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Home Rohen d’Aiglepierre
Rohen d’Aiglepierre recently joined the Research Division of the Agence française de développement as an economist in charge of human capital. He has a PhD in Economics, specialising in education development economics. His research focus is on the effectiveness of public aid, educational choices, the efficacy of educational establishments, exclusion and inclusion policies, public-private partnerships and private investment in education.
African countries have worked hard to improve children’s access to basic education, but there’s still significant work to be done. Today, 32,6 million children of primary-school age and 25,7 million adolescents are not going to school in sub-Saharan Africa. The quality of education also remains a significant issue, but there’s a possibility the technology could be part of the solution. The digital revolution currently under way in the region has led to a boom in trials using information and communication technology (ICT) in education – both in and out of the classroom.
Arab-Islamic education in general and Koranic schools in particular are largely excluded from programs advocating for education for all in Africa. Yet this education concerns a large number of children, many of whom are considered as “out-of-school” by the public authorities. Consequently, recognising its existence, importance and diversity is a prerequisite for building a dialogue framework between all stakeholders. The starting point is to go beyond certain clichés.
The question of private education constitutes a core issue, given the commitments made to education, current education conditions and the many challenges for the future in Sub-Saharan African countries. The state of private education in the region requires providing it with a better framework and giving it more incentives in order to improve access to education and its quality and equity. An in-depth analysis of the situation of States, households, private education operators and the financial sector is essential in order to modernize public policies on private education (d’Aiglepierre, 2013).
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