Sanyang Employment of agricultural graduates - who are we training for?
-
Upload
futureagricultures -
Category
Technology
-
view
622 -
download
2
Transcript of Sanyang Employment of agricultural graduates - who are we training for?
1
Employment of Agricultural Graduates: Who are we training for ?
Sidi SanyangProgram ManagerCORAF/WECARD
Young People, Farming and Food
19 – 22 March 2012University of Ghana, Legon
Accra, Ghana
1
Introduction
Funding for higher education in Africa kept pace with the expanding institutional base during the 1960s and 1970s
but this has fallen well behind the growth in student numbers since 1980s
Impact of trained agriculturalists on the performance of African agriculture continues to be debated
Africa’s food and poverty challenges require a redirection of thinking about agriculture’s role in the development process
and the need for a reliable food supply as a precondition for national development
There is therefore a necessity and urgency for change in agricultural education
the “new universities” need to demonstrate willingness and capability to induce change
Recently however, the performance of the agricultural sector has started to show positive trends in a number of African countries but issues such as:
Is the agricultural training on offer adequate in terms of curricula and teaching methods?
Does it equip the trainees with the requisite mindset and skills needed to help increase agricultural productivity by smallholder farmers?
2
Methodology
Assessment of employment opportunities for agricultural graduates through the Project -- Strengthening Capacity for Agricultural Research and Development in Africa (SCARDA)
to enhance institutional and human capacity of national agricultural research systems , in particular the NARIs
Involved four (4) countries -- Mali, Congo, Ghana, Gambia
Three approaches were used
Follow-up approach
o assessment of the training received by the students
o evaluation of courses delivered prior to examinations
o the same assessment is then conducted some time after graduation especially with working graduates
Employer’s approach
o to understand the degree of employers’ satisfaction with the work performance of graduate employees
Retrospective approach investigated
o the impact of the graduates’ working experiences on the reform and or development of new training programs
3
Methodology
Study focused on agricultural education and training institutions eg. universities, polythenics, colleges
employers of agricultural graduates in the public sector, agribusiness, farmers’ organizations, NGOs active in agriculture
to a limited extent, regional and international organizations
Open-ended interviews were used to gather information from training institutions
Structured questionnaire was used for the various levels of agricultural graduates and employers
Sample size and character 5-10 employers per country
150 – 170 employed
only 20 – 30 unemployed agricultural graduates
men and women employees were interviewed
covering the previous 10 years
Training and employment opportunities assessed included crops and livestock production
fisheries
Agricultural engineering and food processing
agricultural inputs
environment and forestry
4
5
Mali Republic of Congo Ghana GambiaCentre d’Apprentissage Agricole (CAA) de Samanko
Centre d’Apprentissage Agricole (CAA) de Samé
Centre de Formation Pratique en Elevage (CFPE) de Sotuba Centre de Formation Pratique Forestier (CFPF) de Tabacoro Institut Polytechnique Rural de Formation et de Recherche Appliquée (IPR/IFRA) de Katibougou Faculté des Sciences et Techniques (FAST), Université de Bamako
Université Mandé Bukari
Lycée technique agricole Amilcar Cabral (LAAC)
Institut Sylvo Agro Pastoral – Centre d’Education Professionnelle Agricole (ISAP-CEPA)
Lycée Technique Agricole d’Ouesso (LTAO)
Institut de Développement Rural (IDR)
University of Ghana, Legon, Accra
Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi
Kwadaso Agric. College in Ashanti Region
Animal Health and Production College in Pong Tamale
Gambia College, University of The Gambia
University of The Gambia
Agricultural training institutions interviewed
66
Sector / Country Graduate subject area Gender
Public sector employed agric. graduates
Mali -- 94%Gambia --- 84% Ghana -- 55% Congo – 84%
NGOs Mali -- 4%Gambia -- 7% Ghana -- 14%Congo -- no information
Private sector/Agric. BusinessMali -- 2% Gambia -- 7%Ghana -- 12% only 16 in Congo
Farmer organizationsGhana -- 4%
Mali55% in crops & agricultural engineering
20% in forestry
Ghana50% of employed graduates in economics & crops
17% in animal science
Mali reported 13.7% female agricultural graduate in the public service
Gambiaonly 5% female
Overall Mali, Ghana & Gambia 5% - 14% graduate women employees
Ghana 5% female unemployment rate
11% male unemployment rate
Congo 40% female agricultural graduates
Results: Employment of Agricultural Graduates
Results : Key competencies required by Employers of Agricultural Graduates
agricultural engineering and farm machinery
agricultural economics with emphasis on farm management
innovation systems and value chains
communication including report writing and ICT skills
interpersonal skills
participatory technology development and dissemination
rural sociology / socio-cultural contexts
Limitations of curricular
students spent significantly less time engaged in practical or hands-on training (except Mali & Congo)
very few changes have been introduced into the curricula since the creation of the training institutions
subjects taught remain almost the same with the same contents and the same number of hours
quality of students’ supervision by teaching and support staff was not adequate
Ghana general growing disinterest in agricultural training
number of applicants dropped sharply from 1000 in 2003 to 370 in 2004 at University of Ghana & similar situation at the University of Science and Technology in Kumasi
disinterest in agricultural training can be partially explained by the declining job opportunities offered by the major public sector employer since 2003
7
Conclusion
Study clearly demonstrates
a mis-match or difference between the agricultural education that is on offer and what potential employers are seeking
need to establish strong linkage, partnerships, networking and learning with civil society employers
o agribusiness / private sector
o farmers’ organizations
o with greater emphasis on innovation and entrepreneurship
will help make agricultural training more responsive to the changing job market
Such linkages should enable students’ access to practical attachments and internships at enterprises
To achieve this however, radical change is required in the mindsets of policy makers and those running agricultural training institutions in terms of
Governance, leadership and management; norms, values and practices
policy analysis
learning processes / innovation
entrepreneurships
participatory curricular and teaching methods
project design, financial and human resources management
climate change
8
9
9
CORAF/WECARDCORAF/WECARD7 Avenue Bourguiba7 Avenue BourguibaBP 48BP 48DakarDakarSenegalSenegal
Tel (221) 33 869 96 18Tel (221) 33 869 96 18Fax (221)33 869 96 31Fax (221)33 869 96 31E-mail: E-mail: [email protected]
Web: Web: www.coraf.org
Thank You