Africa: Significant investment in education to see Continent’s GDP expand to $6.6 trillion – Ken Ofori-Atta
Ghana’s Minster for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, has remarked that significant investment in the continent’s education sectors can lead to the expansion of the Continent’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from the current $3.3 trillion to $6.6 trillion.
The projected growth in the Continent’s GDP, the Minister asserts, will be due to an 88% growth in GDP per capita occasioned by huge investments in human capital by African governments.
Speaking at the launch of the World Bank’s regional education strategy for Western and Central Africa titled “From School to Jobs: A Journey for the Young People of Western and Central Africa” at a regional ministerial meeting on June 27, the Finance Minister called on African governments particularly Western and Central African governments to increase budgetary allocation to education and possibly double the sector’s share of GDP from the current 3-4%.
Increased budgetary allocation to education, he noted, must be done despite the current fiscal challenges facing African governments as a result of the adverse impacts of the Covid pandemic and global economic uncertainties brought about by the Russia-Ukraine war.
Presently, around 3-4% of the GDP of countries in Western and Central Africa is spent on education.
“Undeniably a significant increase in financing is necessary if we have to tackle the learning crisis in the education sector and improve education outcomes in Western and African countries.
“We must spend significantly above the recommended 4.1% of GDP on education if we are to compete on the global scale and this implies almost doubling education expenditure levels as a proportion of GDP from current 3-4% in Central and Western Africa respectively,” said the Minister.
“If investment in human capital in Africa remains unchanged, GDP per capita will increase by 39% by 2050. However, if countries in Africa increase their investments in the health and education of young people, this could trigger an 88% increase in GDP per capita by 2050.
“It is staggering to think that we can move from the current $3.3 trillion to $6.6 trillion just by focusing on putting more resources in education. Even as we raise more finance for education, government must continue to prioritise education by allocating funds fairly and efficiently despite the present fiscal challenges brought about by the adverse impact of the COVID 19 pandemic and current global economic uncertainties caused by rising costs of food, fuel and financing, which is impacting costs of living and affecting ouseholds and public finances globally,” the Minister added.
Speaking further at the launch, the Finance Minister noted education systems in Western and Central Africa suffer from chronic underperformance with higher deficits in teachers, asserting nearly a third of Africa’s illiterate population live in West Africa.
Also, adult illiteracy is acute in Central Africa, where one in three adults are illiterate and nearly 42 million children of primary and secondary school age are not enrolled in school. That is two out of five school children who drop out of school in Western and Central Africa.
According to the World Bank, despite progress in access to education over the last decades, 80% of 10-year-old children in the region are unable to read and understand a simple text, and more than 32 million children remain out of school, the largest share of the world’s out of school children.
Education is the cornerstone of development. It is an essential driver for stability, social cohesion, and peace. Analysis also shows that there are many innovations and successful programs from across the continent that demonstrate the tremendous results that can be achieved when leadership and political will are met with adequate funding.
