Education
From The Report: Cote d'Ivoire 2018
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Significant reform in the education sector is seen as a precondition for Côte d’Ivoire’s manageable and sustainable development. The urgency of this restructuring is closely related to the country’s youth bulge: in 2014, 41.8% of the population was under the age of 15. The state’s main goals for the sector are to increase access to basic education, improve quality and governance, and adapt vocational training to labour market needs. While baseline indicators remain low, consistent prioritisation of education in government budgets since 2011 has led to concrete improvements at both the primary and secondary level.

This chapter contains an interview with Koffi N’Guessan, Director-General, Institut National Polytechnique Félix Houphouët-Boigny.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Access granted: Increased interest from the private sector and continued efforts at the state level broaden opportunities for students
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With a 2016 GDP growth rate of 7.9% far outstripping most of sub-Saharan Africa, Côte d’Ivoire has the right economic conditions to bring about substantial and permanent developmental change. However, a February 2017 report by the World Bank titled “The Skills Challenge: Why Côte d’Ivoire Must Reform Its Education System” highlighted that significant reform in the education sector will be a precondition for manageable and sustainable development. The urgency of educational restructuring…

Analysis

Quality and quantity: Reforms to instructor training and pay set to benefit learners
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Instructor quality is a major driver of students’ educational experiences, and often teachers play an important role in maintaining satisfactory retention rates. Although a February 2017 World Bank report highlighted teacher training as an area of comparative weakness in Côte d’Ivoire, the government is working diligently to address it. One suggestion comes from Francis Ndem, an education specialist and one of the article’s authors. “One of the ways to improve the quality and effectiveness…

Interview

Meeting local needs: Koffi N’Guessan, Director-General, Institut National Polytechnique Félix Houphouët-Boigny, on creating a tailored education system
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Interview: Koffi N’Guessan How can curricula be adapted to better suit the requirements of the job market? N’GUESSAN: Education in Africa has been devised without taking into consideration the needs of sectors with solid employment prospects. In this context, pedagogical reform becomes indispensable to efforts to adapt educational programmes to the needs of the labour market. Our current model replicates the Western system, where general learning takes precedence over specialised education…