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Mozambique by Arlindo Chilundo Introduction
Mozambique has an estimated population of 16.5 million people. It has an average per capita gross domestic product of $218.History of Higher Education
Higher education in Mozambique was initially established by the Portuguese in 1962, when the General University Studies of Mozambique (EGUM) were introduced. Nine programs (courses) were then offered.In 1968, the EGUM were upgraded to form a university that came to be known as the University of Lourenço Marques (ULM). This university remained discriminatory against black Mozambicans. The political independence of Mozambique in 1975 marked an end to the discriminatory nature of ULM. In 1976, ULM was changed into Eduardo Mondlane University (UEM) and became the first national university of Mozambique.
When UEM was established in 1976, it had a student population of 2,400 students. These numbers dropped drastically from 1977 onwards, stabilizing in 1989 when 1974-75 figures were reached again, then growing subsequently from 1990 onwards.
Governance and Management
Up until 1999, the Ministry of Education supervised higher education institutions through the National Council for Higher Education, chaired by the minister of education. In early 2000, a new Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology (MESCT) was established to supervise the whole system of higher education in the country.Despite the creation of the MESCT, higher education institutions have enjoyed autonomy since the enactment of the Higher Education Law 1/93. This law established the National Council for Higher Education (CNES), an advisory body comprising rectors of all functioning public and private HEIs.
Although the Law on Higher Education states that HEIs are autonomous, the precise degree of autonomy has often been a matter of dispute. In the case of UEM, the level of financial autonomy was increased through an agreement between the government and the university in December 1999. In many other aspects, the autonomy of HEIs is limited, though the overall academic autonomy of public HEIs is guaranteed by law.
Enrollment
Student population increased steadily from 1990-96. Since then, the growth has been much more rapid because of the development of the private sector. Total student numbers in 1999 were 11,619, of which 77.6% were in public and 22.4% in private institutions.
Note: S = students; L = total full-time equivalent lecturers; TS = technical staff
Gender Issues
The proportion of female students has been gradually increasing since 1992, the first year for which a gender breakdown is available. The ratio of male to female students remained high (at the range of 2.79 and 3.06) between 1990-96, but fell to 2.45 and 2.59 in 1998 and 1999. This was partly due to the opening of private institutions, where the proportion of female students is higher than the public institutions (43% on average in private institutions in 1999, compared with only 25% in the public sector).The participation rate of females in university education continues to remain far below that of males, even though the situation is improving. Overall, there has been a tendency for the ratio to fall over the last 3 years (from 2:6 in 1997 to 1:8 in 1999). 28% of the student population is female.
Teaching Staff
In 1999-2000, the whole system of higher education had 1,357 teaching staff members, of which 539 (39.7%) were part-time lecturers. Public institutions employ mainly full-time lecturers, while private institutions rely mainly on part-time staff--except UCM, where the proportion of full-time and part-time lecturers is equivalent. Public institutions employ mainly Mozambican staff, while the private institutions count mainly on expatriate staff.The Mozambican teaching staff consists mainly of professionals with the Licenciatura degree (a five-year BA or BSc degree, which is a little more than an honor’s degree). Public institutions have been carrying out a program of raising the academic and scientific qualifications of their staff during the last 10 years.
The situation is rapidly changing in UEM, UP, and ISRI, where a total of 247 full-time Mozambican faculty members had post-graduate degrees in 1999, representing 36% of the total full-time teaching staff. UEM and UP together have trained 230 faculty members to the MSc (152) and PhD (78) levels in 10 years. All of them were trained overseas.
Financing Higher Education
The subvention for public higher education institutions comes from the government through the Ministry of Planning and Finance, rather than through the Ministry of Education, as is often the case. Separate negotiations take place for each public institution between the senior managers of the institution and the Ministry of Planning and Finance.The education sector’s share of the total government budget (including external development assistance) was estimated at 14% in 1999. The higher education sub-sector accounts for about 26% of the education sector budget which is equivalent to about 3.8% of the total government budget. Foreign assistance contributes about 60% of total government investment in education, but the contribution of foreign assistance is even higher than this, since many foreign grants are given directly to education institutions rather than channeled through the government budget.
Research and Publishing
Only the three oldest institutions in Mozambique are engaged in research activities. UEM, UP, and ISRI have sought to institutionalize campus research activities. Likewise, an introduction-to-research-based Licenciatura thesis is required for the undergraduate degree. At present, UEM has more than 300 different research projects underway, and UP and ISRI are also increasing their research ventures gradually. UEM has created a “Research Open Fund,” mainly sponsored by SAREC-SIDA, which provides funding for small demand-driven research projects on campus.Dissemination of research results mostly happens through publication in small internal journals or booklet, since Mozambique has very few peer reviewed scientific journals. An initiative at UEM Press, has started a few years ago to publish books and other forms of printed materials. This has immensely helped to disseminate some research results.
Private Higher Education
The transition to a market economy in 1987 introduced new elements in the social, economic, and cultural environment, namely the private sector and civil society. In this context, private higher education institutions were established: the Higher Polytechnic and University Institute (ISPU) and the Catholic University of Mozambique (UCM), both started in August 1996. The Higher Institute of Sciences and Technology of Mozambique (ISCTEM) was created in November 1996 and began its activities in 1997. In 1998, the Mussa Bin Bique University (UMBB) was established in Nampula; and the Higher Institute for Transports and Communications (ISUTC) was created in 1999.There was a tenfold increase in the number of students enrolled in private institutions between 1996, when the first private institutions opened with 262 students, and 1999, when 2,598 students were enrolled. The numbers at ISPU and UCM have grown particularly rapidly. The growth in private HEIs has not contributed to a decline in public sector enrollment, which has, in fact, grown almost 3 times from 3,750 in 1990 to 9,021 in 1999.
Note: For detailed account on the state of higher education in Mozambique, please consult: Arlindo Chilundo, African Higher Education: An International Reference Handbook (Damtew Teferra and Philip. G. Altbach, eds., Indiana University Press, 2003), pp. 462-475.
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