Hello Africa,

Education is the most important driver of socio-political and economic growth. Modern society relies on education to build functional members that contribute to progress and growth. Generally, education involves studying to acquire knowledge and a deeper understanding of the characteristics, functions, systems, and activities that contribute to socioeconomic and political progress in a society. It contributes to the growth and human development, through the acquisition of knowledge that results in personal development and freedom, productivity, financial security and stability, higher self-esteem, and reduction in the level of poverty and social and economic inequality. 

Studies have shown that societies with higher rates of educational attainment have better and more stable political and economic environments, better overall health, and standards of living. The major reasons why education benefits society are, it helps individuals to gain knowledge and skills, cultivates critical skills, improves productivity, and discovers talents, that contribute to societal growth and development. United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 4 highlighted education as the key driver to reducing social and economic inequality, empowering members of society to live more healthy and sustainable lives and break from the unending circle of poverty. 

Education is an integral part of economic growth and development in global societies. It contributes to the creation of a highly skilled workforce and labor productivity, critical for improved welfare and standard of living. Al-Shuaibi (2014) asserted that education is the most important issue in the life of an individual. It helps to build character, mindset, and thinking skills, and helps to prepare an individual for life experiences and challenges. 

Education is the centerpiece of growth and development in modern society. It fosters a skilled workforce that raises the level of personal growth, and productivity, enriches social mobility, innovation, and progress, and it is critical for individual and societal progress. Education is the most powerful tool to addressing global challenges, reducing the levels of poverty, and social and economic inequality, and creating a more just, equitable, and sustainable world.

 


Global literacy rate refers to the percentage of people, in a population of given age group, who can read and write. Statistics shows that as of 2023 the literacy rate for individuals, males and females,  aged 15 and over is 86.3 percent. However, this varies significantly between the developed and developing countries.

The global average school enrollment rate is 89.2 percent. In North America, the United States had one of the lowest enrollment rates, among the OECD countries. Sub-Saharan Africa has the lowest enrollment rates in the world at 51.77 percent.  In Figure 4, Europe has the highest rate at 107 percent, with South Asia at 105 percent. At 71 percent, Sub-Saharan Africa has the lowest average number of years completed, and this is compared to the global average of 91 percent. Life expectancy at birth, among Sub-Saharan Africans is 60 years, compared to the global average of 71. Studies have shown that there is a positive relationship between education and life expectancy and that each additional year of education lowers the death rate by 2 percent. More education raises awareness and resources that contribute to a healthy lifestyle.

The higher the proportion adults with low prose skills, the lower the GDP per capita, and the wider the inequality gap. The literacy rate amongst African countries differ, ands hence the varied Gini coefficient between these countries,



A high literacy rate is a major source of skilled labor, it raises the level of productivity, creates economic opportunities for a larger population, and contributes to the GDP. A low literacy rate is a cost to nations in lost productivity. Literacy rates drive productivity levels, and a larger proportion of a nation’s workforce, engaged in jobs requiring the use of reading and numeracy skills tend to be more economically productive. Cree et al, World Literacy Foundation (2022), in its final report, observed.

In summary, developing countries in Africa can raise literacy rate by embarking on embracing the use of technology, as a way to meet global competitive standards; reforming the current curricula to include technological changes, based on the needs of the society; public-private partnership is key to driving growth in literacy rate, through the encouragement of private initiatives; improvement in the living and compensating conditions of literacy staff that would drive commitment in the educational sector; developing countries of Africa should embrace innovation in the educational sector through the introduction of digital education, domestic funding initiatives, and other support programs that targets learning; and the lack of political will has always been the bane of literacy growth in Africa. Governments should be more committed to literacy programs through the increase in budgetary allocation to the educational sector, by at least 5% of its GDP.



Over time, the difference in literacy growth in African countries, explains the significant difference in the rate of literacy between these countries. A high literacy rate impacts human capital accumulation, drives productivity growth, and ultimately raises GDP. It reduces the levels of inequality, and access to educational benefits, and helps in addressing access to employment and learning outcomes. Countries of Africa have experienced unprecedented growth in the levels of literacy in the last two decades, and despite this growth trend, and heavy investment in education, a significant proportion of the labor force still grapple with the incidence of low literacy and numeracy levels. For productivity growth, investment in literacy and numeracy should target labor market demands that contribute more to productivity and economic growth. However, the statistics for literacy rate in Africa is a stark contrast to the developed countries of the world, and as of 2022, in sub-Saharan Africa, more than 1 in 3 adults cannot read and write,  over 65% of children between the ages 5 to 9, do not go to school, and over 40 million youths between the ages 15 to 24, are illiterates. To eradicate illiteracy in Africa, leaders must focus on reforms, raise the levels of expenditure on education, involve the private sector in educational participation, and ultimately implement systemic changes on how the educational system can raise productivity, support growth, and economic development, in the long term.

enomaojo.blogspot.com (2025)

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