (a marker of chronic childhood malnutrition) by two-thirds by 2015.

SECTION 1: MDG4 AND THE CURRENT PROFILE OF CHILDHOOD ILLNESS IN AFRICA

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The MDG-4 target is to reduce under-five mortality rate (U5MR) by two-thirds between 1990 and 2015. Globally, three indicators are being used to track progress towards meeting this target. These are: 1. Under-five mortality rate (U5MR) – Defined as the number of children who die before reaching their fifth birthday per 1 000 live births. 2. Infant mortality rate (IMR) – Defined as the number of children who die before reaching their first birthday per 1 000 live births. 3. Proportion of one-year-old children immunised against measles. Measles remains a common illness in many developing countries, and hence a major contributor to under-five mortality.6 In 2003, it was estimated that there were 530 000 measles-deaths globally: this translates to 60 measles deaths every hour. The overwhelming majority (>95 per cent) of measles deaths occur in countries with a per capita Gross National Income7 of less than US$1 000. In May 2003, the 56th World Health Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution to reduce measles deaths by 50 per cent by the end of 2005 compared with 1999 levels, in an effort to meet MDG-4. Routine measles vaccination coverage is used as an indicator for this target. The WHO target is 90 per cent coverage with the first dose of measles vaccine in each district.

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Millennium Development Goals : Achievements and prospects of meeting the targets in Africa, edited by Francis Nwonwu, Africa Institute of South

Diarrhoea

Pneumonia

Aids

Neonatal

Disease

Malaria

Profile

Profile 1 24% of deaths in the country are attributed to diarrhoea and pneumonia. Malaria and Aids each account for fewer than 10% of deaths and neonatal causes for 34% (i.e. fewer than 40%). Average U5MR = 109 per 1000 live births. Example of countries fitting profile 1: Ethiopia and Somalia

REDUCTION OF CHILD MORTALITY

Table 1: Under-five mortality country profiles based on proportion of under-five deaths due to malaria, Aids, pneumonia, diarrhoea and neonatal causes in SSA countries

Θ Θ Θ Δ Δ

Profile 2 Between 20% and 26% of deaths are attributed to each of diarrhoea, pneumonia and malaria. Aids accounts for fewer than 10%, and neonatal for 20–26%, i.e. fewer than 40%. Average Δ Θ Θ Δ Δ U5MR = 181 per 1000. Example of countries fitting profile 2: Angola, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan and Togo. Profile 3 Diarrhoea accounts for 23%, pneumonia for at least 15%, neonatal causes for at least 48%. Malaria and Aids each account for fewer than 10% of deaths. Average U5MR = 41 per 1 000. Country fitting profile 3: Egypt.

Θ Δ Θ Θ Δ

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Profile 4 Between 17 and 19% of deaths are attributed to each of diarrhoea and pneumonia, >10% to Aids and 26% to malaria, i.e. both malaria and Aids account for at least 10%. Average U5MR = 169 Δ Θ Δ Θ Θ per 1 000. Example of countries fitting profile 4: Côte d’ Ivoire, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique. Profile 5 Diarrhoea and pneumonia account for about 20% of deaths, malaria for 6% and Aids for 23%, i.e. malaria accounts for fewer than 10% of under-five deaths and Aids for at least 10%. Θ Θ Δ Θ Θ Average U5MR = 106 per 1 000. Example of countries fitting profile 5: Kenya. South Africa, Zimbabwe, Rwanda. Key: Θ: Proportion of under-five deaths due to each cause as follows: malaria 100

1980

60

1990s 1993–1998 2003

U5MR

>190 20% of these units are staffed by unqualified personnel. 6. Poverty. 7. Poor maternal health. Copyright © 2007. Africa Institute of South Africa. All rights reserved.

8. Low access to information. 9. Low literacy levels. 10. Low levels of community participation.

Rwanda Political commitment

The Government has put considerable effort into approving two programmes that enhance the overall coordination and effectiveness of the population and reproductive health sectors (‘Politique Nationale en Matiere de Population et de Developpment Durable’ and the ‘Politique Nationale de la Sante de la Reproduction’). Other supportive actions include the following: The Government of Rwanda is promoting appropriate action to break out of the high fertility – high mortality poverty trap

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The Government has developed an up-to-date Health Management Information System which will improve the Government’s ability to gather analyse and utilise high quality data in the health sector, including IMR. Progress

Although IMR and U5MR decreased between 1980 and 1990 it rose sharply thereafter. These increases – especially in 1994 – were, inter alia, particularly attributable to the genocide. Since 1994 the IMR and U5MR have decreased slightly to 107 and 196 respectively. While the trend may be cause for optimism the rates are still among the highest in the world. Childhood immunisation level increased to 70% by 1997 but decreased to less than 50% by 1999 mainly due to reduced supervision and monitoring. The current rate of one-year-olds immunised against measles is 60%.

Major challenges

1. Controlling common illnesses such as malaria, ARI, diarrhoeal disease and malnutrition. 2. Poverty. 3. Improving sanitation and hygiene. 4. Providing safe drinking water. 5. Providing adequate financing for health: financing from the government has increased from 2.2% of the national budget to 4.1% in 2000. However this is still much lower than the SSA average. 6. Spreading knowledge about child care at household and family level. 7. Strengthening the institutional capacity of the Ministry of Health.

