Zimbabwe can’t continue funding foreign universities

 

Zimbabwe has some of the best and well-resourced private primary and secondary schools. There is massive investment by parents and the private sector in the private school education system.

 

Miriam Tose Majome

 

 

Lots of money is poured into the development of basic education.

 

Some schools go to the extent of recruiting teachers from abroad to teach elite disciplines and other niche pursuits.

 

Most children who attend elite private schools are raised to leave the country as soon as their formal schooling years are over.

 

 

Well-to-do people in Government and business are the chief architects of this culture, but ordinary people who can afford it have also joined the bandwagon to push their children to study abroad.

 

The only difference is that the well-to-do have better plans because of their money and contacts.

 

Their children do not just enrol in any third-rate university but only the best institutions that afford them better life and work opportunities.

 

Ordinary people’s children go to countries like Cyprus, Turkey, Malaysia, et cetera, to colleges of unknown distinction but still spend a lot of money in those institutions.

 

 

Most of the country’s ordinary people go to universities that do not offer foreign students work opportunities and permits.

 

And three or four years is a very short time.

 

Most of the students eventually return home to unemployment because their qualifications are not accepted or applicable locally.

 

 

Zimbabweans cannot continue raising children to leave the country as soon as they have finished school and training human resources for the benefit of other countries.

 

Most especially, we cannot continue funding and developing other countries’ colleges and universities when our own are struggling.

 

It is, therefore, essential for the private sector to invest in local universities and technical colleges so that they can attract and retain locals.

 

This cannot be left to the Government alone because graduates from local colleges feed the private sector.

 

Local institutions of higher learning are essential for industrial growth and overall social and economic development.

 

Universities and technical colleges produce a skilled workforce that is crucial for economic development.

 

Skilled people contribute to technological innovation, research and development, and overall productivity in various industries.

 

Business and political leaders are at the forefront of pushing their own children out of the country, so they are not personally invested in that ideal.

 

Foreign education strips the country of resources that otherwise would have been invested locally in higher education.

 

The country is in desperate need of industrial growth and innovation.

 

A tour around the industrial areas in all of the country’s towns reveals a story of death and decay.

 

The industrial base is badly in need of renewal, and this can only be done by skilled personnel.

 

Private capital should be funding talented individuals to enable them to access higher education.

 

Tertiary education enables individuals from diverse backgrounds to improve their social and economic standing.

 

This promotes social mobility and reduces income inequalities within the society.

 

The Government stands to benefit from an expanded tax base if more people are skilled and economically productive.

 

Well-resourced universities and polytechnics are hubs of innovation and research.

 

They promote new discoveries, technologies and solutions to complex industrial problems such as the ones facing the country.

 

Universities and technical colleges foster critical thinking, problem-solving and analytical skills that are essential to addressing complex industrial and economic challenges.

 

Institutions of higher education also play a crucial role in preserving and disseminating cultural knowledge, arts and humanities for the overall enrichment of society.

 

The country’s tertiary institutions are under-funded and more focused on survival.

 

They are no longer the cultural and social hubs that helped mould people into better citizens.

 

There is a direct co-relationship between the ethical and moral degradation in society and the waning influence of universities.

 

Investing in universities and

technical colleges is a strategic investment into the future of the country at large.

 

It is compulsory to invest and develop higher education because education and skills are the only way to return the country to competitiveness.

Hustling, dealing and grifting, as is the business culture now, will never contribute meaningfully to the country’s development.