The education that Africa needs
[Applause]
my talk today is about the future
of innovation and education in africa
the future of africa is private very
broad
if and only if we rethink
education because education is the
weapon with which
we can use to change the world and that
is a big statement
because regardless of what you do
education is solid
productive education
is the foundation for everything whether
we were talking
whether we are talking about the
agrarian economy
the industrial economy the information
economy
or the fourth industrial revolution that
is coming up
[Music]
the future of innovation
and education in africa is brand
but there are lots of obstacles
africa is one of the richest continent
but it continues to forest people on end
it all mentions economic social
health and the like so something is
wrong
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something is drastically wrong how do
countries or continents that have almost
nothing in terms of natural resources
compared to africa
how have they propelled ahead
how are they now ahead of africa
in the 60s there was this being talked
about africa rising
in 2018 2019
there was also talk about africa rising
africa has always been rising rise and
rising but has
never taken off the ground in the 60s
the theory the economic theory was at
all
asian countries they have a tough role
ahead of them
thank goodness for africa africa has
enormous resources
the era of organization is over
with africa’s resources fantastic
weather
and energetic and creative people
the future of africa is great africa is
the continent to look
towards asia would have come from
fast forward to critique one africa
is far behind asia
or any other continent for that matter
asia has practically nothing compared to
africa
why is this the case
the quality and value
of education while africa sat
satisfied with a colonial education
system
other countries realized the value of
education great education i’m not
talking about
education of just going through motion
of
reading writing arithmetic attending
classes
and not knowing what you are doing why
you are doing what you are doing
for whom you are doing what you can do
no analytical process thing
system in that process
now the other countries that have
really invested in education have
referred
education because asia also was
colonized but as africa was
but the key difference is that
one community
put a lot of importance and emphasis
and reflects the educational system to
serve their needs
we need to rethink
[Music]
our education system
when we rethink it we must start
with the purpose of our application
system
not by copying cambridge
not by cutting oxford not by copying
mit blindly yes
we need best practices we need to know
what these institutions do
for them to be where they are for them
to be able
to produce competent people
skilled people in science in technology
in business
in law in all the fields that matter
we need to do that but we cannot do that
blindly
we need to pause and rethink why has the
educational system that we have
failed it did not fail because of the
people
africans are very smart i have been all
over the world
and you know it
what has happened
is our educational system from primary
school
all the way to the universities they
take smart
young africans and put them through the
radar of incompetence
of road learning of memorization
of silence of lack of critical thinking
and then jump so by the time a
smartphone goes through that
process of justified listen because i’m
the boss and the teacher
you don’t know anything i tell you what
i want you to know
and i’m telling you useless things
telling you about abraham lincoln
telling you about church hill talking to
you about speak
about park standard livingston
and all these colonizing personalities
automatically knew about the history of
the dogon of money that they are one of
the
best astronomers on earth even as we
speak
without the hubble space station they
were able to map the universe series a
series b
stars and their mastery of astronomy
that they recorded one thousand years
ago was validated
by the hubble space in a telescope
recently and the world is smart how did
these natives
get this technology it must have been
given to them by daily
they’ll never tell you about
achievements of the newbies
the master pyramid builders you hear
that arab spirits in pyramid in
egypt but the one he can’t think i would
think
there is no pyramid in saudi arabia
there’s no pyramid in germany
not one in syria not one in any arab
country
but there are thousands of pyramids in
sudan today
and they knew their troll egypt and the
face of the states in egypt has a
knowledge of an african the features of
an african not the features of an
africans
that no society no community ever built
technology
the most advanced technology in another
society
they’ve always built it at home your
education have had to do that
your education never told you that the
first c-section was performed in uganda
if i were to ask and i have done this
many ugandans
where was the first c-section performed
they have no clue they will say uk the
us
china any place on earth portugal
science technology innovation
creativity is not based on age
it is not based on who is older
it is based on who has an active
imaginative
mind and that is what you need
it is based on people who are so
invested
what is out there in the stars why does
that start blinking
how do we get from here to the moon
how do we get to mars what is beyond our
planet
those are the kinds of questions
people ask and the good educational
system
will help them to find the answers to
those questions
a good educational system will
have teachers who will say
my daughter i don’t know why this thing
is that way let us try and find out
let us look for another why these things
happen
a bad one was a shut up see that we are
when we are doing the history
now you want to show the class that you
know better than me
that’s a bad education system it shuts
the child
down and it made you cry two plus two
four
three plus three six come exam time two
plus two
four three plus three six a good key to
fast
but what does that mean happy what line
how does three plus three become six
although i’d rather
so we cannot count on that kind of
education system
for our future we must retain it
we must rethink it with one main
question in mind to what end
[Music]
what is the purpose of education is it
to acquire
a zillion certificates
so we can go out and say introducing
chief doctor
professor engineer god knows what f d
c d a b d d whatever it is
and allow a big round of applause
but the engineer with all the titles
cannot be on the road is that the
purpose
is the purpose of our education to
glorify
other cultures and the achievement of
others
at the expense of our achievement
our education does not teach us who we
are
it does not glorify our achievements
most africans do not know who the males
are but the most
african world europe you will not find
that in european textbooks
african textbooks are full
of colonial personalities we learn five
colonial personalities we build emphasis
for them
we name schools after that
but not after us because we do not know
who we are
and the colloidal education is purposely
designed for you not to know who you are
so you can become proper natives and
can be colonized the colonial power is
bringing you civilization
it’s bringing you new ways of thinking
there are ways of thinking
you forget about tears
that is not what our educational system
should be
an outcome of a colonial education
because the only jobs available then or
the only thing you can do
or the reason why you went to school is
to go start the colonial government
as an administrator
today in the age of information
technology
when we are looking forward to the
fourth industrial revolution
you can create your own job it’s called
a global village
you can sit in cantala you can see it in
nairobi
as well and be able
to create a global mind create a problem
so the future of africa is right
but we must rethink education we can
relate it in a formal
way and we can rethink it in an informal
way you
as an african what must you do to become
aware of who you are
to become aware of the fact that
education
not guess what is the basis
for which we innovate africa can do it
i am confident it can i will do my part
and i encourage you to do your part
this great continent can contribute
immensely to our own welfare
and to the welfare of others i thank you