In the countries of the world a different picture appeared. Nations may be committed in theory to educating everyone but unable to put this commitment into practice. The reasons why many countries have unsuccessful to attain the Education for All goals in sustainable development in 2015 may differ and include the weakness and frangibility states, situations of nations with the face of conflicts, and poor financial, human and institutional competence. Limited capacity in the state and growing demand motivates private sector to participate in the provision of education. This involvement takes many forms: for-profit initiatives, different kinds of public-private partnerships, allowing local communities to discover and run private school provision or generating low-cost alternatives to public schools, often outside of any government supervision. (Pedró, Leroux, & Watanabe, 2015)
One of the major advancement in Somalia over the past decade has been the growth of the private sector. Economic liberalization and privatization have complemented the rabid localization of governance. The growth of the private sector is directly linked to process of globalization. In the context of weak and unsuccessful public administrations, the private sector is played key role in providing social services and creation the development. As a market economy being alternative for centrally planned economy, development had become market-driven rather than government-led.
Even though the level of privatization in Somalia can only be as unique in the world, to show you that here the private participation in the aspect of education has improved significantly in the products of some educational institutions. These experiences make a case for a revision of the some modes of privatization as an opportunity to improve access to education and its efficiency.
As a result of the collapse of government the Somali economy has achieved a level of privatization that is practically unique. The economic activities, as well as education services are taken care of by the private sector. Education sector in Somalia was severely affected by civil war, individuals and private entities subsequently south ways in which to insure that society could access the education in the face of conflict this mission was crucial important to progress and was highly encouraged. Private schools in Somalia represent 71% of primary schools, 55% owned by communities / parents, and 17% by private individuals. Local administration runs the remaining schools. (UNICEF, 2002).
Schools runs by the Government are insufficient in number and understaffed. Second they were characterizing in interviews as lower in quality than their private alternative. Private assistance, from domestic and foreign religious organizations, as well as community contributions, is frequent financing methods for educational institutions in Somalia. Not be funded from that sources alone, collection of Fees to the parents was essential to the effective functioning in the schools. In 1998/99, 36% of the primary schools in the country as a whole were free or cost less than $12/year, (UNICEF, 1998). Primary school teachers have strong educational background than in other African countries; however, women’s underrepresentation in positions of management and teaching has been well documented. (UNESCO, 2000)
It’s true that the growth of lower levels of education has fuelled the increase in demand for higher levels of education. In response, the higher education sector grew rapidly nevertheless; the privatization of education is not without its critic’s one consequence of this laissez-faire practice is that across the country there is a lack of a regulatory policy to manage standards of the ever increasing number of universities. This may determine the quality line of higher education across Somalia. This is why, many of the graduating students there is lack of solid skills and competence with necessary to enter the labor market.
However The Future and Potentials of the Private University Sector is highly encouraged Conventional wisdom supports these notions of private universities, but the point I have tried to make in this article is that considering the salvaging mission circumstances that produced them in Somalia, private universities are a necessary complement to the state which had collapsed by the 1991. As a result of this, it would be myth to apply the old conventional wisdom to private sector education in Somalia where investment in private universities is not good as investment in the public universities since they haven’t same goals and don’t serve the same destination. In fact, private universities not only hold the key to the future, but at a time when Somali’s are challenged to showcase local best practices and institutions that work, the private university, presents a model worth trying. Such effort should seek to strengthen an identified area of strength, expertise or specialization. SIMAD University in Mogadishu, for example, has carved a niche in the areas of Economics as well as law, engineering, computing science, and business. It has recently added with the establishment of the School of IITE Institute of Innovation, Technology and Entrepreneurship The IITE Institute serves as a hub for nurturing innovation, technology, and entrepreneurship education in Somalia and the region. It will provide project-based learning, workshops, and problem solving case-study competitions to boost local innovations and creativity, IITE Institute of Innovation, Technology and Entrepreneurship; I shall use the example IITE to illustrate the support partnership being advocated in the private initiations.
Innovation and technology contributes to higher level of economic growth and its associated with the modem the state development and is somewhat ‘universal’ but its practice shows different perspectives. from the decades of independence in the 1960s Somalia has generally lagged behind technology business and innovation and has so far been unable to respond the innovation and technology challenges in twenty first century in the world, generally to participate such kind of challenges Just countries need to have trained personnel whose maintained its leadership in innovation as its entrepreneurs launched new products, companies, and industries, and created high-paying jobs. Through the IITE, SIMAD University hopes to build and foster a core of Somali Entrepreneurs who can address and respond to the challenges of innovation and technology from Somali perspective needs that nevertheless serves the collective goals of global innovation. This will enhance domestic technology development, research and innovation in Somalia. In the last moth SIMAD University, in collaboration with the US Mission to Somalia, introduces Empower Next Gen Somalia, a premier one-year coaching program to support the Somali youth to complete a fully-sponsored training program at IITE Institute.
As the university addresses the program seeks to equip young Somalis with the most in-demand skills that will allow them to create opportunities for themselves and also find innovative solutions to address local challenges including the widespread unemployment in Somalia through technology innovation and entrepreneurship. An initiative like this, which is at once academic, policy and problem-solving oriented, provides an entry point for the international development partners to make a bold statement on the private university sector in Somalia.