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8. Supporting reforms in health financing – especially increasing access to health services. 9. Strengthening primary health care.

Tanzaniavi Profile

Both malaria and Aids account for at least 10%.

Political commitment

Within the PRSP the government has signalled its intention to pursue policies and programmes to reduce under-five mortality to 127 per 1 000 live births by 2003. This fits in with overall country goals to improve health.

Progress

Available statistics suggest that Tanzania’s U5MR has increased from 145 per 1 000 live births in 1991 to 161 in 1994. This contrasts with the downward trend experienced before this.

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1. HIV/Aids, including PMTCT. 2. Poverty. 3. Deteriorating access to quality health services: Whilst Tanzania has a good network of health facilities these are often poorly maintained, poorly equipped and poorly staffed. 4. Government budget restrictions and the burden of debt – especially inadequate allocations to primary health care. 5. Insufficient community involvement.

REDUCTION OF CHILD MORTALITY

Major challenges

Zambia Profile 4

Both malaria and Aids account for at least 10%.

Political commitment

The policy environment, as articulated in the national health policy is conducive to and supportive of child health programmes. Several child health services and programmes have been put in place, including improved immunisation services and national immunisation days; IMCI; PMTCT and nutrition/ breastfeeding support programmes.

Progress

Immunisation coverage for measles increased from 77% in 1992 to 87% in 1996 but decreased to 84% in 2002. IMR and U5MR decreased between 1992 and 2002 and the 2015 target will potentially be met: Several factors have contributed to the decline in the above indicators, including: 1. Improved immunisation rates. 2. Vitamin A supplementation and fortification. 3. Early medical interventions.

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Major challenges

1. Regional disparities: a. The childhood indicators are better in urban than rural areas. 2. Inadequate child health services. 3. High prevalence of malaria. 4. Increased national prevalence of HIV among pregnant women. 5. Limited coverage of PMTCT. 6. High levels of childhood malnutrition. 7. High maternal mortality ratio.

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The Gambia Profile 2

Malaria accounts for at least 10% of deaths but Aids accounts for fewer than 10%.

Political commitment

There is currently strong emphasis on promoting a healthy workforce, which requires an effective health delivery system. The current policy aims at improving access to and ensuring provision of essential care packages at all levels of the healthcare delivery system. As a component of the new policy various programmes are currently being implemented such as IMCI and BFHI – all of which can significantly reduce infant and child mortality rates. The national Population Policy adopted in 1992 aims to improve the quality of life and raise the standard of living of all Gambians. Specific targets have been set for 2000 and 2004, for reducing infant and maternal mortality, increasing immunisation coverage and extending primary health care.

Table 10(d) Indicator for 2015

1992

2002

Target

U5MR

191

163

63

IMR

107

95

36

Measles coverage (%) 77 2003

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Progress

84

n/a

120

Despite the political commitment the Gambia is not on track towards achieving MDG-4. The decline in under-five mortality has been marginal. According to UNICEF (2003) overall immunisation has dropped from 87% to 62% between 1996 and 2000 (92.9%).

Major challenges

1. Regional disparities: Coverage is higher in rural areas (64.7%) than in urban areas (57.4%). For measles a similar disparity exists in favour of rural areas with the highest registered in Janjanbureh area. 2. Poverty: approximately 56% of Gambian children live in extremely poor households. 3. High cost of health care. 4. Prevalence of common illnesses: notably malaria, diarrhoea, acute respiratory infections, ARI and malnutrition.

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6. Poor communication between the village and health service and the basic health service provider. 7. Staff attrition. Notes: a – Kenyan Demographic and Health Survey b – Kenyan Demographic and Health Survey 1993

REDUCTION OF CHILD MORTALITY

5. Low levels of literacy.

Insecticide treated materials

1

Complementary feeding

1

Water, sanitation, hygiene

1

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Hib vaccine

1

1

Neonatal sepsis

Neonatal tetanus

Preterm delivery

Birth Asphyxia

1

HIV/Aids

1

Malaria

Pneumonia

Breastfeeding

Measles

Preventive interventions

Diarrhoea

Table 11: Preventing under-five deaths: interventions available and effect of each intervention at universal coverage % of all under-five deaths prevented with universal coverage of each interventiona

1

13

1

7

1

6 3

1

Zinc

1

1

Vitamin A

1

2

4 2

5 (4)

2

2 (2)

Antenatal steroids

1

3

Newborn temperature management

2

2 (0)

Tetanus toxoid Nevirapine and replacement feeding Antibiotics for preterm rupture of membranes Clean delivery

1

2

1

2

2

1

2

1 (0)

1

4

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Measles vaccine

Neonatal sepsis

Neonatal tetanus

Preterm delivery

Birth Asphyxia

HIV/Aids

Malaria

Measles

Pneumonia

Diarrhoea

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Preventive interventions

1

% of all under-five deaths prevented with universal coverage of each interventiona 1

Antimalarial intermittent preventive treatment in pregnancy

1