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INTERNATIONAL HIGHER EDUCATION

Planning for Higher Education Changes in Madagascar

Fred M. Hayward and Hanitra Rasoanampoizina
Fred M. Hayward is an independent higher education consultant who has worked in Africa, Asia, and the United States. Hanitra Rasoanampoizina is a research assistant and quality assurance specialist at the Ministry of National Education and Scientific Research in Madagascar. E-mails: hayward.fred.@att.net; rasoanampoizina@yahoo.com. Addresses: 3628 Van Ness St. NW, Washington DC, USA; lot IVC 104, Ambatomitsangana, Ankadifotsy, Antananarivo 101, Madagascar.

For the last year, work has been under way on a strategy for higher education reform, quality improvement, and a transformation in Madagascar. After some delay, that process has been joined by the major tertiary institutions.

Higher education in Madagascar developed in the 1950s as part of the French Institut des Hautes Etudes. The University of Antananarivo was established on this base in 1961 with 723 students focusing on law, medicine, pharmacy, science, and the arts. Five regional centers were established in 1975, becoming regional universities in 1988. In 1989/90 the universities were required to admit all students who passed the baccalaureate. From 1975 to 1990 the number of students more than quadrupled, to 37,000. Judging that experiment a costly failure, the government returned to competitive admissions, reducing the total number of students to an average of 20,000 from 1994 through 2002. Increases since that time have been modest. In 2006 the total student population at the six public universities was 37,152.

Private tertiary institutions developed primarily during the past decade. Most provide training in business, languages, management, and computer science. In 2005, the 50 recognized private higher institutions had 6,778 students (19.50 percent of the total). The total number of students in tertiary education is 3 percent of the college-age group, compared to 8 percent for Africa as a whole.

Challenges
Among the most difficult challenges is to stem the tremendous loss of students from secondary school to graduation. Only half the 25,000 students who passed the baccalaureate at the end of secondary school were admitted to a university. Thirty-five percent of students fail in the first year, and 18 percent repeat—with devastating consequences for students and a waste of resources. Of those admitted, 42 percent will earn a diploma. Part of the problem is inadequate preparation in secondary school, as well as the fact that many go to universities because it is expected and because students receive little counseling about other opportunities.

Much of the university curriculum is out of date. Only 64 percent (2006) of the faculty have PhDs or their equivalent. Few do any research or publish. A recent study shows only 87 publications in major refereed journals in 2004 and 121 in 2005. Research experience is limited, which undermines the ability of faculty to train and to stimulate students. Teaching and learning are not highly valued or rewarded. There is a public perception that about half the university graduates are unemployed, although there have been no studies to verify this.

University faculty are aging. The system suffers from a hiring freeze of more than a decade. As a result, the average age of faculty members is 56 years, with only 15 faculty members in all six universities under the age of 40.

Gender equity among students is less of a problem in Madagascar than in many other developing countries, with 46 percent of students being women. On the other hand, only 29 percent of the teaching faculty are women at public institutions and only 18 percent in private tertiary institutions.

Finance is a critical problem for universities. Government commits 18.2 percent of its budget to education and only 9.4 percent of that to higher education—the equivalent of $390 per student. Government policy of scholarships for most students (82 percent in 2006) without a means test has become an automatic budget liability, and 25 percent of recipients are from wealthy families. Students pay fees, but their contribution is limited. Attempts to increase fees or reduce scholarships would pose serious political risks. Added to these problems is the growing demand for access.

The system suffers from inertia. Senior university administrators resisted suggestions for reform until 2006 when new elections of presidents brought in leaders who are aware that Madagascar is far behind most of the rest of Africa and committed to improving quality. The new administrators, too, face the challenge of mobilizing support for reform.

Planning for Change
A new minister of education, Haja Nirina Razafinjatovo, was appointed in 2004 and is committed to making major changes in higher education. He brought dynamism and a new spirit to the ministry and recognized that transformation would require broad mobilization. He made a major commitment to quality improvement that is now part of the Madagascar Action Plan (2006) with "international norms and standards" as the first priority for higher education.

The minister's initial efforts to encourage change through the university presidents was largely rebuffed. His second initiative, a broad task force, was also unsuccessful. In the meantime, the minister worked with his staff and with some donor support in three areas. These initiatives were largely successful, including the first major faculty recruitment in more than a decade, establishment of the foundation for accreditation, a digital library, and a plan for PhD training abroad for promising MA/MS students.

The minister established a task team of ministry staff to begin work on an overall strategy for the transformation of postsecondary education. In early 2006 he began work with the newly elected presidents on an outline for change; in August he appointed a groupe de r?flection made up primarily of university presidents and a working group of vice-presidents, leaders in education, and senior ministry personnel.

By October, significant progress had resulted in an outline for higher education changes, including accreditation, faculty development, a credit system, articulation between universities, upgrading and expansion of distance education, centers of excellence for regional universities, prioritization of recruitment priorities, improved governance, and enhancement of university finances.

In addition, a great deal of thought was given to alternatives to university education—expansion of technical training, establishment of a US community colleges?type institution to provide job skills and entrepreneurial training.

Prospects
What has been impressive about the ministry leadership, the groupe de réflection, and the working group is their commitment to change, their thoughtful exploration of options, cooperative spirit, and recognition of the difficulties ahead. Indeed, if transformation is to occur, it will require widespread support of the faculties, students, staff, the public, and government. Universities will need to improve their own efficiency, but there are few areas in which substantial savings can occur. Government and funders, too, will need to make a major commitment of additional funding—one-time upgrades to laboratories; ICT (information, communications, and technology); building repair; long-term commitments to quality improvement, faculty recruitment, training, and retention; and enhanced teaching and research facilities. The universities and the ministry will need to make the case to the public for increased higher education funding. Nonetheless, the opportunity to transform higher education exists in Madagascar today in ways it did not even a year ago. The prospects are good for real transformation and quantum improvements in the higher education system as a whole.

[Online] Available: http://www.bc.edu/bc_org/avp/soe/cihe/newsletter/Number46/p18_Hayward_Rasoanampoizina.htm