adminMy Turn with Christopher F. Charamba
Horace Mann, the 19th Century American politician and educational reformer said, “Education then, beyond all other devices of human origin, is the great equaliser of the conditions of men, the balance-wheel of the social machinery.” It is on this premise that in most societies, including Zimbabwe, the provision of quality education is a major priority of the government of the day. Zimbabweans have certainly prided themselves on being some of the most educated people on the continent.
In the post-independence era, Government facilitated the building of new schools across the country and this has resulted in Zimbabwe having one of the highest literacy rates in Africa. But while the ability to read and write is important, as it is the foundation of a certain type of learning, it is by no means an overall measure of intelligence or industriousness.
Zimbabweans have long prized academic study and qualifications. These have been seen as a means to an end. Go to school, study hard, get into university, get a degree, get a job and live a comfortable life. This is the dream that has been sold to many people from the day they entered the education system.
Unfortunately, the reality in Zimbabwe is far from what the masses expect. Aside from the fact that there are few jobs for the thousands of graduates that the country churns out annually, a major fault lies in the system of education as it does not suit the reality of the environment that Zimbabwe finds itself in today.
When Zimbabwe gained independence in 1980, the education space was no longer segregated on lines of race, and many of the Group A schools were now open to the majority black population.
A number of parents, who had the means to, sent their children to these schools, believing in the importance of education and the qualification that their child would receive. In addition to this, as new schools were being built in the rural areas and high density suburbs, they were modelled on the system in existence which prioritised academic learning.
Many parents expected their children to excel academically and as such would discourage participation in extramural activities such as sport or cultural programmes so as not to jeopardise their child’s grades.
Combined with this was the fact that for many children, the centre of learning was only at schools. Outside of that there were few other skills they could obtain be it from their nucleated family or their community.
Prioritising academics was certainly not without reason. Education as Mann pointed out was to be the greatest equaliser. A strong belief was that regardless of where one was raised and the financial background of their family, if they were educated they were destined for success.
However, the unfortunate result of this system is that it produced individuals more book smart with little to no practical training and experience. For that particular time, one must concede, it was what worked.
The system was set up to produce more employees than employers. And with the requisite qualifications, employment was almost certain. Today’s Zimbabwe is much different. The graduate of today has a number of challenges that the graduate of yesteryear did not have. Chief among them is that there are just no jobs and no one creating any.
Much of the ire from this situation has been directed at the Government to provide jobs. The reality, however, is that it is not the role or responsibility of the Government to create jobs, regardless of what political parties might say during election season.
Unfortunate for the Government is that they are today paying for the unstable paternalistic system that they created. Government’s responsibility is to facilitate job creation, that is, to create an environment in which job creation can take place. With this in mind Government should have policies which allow for the ease of doing business and support businesses, often small to medium enterprises and start ups which create employment.
Many would argue that the Government has not achieved this to the satisfaction of the market requirements and hence job creation is not taking place. But one wonders whether the capacity for job creation exists in Zimbabwe.
The first question to ask is how many indigenous, successful black businesses have been created in Zimbabwe since independence? Next would be to look at who creates jobs in a society and question whether the country is producing those type of people.
Of the 59 companies currently listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange, only three were started by black Zimbabweans and 16 were founded after independence. The reality is that very few black Zimbabweans have been in the business of creating new businesses. Granted though, and one takes into consideration the fact that the state of the economy has resulted in many companies going out of business.
That being said the evidence supports the assertion that Zimbabwe traditionally has produced a talented pool of employees, as many of the listed companies have black CEOs and managing directors, but very few entrepreneurs and business owners.
And the reality of the world is that it is the entrepreneurs, innovators and start up businesses who will create jobs. Very rarely do traditional businesses fill this space. Aside of course from when they expand, and one could argue that Zimbabwe has capacity for expansion, but for the most part they are more concerned with protecting the wealth they would have already amassed.
One only has to look to the world today to see that it is new players with massive capacity for job and wealth creation. Some of the biggest companies in the world today with billion dollar valuations such as Facebook, Twitter, Uber, AirBnB, Instagram and Alibaba only came to be within the last 16 years, others only five years ago.
The education system has failed to groom entrepreneurs and innovators. It has taught people that they should work hard to one day run a company, but not to start and own one. Now one does not mean to say that everybody should be an entrepreneur or an inventor. First of all, not everyone wants to be one and like any other profession, not everyone has the capacity to be one.
But the Zimbabwean society must look at itself and agree that there is a dearth of this type of individual and this needs to change for the good of the nation. Key to bringing about that transformation is the need for alternative thinking. Society needs to give an appreciation for industriousness as well as enterprise and realise that book smart is not the be all and end all of success.
In fact, it will take a combination of taught education and an array of acquired skills to instil confidence in the modern businessperson Zimbabwe needs. A change in thinking means moving away from the era of money change dealers and those who made windfalls off diamonds which has influenced societal perception to hold highly individuals who got rich quick and flaunt their instant wealth.
There are few individuals who one can point to today and say this person built a business off an idea and has since created numerous jobs. The lack of such role models will only have a negative influence on future generations especially when the people admired in this society are those who make millions off tender deals without any project to show for it.
The reality for today’s graduate is that the onus of job creation is now on their shoulders. It is unfortunate that the promise of a job soon after studies was, but a dream sold.
Government must now ensure for them, an environment in which this new entrepreneur is allowed to thrive.
Online Reporter