Abstract
Budgetary capacity that would allow for the public funding of the provision of universal access to primary education is lacking in many sub-Saharan economies. National revenues significantly lag behind the overall economic productivity measure of GDP. Analysis of data derived from UNESCO and UNDP for 2004 shows that governments in the region spend far less in US dollars per unit cost on primary education than do developed countries. Increasing the unit cost of education in order to enable a government to guarantee universal primary education would take away resources from other tiers of the education system in many countries in the region. The alternative is to universalise access, despite existing budget allocation constraints, and thereby further compound the problems of poor infrastructure and limited human resource capacity that continue to compromise education quality in sub-Saharan Africa.
Résumé
FINANCEMENT PUBLIC ET DÉFIS BUDGÉTAIRES POUR GARANTIR L’ACCÈS GÉNÉRALISÉ À L’ENSEIGNEMENT PRIMMAIRE EN AFRIQUE SUBSAHARIENNE – La capacité budgétaire qui permettrait le financement public de l’accès généralisé à l’enseignement primaire fait défaut dans un grand nombre d’Économies subsahariennes. Les recettes nationales demeurent nettement inférieures au niveau global de la productivité Économique reflétée par le PIB. Une analyse de données sur l’année 2004 provenant de l’UNESCO et du PNUD démontre que les gouvernements de la région dépensent beaucoup moins en dollars US pour le coût unitaire de l’enseignement primaire que les pays industrialisés. L’augmentation du coût unitaire dans l’enseignement, qui permettrait aux gouvernements de généraliser l’enseignement primaire, ne ferait que soustraire des ressources à d’autres niveaux du système Éducatif dans un grand nombre de pays de la région. L’alternative consiste à généraliser l’accès en dépit des contraintes budgétaires, et ainsi à aggraver encore les problèmes dus à une infrastructure insuffisante et à des capacités limitées en ressources humaines, qui continuent à nuire à la qualité de l’enseignement en Afrique subsaharienne.
Zusammenfassung
STAATLICHE FINANZIERUNG UND HERAUSFORDERUNGEN FÜR DIE HAUSHALTE BEI DER GEWÄHRLEISTUNG EINES UNIVERSELLEN ZUGANGS ZUR GRUNDBILDUNG IN AFRIKA SÜDLICH DER SAHARA – In vielen Ökonomien Afrikas südlich der Sahara fehlt es an ausreichenden Haushaltsmitteln, um den universellen Zugang zur Grundbildung zu finanzieren. Die Staatseinnahmen bleiben erheblich hinter dem BIP als Maßstab für die gesamtwirtschaftliche Produktivität zurück. Von UNESCO und UNDP abgeleitete Datenanalysen aus dem Jahr 2004 zeigen, dass die Regierungen in dieser Region weit weniger US-Dollar für Grundbildung ausgeben als Industriestaaten. Würde man die Bildungsausgaben pro Einheit erhÖhen, damit eine Regierung universelle Grundbildung gewährleisten kann, so würde man damit in vielen Ländern der Region lediglich anderen Stufen des Bildungssystems Ressourcen entziehen. Die Alternative besteht darin, ungeachtet der vorhandenen Einschränkungen bei der Zuweisung von Haushaltsmitteln den Zugang für alle zu ermÖglichen und damit die Probleme der mangelhaften Infrastruktur und der begrenzten Personalkapazitäten, durch die die Bildungsqualität in Afrika südlich der Sahara noch immer beeinträchtigt wird, weiter zu verschlimmern.
Resumen
EL FINANCIAMIENTO PÚBLICO Y LOS RETOS PRESUPUESTARIOS PARA PROVEER ACCESO UNIVERSAL A LA EDUCACIÓN PRIMARIA EN EL ÁFRICA SUBSAHARIANA – La capacidad presupuestaria que pueda permitir el financiamiento público de un acceso universal a la enseñanza primaria es insuficiente en muchas economías subsaharianas. Los ingresos nacionales se sitúan muy por debajo de los indicador generales de productividad económica en PIB. El análisis de los datos obtenidos de la UNESCO y del PNUD en cuanto a 2004 indican que, en dólares estadounidenses de costo por alumno, los gobiernos de la región gastan mucho menos en educación primaria que los países desarrollados. Pero si se aumentaran los costos por alumno, para permitir que un gobierno garantice la educación primaria universal, estos solamente absorberían recursos de otros segmentos del sistema educativo en muchos países de la región. La alternativa sería universalizar el acceso, pese a las limitaciones de asignación presupuestaria y la consiguiente agudización de los problemas de falta de infraestructura y de recursos humanos que siguen perjudicando la calidad de la educación en el África Subsahariana.
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Omwami, E.M., Keller, E.J. Public Funding and Budgetary Challenges To Providing Universal Access To Primary Education in Sub-Saharan Africa. Int Rev Educ 56, 5–31 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11159-009-9149-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11159-009-9149-9