Education in Africa is still underfunded, despite the sector's crucial role in economic empowerment, poverty alleviation and building human capital. The Global Education Monitoring Report by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) estimates that there will be an annual financing gap of $97 billion on average in 79 low- and lower-middle-income countries between 2023 and 2030. The report shows that sub-Saharan Africa has the highest out-of-school rate globally, with over 30 million primary school-aged children lacking access to education. ALSO READ:Education leaders commend Rwanda’s ECD system at FLEX 2024 In many African countries, the responsibility for funding education rests predominantly with government systems, often with additional support from development partners. However, data shows that governments on the continent often do not meet the minimum international benchmark of at least 15 per cent of total public expenditure and at least 4 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) dedicated to education. Private sector role The debt crisis in many African countries has been cited as the main reason affecting the ability ofgovernments to finance education – considered a human rights need. “Education is the responsibility of the government. However, everyone has a role to play, including the private sector,” Joseph Nsengimana, Rwanda’s Minister of Education told The New Times. “When you look at the business of education, we need to build schools, the children need food as well as school uniforms and books, and in these areas, the private sector plays a crucial role,” he added. Emphasising the importance of financing education, the minister said, “Every day we interact with the product of education, be it in hospitals or in offices both public and private, so it behooves us to fund and build a strong education sector.” In the 2023/24 fiscal year, the Government of Rwanda increased the budget allocation for the education sector by 16.5 per cent from Rwf675 billion in the 2022/23 revised budget to Rwf786.9 billion. ALSO READ:Rwanda’s Rwf790 billion education budget at a glance According to Manos Antoninis, Director of the Global Education Monitoring, the responsibility of funding education lies squarely with governments. “The rise of private schools in Africa essentially reflects the failure of the public schools’ system, a failure that did not happen overnight, but one that has been caused by the heavy debt burden that eventually saw public spending in social sectors like education declining,” Antoninis said. Antoninis also noted that the rise of private schools in many African countries has not translated to better quality of education, adding that education is a public good and governments have the responsibility of ensuring good quality infrastructure as well as sufficient and efficient teachers. For Charles Avelino, Chief of Education at UNICEF Rwanda, the private sector can play a crucial role by supplementing government efforts in the education sector. “The private sector can support government effort through both financial and non-financial contributions, by enhancing access to quality education, bringing in innovative teaching tools, and improving the infrastructure needed for effective learning,” he said. Avelino highlighted that there are numerous opportunities to formalise collaborations through public-private partnerships (PPPs), where private sector resources can complement government initiatives, particularly in funding logistics and innovation in curriculum development. “Companies with strong corporate social responsibility (CSR) commitments can engage by aligning their philanthropic and CSR activities with foundational learning goals, seeing education as a shared value investment with both social and economic returns,” he said. Funding opportunities ALSO READ: Inside Rwf760 billion education budget in 2023/2024 According to UNESCO, at least 1.6 billion children and young people head to class each day around the world and $5 trillion is spent on education every year. This is considered a big market for the private sector to tap into. According to Benjamin Piper, Director of Global Education Programme at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the private sector role can be two-fold. “The private sector can invest in low-fee private schools that can serve a huge percentage of children from disadvantaged backgrounds,” he said, adding that these schools need to be supported to acquire the fundamental learning materials and to scale. “The private sector also has a big part to play in bringing out the relationship between education (especially foundational learning), and the job market, by communicating their expectations to education ministries,” Piper added. The African Union declared 2024 the year of education to underscore the urgent need to transform education systems in Africa and ensure the continent is back on track toward attaining Sustainable Development Goal 4. Sustainable Development Goal 4 is about quality education. Countries signed up to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
