The Education System in Swaziland: Training and Skills Development for Shared Growth and Competitiveness

Title

WORLD BANK WORKING PAPER NO. 188

The Education System in Swaziland

Training and Skills Development for Shared Growth and Competitiveness

Mmantsetsa Marope

Africa Region Human Development Department

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ISBN: 978-0-8213-8324-7

eISBN: 978-0-8213-8361-2

ISSN: 1726-5878     DOI: 10.1596/978-0-8213-8324-7

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Contents

Contents

Foreword

Foreword

In 1999, Swaziland articulated a long-term and broad development reform framework in the form of Vision 2022. Since then, several instruments have been developed to give effect to the Vision. The latest of these is the Poverty Reduction Strategy and Action Plan (PRSAP) of 2007. Its overarching goal is to accelerate shared growth and its ultimate outcome is improved quality of life for all Swazis. This goal and, the outcome are to be pursued against formidable challenges of endemic poverty and the highest HIV/AIDS prevalence rate in the world. Among others, the Government has underscored the critical role of the Education, Training and Skills Development Sector (ETSDS) in contributing to the attainment of shared growth and enhanced quality of life for all. However, the adequacy of the ETSDS in playing this expected role had hitherto not been fully analyzed.

We are pleased to jointly present in this report, key findings and recommendations of an analysis of the adequacy of the current ETSDS to effectively make its expected development contribution. The analysis was jointly undertaken by the Government of The Kingdom of Swaziland and the World Bank. It comprehensively covers all levels of the sector, from early child care and development to higher education, including its cost and financing issues.

In addition to the national development reform framework, this analysis derives its strategic orientation from two premises that further point to the central role of the ETSDS in Swaziland’s development. The first premise is that because Swaziland is not natural resource-rich, the acceleration of its growth and global competitiveness will most likely be knowledge and technology-driven. The second premise is that because Swaziland currently has limited internal growth poles, its immediate growth strategy needs to focus on harvesting both national and regional opportunities. Among these regional opportunities is the reality that notwithstanding the global economic downturn, Swaziland is surrounded by fast growing natural resource-rich countries— Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Angola, Mozambique—with acute skills shortages. Swaziland may therefore consider as its niche area, the export of skilled labor first to its neighbors and ultimately to the world. Along similar lines as the Irish development experience, Swaziland’s immediate to intermediate gains would be remittances and the refinement of technical capacities of its exported labor. Its long-term benefit would be the development impact of the brain circulation which will provide the technical leadership required to spearhead knowledge and technology-driven growth.

The analysis concludes that the current ETSDS is inadequate to supply the quality, mix and threshold of skills required to effectively spearhead knowledge and technology driven shared growth. Key weaknesses pertain to poor strategic grounding, low access especially beyond primary education, inequity of access and outcomes in favor of the nonpoor, acute resource inefficiencies, doubtful development relevance and insufficient delivery capacity, including capacity to respond to HIV/AIDS.

The report proposes prioritized actions for redressing identified weaknesses. It acknowledges that the financing of proposed reforms will be a challenge, especially in the context of global financial crisis and the limited external financial support for the sector. It is expected that the sector reform program emanating from this analysis may be used to leverage some of the much-needed external financing. These constraints notwithstanding, diligent implementation of recommended sector reforms would put Swaziland on track toward using its ETSDS as an effective tool for supporting the national development reform agenda.

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments

This synthesis report was written by Mmantsetsa Marope. It is based on background reports produced by a joint Government of Swaziland and World Bank technical team comprising Mmantsetsa Marope (Team Leader), Gwendolyn Simelane, Zethu Ntuli, Dudu Hlophe, Thulie Sihlongonyane, Alzinah Khumalo, Israel Simelane, Mboni Dlamini, Peterson Dlamini, Comfort Mndeble, Thembinkosi Mambe, Bernadetta Ndunguru, Tonic Maruatona, Richard Johanson, Robert Stowell, Erik Thulstrup, Ibrahim Dione, Sanjay Argawal, Martin Gustafsson, Cristina Romero, and Servaas van der Berg.

The team acknowledges with gratitude, the unwavering support and enduring guidance of the former Minister of Education Honorable Titus Msibi, the current Minister of Education, Honorable Wilson Ntshangase, the Minister of Finance Honorable Majozi V. Sithole, the Minister of Economic Planning and Development Honorable Prince Hlangusemphi, the Minister of Health Honorable Benedict Xaba, the former Principal Secretary of Education Goodman Kunene, the current Principal Secretary Patrick N. Muir and the Vice Chancellor of the University of Swaziland Professor Cisco Magagula. Special thanks to Mr. Mboni Dlamini, Director of Planning, Ministry of Education, who tirelessly co-managed this work with Mmantsetsa Marope.

The work presented in this report would not have been possible without the joint financial support of the Government of Swaziland, the World Bank, and the Norwegian Government EPDF, which is administered by the World Bank. The European Commission also financed the national consultative fora, which were critical in building national consensus on the conduct, methodology, scope, coverage, and final outputs of this analysis. Mr. Derek von Wissell, (Director of the National Emergency Response Council on HIV/AIDS (NERCHA), also made invaluable contributions.

This report also benefited from reviews and comments by colleagues at the World Bank’s Human Development Department of the Africa Region, particularly Luis Benveniste and Eugenia Marinova. Invaluable comments and inputs were also received from the broader World Bank’s Swaziland Country Team particularly Phindile Ngwenya. Special thanks go to the peer reviewers of this report, Mr. Robin Horn, Mr. Arvil Van Adams, and Mr. Pablo Gonzalez. Their technical comments were vital in shaping this report and in enhancing its quality. Ms. Cristina Romero provided invaluable support throughout the analysis, including the formatting and copy editing of this report.

Acronyms and Abbreviations

Acronyms and Abbreviations